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Cynthia KadohataBy Jamie Kee

Novelist Cynthia Kadohata has been describedby some as a Japanese American writer. She findsthis misleading to a degree. Kadohata does explorethe problems encountered by someone of mixedheritage. However, she feels that her novels haveuniversal applications. Kadohata's novels, writtenfor children and adults, are coming-of-age storiesthat tackle such issues as feeling different andstruggling with one's identity.

Cynthia Kadohata was born in 1956 in Chicago, Illinois. She is asecond-generation Japanese American. Although being of Japanesedescent, both her parents were born in the United States. Growingup, Kadohata lived in a number of places, including: Illinois,Michigan, Georgia, Arkansas, and California. By the age of nine, shehad already lived in three states. Kadohata eventually settled in LosAngeles, but by then her parents were divorced. Kadohata later usedher frequent moving about as an element in her first novel.

Growing up as one of the few families of Japanese descent invarious small towns, Kadohata often felt like an outsider. As an adult,she later explored this issue in her writing. Kadohata was a smart,hard-working student who loved to read. She especially enjoyedbooks featuring animals. Because she moved often, Kadohata hadproblems transferring credits in high school, so she eventually leftschool. As a high school dropout, Kadohata worked at various jobs,once at a department store and another time at a fast-food restaurant.Finally, at the age of eighteen, Kadohata was admitted to LosAngeles City College. She later transferred her credits to theUniversity of Southern California where she earned a bachelor'sdegree in journalism.

When Kadohata was in her early twenties, she had an experiencethat changed her life. While walking down a street in Los Angeles, acar jumped a curb and hit her, leaving Kadohata with a brokencollarbone and a badly injured arm. This experience made her realizethat life was unpredictable because anything could happen at any

given time. Kadohata moved in with her sister while recovering andused this time to rediscover her love of learning. She also beganwriting stories and submitting them to such magazines as the Atlanticand the New Yorker.

Kadohata submitted more than forty stories to various magazinesover the next four years, but her stories were continually rejected.Finally, in 1986 the New Yorker accepted her short story titled"Charlie O." More stories continued to be accepted by othermagazines, all of which would later become chapters in Kadohata'sfirst novel, The Floating World. As Kadohata submitted more stories,she also worked on improving her writing skills. She took classes atColumbia University and the University of Pittsburgh. In 1988literary agent Andrew Wylie read one of Kadohata's stories andcontacted her. The following year Kadohata's first novel, TheFloating World, was published.

Kadohata's The Floating World (1989), written for adults, tellsthe story of twelve-year-old Olivia, a Japanese American girl living atransient life. While growing up in the years following World War II,Olivia must live in tight quarters with her parents and her physicallyand emotionally abusive grandmother. Olivia eventually leaves "thefloating world" of motels and truck stops. Michiko Kakutani of theNew York Times praised Kadohata's ability to "handle painfulmoments with humor and sensitivity." He also wrote that "TheFloating World marks the debut of a luminous new voice in fiction."

In 1992 Kadohata published her next novel, In the Heart of theValley of Love, a futuristic novel set in Los Angeles in 2025. Thenovel explores a city in disorder due to tension between two groups,the "haves" and the "have-nots." The main character in the novel isnineteen-year-old Francie, a girl with an Asian and Africanbackground. Kadohata's next novel for adult readers, The GlassMountains, was published in 1996. This fantasy fiction novel tellsthe story of Mariska, a young lady whose happy life is disruptedwhen war approaches her peaceful village.

Following her three novels for adult readers, Kadohata's editorsuggested that she try writing a children's novel. This suggestion ledto Kadohata's widely commended Kira-Kira, published in 2004. Inthis novel written for late elementary grades and older, ten-year-oldKatie Takeshima and her family move from Iowa to Georgia in the1950s. Katie is a first-generation Japanese American, and authorKadohata uses her own memories to describe Katie's life. Kira-Kirawas widely praised and won the 2005 Newbery Medal.

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Following the success of Kira-Kira, Kadohata published morenovels for older children. Weedflower, published in 2006, is anotherof Kadohata's novels influenced by her own life. Weedflower is thestory of a Japanese family during WWII who are moved to aninternment camp on the Colorado River Indian Reservation.Kadohata's next children's novel, Cracker!: The Best Dog in Vietnam(2007), is partially seen through the eyes of a German Shepherd whois one of several dogs said to have saved lives during the war inVietnam.

Kadohata's latest novels are Outside Beauty (2008) and AMillion Shades of Gray (2010). Outside Beauty is the story ofShelby and her sisters who have been raised by a very nontraditionalmother. When the family is unexpectedly torn apart, the determinedgirls learn to live life on their own terms. In the novel A MillionShades of Gray, thirteen-year-old Y'Tin, the youngest elephanthandler in his village, must learn to cope with his life which has beencompletely overturned by war.

Author Cynthia Kadohata's personal history as a JapaneseAmerican and her own experiences have been the inspiration in hernovels. She has been quoted as saying, "Sometimes I can't rememberif something has happened to me or to my character. My memoriesbecome their memories, and their memories become mine."Kadohata loves to travel and gets her "writing energy" from seeingthe country. Cynthia Kadohata has clearly found her best audienceas a children's novelist, and her success should continue to soar.

Cynthia Kadohata

Questions

1. Which of Kadohata's novels won the Newbery Medal?

A. Kira-KiraB. The Floating WorldC. WeedflowerD. Outside Beauty

2. In which of Kadohata's novels is there tension between the"haves" and the "have-nots"?

A. A Million Shades of GrayB. The Floating WorldC. In the Heart of the Valley of LoveD. Kira-Kira

3. Kadohata's Weedflower is a novel about what?

A. a story that is partially seen through the eyes of a GermanShepherd

B. a Japanese American girl living a transient lifeC. a Japanese family during WWII who are moved to an

internment campD. the story of sisters who have been raised by a very

nontraditional mother

4. Who is the main character in The Glass Mountains ?

A. Mariska, a young lady whose happy life is disrupted bywar

B. Olivia, a girl who lives in tight quarters with her parentsand abusive grandmother

C. Katie, a first-generation Japanese American girl whomoves from Iowa to Georgia in the 1950s

D. Shelby, a girl who has been raised by a nontraditionalmother

5. Which of Kadohata's novels tells the story of a young elephanthandler whose life is completely overturned by war?

A. In the Heart of the Valley of LoveB. A Million Shades of GrayC. WeedflowerD. The Floating World

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6. Which of Kadohata's novels takes place during war?

A. A Million Shades of GrayB. The Glass MountainsC. WeedflowerD. all of the above

7. Which of Kadohata's books began as multiple short stories?

A. A Million Shades of GrayB. The Floating WorldC. Kira-KiraD. Cracker!: The Best Dog in Vietnam

8. What does Kadohata often use as inspiration for her novels?

Write your own short story based upon a childhood experience.

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Research and write a report on the discrimination faced by people ofmixed nationalities.