Author Sarah Suzuki Gives an Insider View Into the Minds of Japanese Americans In Imperfect Circles

Oct. 29, 2013 - PRLog -- To Sarah Suzuki, her bi-racial heritage has long been a burden. She identifies more with her mother’s close-knit European-American family than with her father’s Asian one – divided by circumstance that, as a teenager, she has little interest in discerning or understanding. Until a once in a lifetime reunion with her Japanese-American relatives sparks her curiosity and sends Sarah on a search for her lost roots that will occupy her for years.

The book includes collections of narratives by family members, some with amazing stories of conviction.  “One that truly haunted me was the story of the life of my grandfather, Normand,” Suzuki said during a recent interview.  “It took great courage to understand that what he did to my father was out of a sense of compassion, even though he had no idea how much it would cause my father to suffer. There is a reason that my grandfather and his peers were called The Greatest Generation,” she continued.  “I could only begin to hope that I would have the focus and strength of conviction to follow my own values in the face of such adversity.”

As Sarah combs through the stories of her relatives she begins to build a narrative of her family’s history, and learns more than she ever intended to in the process, including some things about herself.

Her strength is admirable, as told in her many other narratives. “My journey is one that has led me towards activism – where I feel that I can exact the greatest agency,” she said.  “For each voice I offered for my Japanese American relatives, there are hundreds of Japanese Americans – and countless Asian Americans – who have yet to give voice to their histories. I made a commitment long ago that my life would be dedicated to helping those who had seemingly been silenced by the Western Canon.”

Americans enjoy seeing themselves as the heroes of World War II, but without disparaging the good that was done, we can’t overlook the mistakes made, which is all too often the case. Sarah invites us into her family’s past so completely that you will be unable to help wondering what happened next when you put the book down.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Sarah Suzuki is a writer and psychotherapist and the author of "Imperfect Circles." She is the founder of Chicago Compass Counseling, LLC. She lives in Chicago, IL.

Title: Imperfect Circles

Author:  Sarah A. Suzuki

Publisher:  CreateSpace

ISBN:  978-1492289852

Pages:  460, Paperback/Kindle

Genre:  Non-Fiction, Memoir