Snow Falling On Cedars

'Snow Falling on Cedars'

David Guterson

After a slow start I eventually became engrossed in the story and found it hard to put the book down. Published in 1995 the book slid into the return shoot at the library where I work and I wondered why I  had not read it before now.

The story involves the trial of a local fisherman for the murder of another. Both men  live in a small close knit community on San Pedro, an island  in Puget Sound. The time frame  is post WWII  and as the story line unfolds we are given detailed information about each character and their relationships with one another. We learn of forbidden love between  Ishmael  and Japanese /American Hatsue, of childhood friendships  soured by prejudice and anti- Japanese sentiment during and post WWII, of a resentment between two families over the ownership of a small piece of land. We are left wondering what exactly did happen on the boat that night?

I loved it!