Analysis Of Hotel On The Corner Of Bitter And Sweet By Jamie Ford

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Historical fiction is a genre that can bring made up stories into the real world using the events and places of the world and its history. In Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, Jamie Ford uses such real world situations like the growing jazz culture and clubs, the tension in America during WWII, and the unfair prosecution of the Japanese-Americans at the time to make her story real and allow us to truly connect with her story and characters.

Making a reader feel what it's like in a different time period is very important in a historical fiction novel. One way in this novel the author does this is by including the character of Sheldon and showing the importance of Jazz in the main character Henry's life. While talking to Keiko he explains why he likes it by saying, "Maybe because it's so different, but people everywhere still like it... Plus, my father hates it" (78). His simple interest in this type of music and his rebellious thoughts help show Henry as a real person, and it shows his desire to be different than his parents and how he has different thoughts than them. Also just by using a real Seattle jazz artist like Oscar Holden made the story feel alive. While playing a minimal part in the plot, the jazz clubs and its part in the novel make the story come alive. …show more content…

It helps build setting along and it makes the story seem real as Henry's father reads to him about it or when Henry is just thinking about it. WWII greatly changed many Americans' lifestyles as shown when Will, one of Henry's classmates, doesn't go to school for a week because "His father had been killed while serving..." (111). The way the military conflicts and President Roosevelt's action are talked about really allows the story to fit into the real

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