Bridge Of Scarlet Leaves: Book summary and reviews of Bridge Of Scarlet Leaves by Kristina McMorris

Bridge Of Scarlet Leaves Summary

Los Angeles, 1941. Violinist Maddie Kern's life seemed destined to unfold with the predictable elegance of a Bach concerto. Then she fell in love with Lane Moritomo. Her brother's best friend, Lane is the handsome, ambitious son of Japanese immigrants. Maddie was prepared for disapproval from their families, but when Pearl Harbor is bombed the day after she and Lane elope, the full force of their decision becomes apparent. In the eyes of a fearful nation, Lane is no longer just an outsider, but an enemy.

When her husband is interned at a war relocation camp, Maddie follows, sacrificing her Juilliard ambitions. Behind barbed wire, tension simmers and the line between patriot and traitor blurs. As Maddie strives for the hard-won acceptance of her new family, Lane risks everything to prove his allegiance to America, at tremendous cost.

Skillfully capturing one of the most controversial episodes in recent American history, Kristina McMorris draws readers into a novel filled with triumphs and heartbreaking loss - an authentic, moving testament to love, forgiveness, and the enduring music of the human spirit.

At what point in the story do you believe Lane and Maddie's relationship truly became love? (5 responses)
I believe it was at the beach when Lane told her that his parents had arranged a marriage for him, and then he asked Maddie to marry him. When she thought she might be losing Lane. She had snuck notes into his pockets plenty of times conveying... - lucyb

Did your impression of Kumiko change once she revealed her past? Have you ever encountered a similar situation in which a discovery altered your perspective of a person? (5 responses)
Yes it did. I believe that everyone has something going on in their life that is not visible to others. Until we truly know a person and their background or situations are made known, we might view them differently, sometime better, sometimes... - lucyb

Did your impression of Kumiko change once she revealed her past? Have you ever encountered a similar situation in which a discovery altered your perspective of a person? (5 responses)
I agree wholeheartedly with the others who have responded that I felt much more positively toward Kumiko, and that I really enjoyed watching her emerge from her solitude after she shared her past. I also marvelled at how so often we don't react the... - rachelb

Do you feel that Lane cared more about salvaging his relationship with TJ than building his ongoing love with Maddie? (2 responses)
My feeling is that Lane did what he did was for Maddie at and not jus T.J.....he knew that all Maddie had left in terms of her family was T.J. In Japanese tradition, family was what mattered most! He sacrificed his own future happiness, to save... - nancy f.

Do you think TJ should have been so protective of Maddie? (4 responses)
I think TJ took his role way too seriously. It's one thing to look out for a younger sister but he went way too far. Maddie proved over and over again that she was a strong person. While her brother was stuck in grief and denial, she went on with... - janen

How did each major character fulfill the role of a bridge? (4 responses)
I agree with both of them, Maddie and Lane built the most bridges, both socially and culturally. The book really defined how bias and prejudice lurk under the surface and how it is so ready to be unreleased when something catastrophic happens. In... - janen

How do you feel about Maddie's hesitation early in her relationship with Lane? Would you have made the same daring choices that she did over the course of the war? (5 responses)
I think Maddie's choice was brave but I know nothing would have deterred me from being with my young love. As Maddie did I too followed my husbands path before I pursued my own. Times have changed! - peg

How do you feel about the USA's internment camps for Japanese Americans? (14 responses)
I thought a great deal about "Bridge of Scarlet Leaves" as I read Dave Eggers' nonfiction book "Zeitoun," which is about a New Orleans Muslim family's experiences in the throes of and after Hurricane Katrina. A critic called the family's... - catherinem

In general, do you think career should take second place to relationships, or vice versa? (10 responses)
Absolutely agree with sylvia career should always take 2nd place to family! - carmelina

In Lane's situation, would you have enlisted in the U.S. military? (7 responses)
In Lane's situation, I probably would have felt that I had no other choice in order to prove my patriotism and loyalty to his country. He like so many other people of color when oppressed, enlist to improve their situation and to prove themselves... - sylviaj

Kristina McMorris answers questions about Bridge of Scarlet Leaves (17 responses)
Ooh, good question, Martha. I imagine thriller writers face this situation all the time, with creating their pure-evil villains. In my case, there hasn't yet been a character I've written that I haven't cared for -- given that I know their... - KristinaMcMorris

What are your impressions of The Bridge of Scarlet Leaves? (29 responses)
I liked it quite a bit but wish it had slightly more depth to it, especially pertaining the to the Japanese internment camps. - dianes

What do you think about the ending? (5 responses)
Hi ioc, I'd love to address your concern about my understanding of the Distinguished Service Cross and Toro Nagashi. As a huge admirer of our country's veterans and my father's Japanese culture with which I've been raised, please rest assured I... - KristinaMcMorris

What is the significance of the title? (4 responses)
Thanks...I'm going to go back and reread that poem... - sharalynnep

What was the most surprising or intriguing piece of information you learned? (8 responses)
I had read before about the internment camps, so I had heard about the non-Japanese spouses and gangs. I was surprised though about the forced conscription as mentioned above. After all we had done the the Japanese Americans and then to force... - laureens

Which character undergoes the most change? Whose journey was your favorite? (4 responses)
I have to agree with all of the comments above and add one more person who changed and that was the woman who was going to help fund Maddie's Juillard experience. She screamed at Maddie because of Lane right after the Japanese attacked Hawaii.... - Santa Fe Cowgirl

Bridge Of Scarlet Leaves Reviews

"A sweeping yet intimate novel that will please both romantics and lovers of American history." - Kirkus Reviews

"Though the prose is too often hackneyed, this gripping story about two 'brothers' in arms and a young woman caught in between them hits all the right chords." - Publishers Weekly

"Readers of World War II fiction will devour [this] poignant, authentic story..." - Jenna Blum, international bestselling author of Those Who Save Us

"An unputdownable love story... [McMorris'] attention to detail is meticulous, the East meets West clash between cultures - revelatory." - Lesley Kagen, New York Times bestselling author of Good Graces

"Impeccably researched and beautifully written... I highly recommend this book!" - Karen White, New York Times bestselling author of On Folly Beach

"Fascinating and moving... an absolute pleasure to read." - Whitney Otto, author of How to Make an American Quilt

"A beautiful, timeless love story... McMorris' words reach right of the page and grab at your heart." - Sarah Jio, author of The Violets of March

"An epic romance... I followed Maddie and Lane's fast-paced journey to unexpected places with my breath held and fingers crossed." - Margaret Dilloway, author of How to Be an American Housewife

"This wonderful World War II novel is written with a wealth of insight that, presumably, comes from the author's own experiences growing up in a Japanese-Caucasian family. Although McMorris does not shy away from exposing the mistreatment of men, women, and children, who were guilty of nothing more than having Japanese ancestry, neither does she settle for simplistic judgments. Instead, she gently probes the complexities of human relationships…. The "bridge" in the title draws attention to the musical imagery that is skillfully woven into the novel, adding depth and elegance while highlighting themes of hope and forgiveness. Rich in historical detail, peopled with well-developed characters, and spiced with tension and drama, Bridge of Scarlet Leaves is a novel to savor, and then to share with a friend." - The Historical Novels Review, Nancy J. Attwell

"Kristina McMorris, the author of Letters from Home, amazed me with Bridge of Scarlet Leaves. I loved it. I’m still in awe of how well written it is. I was awakened to so many different aspects and trials of that time period that I wasn’t aware of prior to reading the novel. McMorris has a unique ability to portray the emotions of an era we didn't belong to, through words.... I now have a whole new outlook and respect for those involved in WWII after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Bridge of Scarlet Leaves is a must read for 2012. You won't be sorry!" - Night Owl Reviews Magazine, Tiffany Schlarman

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Bridge Of Scarlet Leaves Reader Reviews

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Rated of 5 by JaneN
Bridge of Scarlet Leaves
This is a story that needs to be told, especially now when people are so divided. It is a story of two people, Lane and Maddie, who fall in love and marry the day before Pearl Harbor. It would be hard enough to start anew life in the best of times, they had to do in the worst of times. A good book well written and thoroughly enjoyable. A great book for book clubs as there is so much to discuss here.

Rated of 5 by Dorothy T.
Good read about a bad time
This is not the first book I have read about the internment of Japanese and Japanese Americans during World War II and the plight of POWs in Japanese camps, but it is definitely more heart-wrenching, as it includes the pain and regret of things said and done, or not said or done. But there is also a great deal of hope and healing for the characters. Kristina McMorris shows a true gift for character development, and her arrangement of the story keeps the suspense building. She handles well the conflict of cultures and how her characters build the bridges to span the divide. You don't need a book club to appreciate this one, but book club members will appreciate the discussion it will inspire.

Rated of 5 by JEM
Bridge of Scarlett Leaves
I found this book to be engrossing from the minute I picked it up. The book takes you through the lives of a number of people slightly before the day Pearl Harbor was bombed and continues on to the end of the war.
Needless to say, this saga pits American families, and American Japanese families against, and on occasion with each other throughout the time before , during, and after.
What was particularly interesting to me was that during much of the book I was thinking I like it,it it's an easy read, but it feels like so many books I have read in this genre.
However-sometime in the last third of the book, I had not realized just how captured I was with the story and the characters. Turns out, and I never do this, I actually shed tears a few times towards the end.
I also enjoyed the infusion of some Japanese words which made me feel like an American learning a language that I had no knowledge of.Having had to do this with my in-laws,who spoke little English when I met them, this was very realistic.
I would recommend this book highly. I can't wait to read the author's other book now!

Kristina McMorris Author Biography

Kristina McMorris is an award-winning author and graduate of Pepperdine University. A weekly TV host since age nine, including an Emmy Award-winning program, she lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and two sons. Bridge of Scarlet Leaves is her second novel, following her widely praised debut, Letters from Home.

Link to Kristina McMorris's Website