Fifty Words for Rain: A GMA Book Club Pick

A Novel

By: Asha Lemmie

Narrated by: Robin Eller, Siho Ellsmore, Katharine Lee McEwan, Jeena Yi, Sarah Skaer, Louis Ozawa

A Good Morning America Book Club Pick and New York Times Bestseller!

From debut author Asha Lemmie, “a lovely, heartrending story about love and loss, prejudice and pain, and the sometimes dangerous, always durable ties that link a family together.” —Kristin Hannah, #1 New York Times–bestselling author of The Nightingale

Kyoto, Japan, 1948. “Do not question. Do not fight. Do not resist.”

Such is eight-year-old Noriko “Nori” Kamiza’s first lesson. She will not question why her mother abandoned her with only these final words. She will not fight her confinement to the attic of her grandparents’ imperial estate. And she will not resist the scalding chemical baths she receives daily to lighten her skin.

The child of a married Japanese aristocrat and her African American GI lover, Nori is an outsider from birth. Her grandparents take her in, only to conceal her, fearful of a stain on the royal pedigree that they are desperate to uphold in a changing Japan. Obedient to a fault, Nori accepts her solitary life, despite her natural intellect and curiosity. But when chance brings her older half-brother, Akira, to the estate that is his inheritance and destiny, Nori finds in him an unlikely ally with whom she forms a powerful bond—a bond their formidable grandparents cannot allow and that will irrevocably change the lives they were always meant to lead. Because now that Nori has glimpsed a world in which perhaps there is a place for her after all, she is ready to fight to be a part of it—a battle that just might cost her everything.

Spanning decades and continents, Fifty Words for Rain is a dazzling epic about the ties that bind, the ties that give you strength, and what it means to be free.

Surprise!

Wonderful story weaving the tale of a young fragile Japanese girl born into a family of power and standing. The characters are well developed with rich scenery and movement all the way to the end. Wonderful first book by Asha Lemmie. I look forward to more coming by this young novelist!

Not Pearl S Buck

It took a while for the story to grab me. It felt a little contrived and I felt like the author was trying to emotionally manipulate the reader. However, it held my attention.

Great story

Wonderful book that takes us to another place in time. I feel sure this is one I’ll read again.

Interesting story bud sooo sad!

Interesting story about Japanese nobility and culture, but my goodness this story is terribly sad. However, the story and strength of the main character kept me interested throughout the entire book.

Mixed feelings!

Parts of this novel are very interesting, some parts drag on and others were incredibly frustrating! It also seemed as the author ran out of time and could not fully wrap up the ending. The story had the makings of being an excellent read but fell short in the execution!