Publisher's Synopsis
A layered life story that encompasses long term citizenship of two different nations, Rock at the Roadside retains reader interest throughout. The author does not shrink from giving voice to the tragedies and hardships of wartime and postwar years. Accounts of her childhood experiences and those of her family are moving and convincing. They provide yet another example of how the Japanese genre of tanka, when compellingly written and expertly translated, can cross boundaries of time, place and of diverse cultures to be shared around the world. Insights into the challenges the author faced upon migrating from the country of her birth constitute another strong component of the book. Realities of older age emerge but so too the benefits of tackling something new; maintaining confidence and purpose.