c8_19 's review for:

Speak, Okinawa: A Memoir by Elizabeth Miki Brina
3.0
medium-paced

The first descriptive word that popped into my head for this book was "unfiltered," which isn't necessarily a bad thing. The hang-up, for me, comes from the fact that I approached this book expecting to get commentary and information on an Okinawan war bride's experience and not, say, so much insight into Brina's sex life/history. Does it seem like writing this book was therapeutic for the author? Yes, but, selfishly, I didn't pick it up to read about someone processing their personal life like this.

Still, though I have my thorns, there's some important conversation being made here regarding Brina's mother's situation and how Brina grew up viewing her mother as "other" and "lesser" just because she wasn't this classic picture of "American." I also appreciate learning more about Okinawa and how some of its history was presented here.