The Turtle House by Amanda Churchill
Minnie and her granddaughter Lia are unforgettable protagonists, whose grit and grace will inspire you. Together, they find a way through in this gripping debut.”—Vanessa Hua, author of Forbidden City Moving between late 1990s small-town Texas to pre-World War II Japan and occupied Tokyo, an emotionally engaging literary debut about a grandmother and granddaughter who connect over a beloved lost place and the secrets they both carry. It’s spring 1999, and 25-year-old Lia Cope and her prickly 73-year-old grandmother, Mineko, are sharing a bedroom in Curtain, Texas, the ranching town where Lia grew up and Mineko began her life as a Japanese war bride.
Both women are at a turning point: Mineko, long widowed, moved in with her son and daughter-in-law after a suspicious fire destroyed the Cope family ranch house, while Lia, an architect with a promising career in Austin, has unexpectedly returned under circumstances she refuses to explain. Though Lia never felt especially close to her grandmother, the two grow close sharing late-night conversations. Mineko tells stories of her early life in Japan, of the war that changed everything, and of her two great a man named Akio Sato and an abandoned Japanese country estate they called the Turtle House, where their relationship took root.
As Mineko reveals more of her early life—tales of innocent swimming lessons that blossom into something more, a friendship nurtured across oceans, totems saved and hidden, the heartbreak of love lost too soon—Lia comes to understand the depth of her grandmother’s pain and sacrifice and sees her Texas family in a new light. She also recognizes that it’s she who needs to come clean—about the budding career she abandoned and the mysterious man who keeps calling. When Mineko’s adult children decide, against her wishes, to move her into an assisted living community, she and Lia devise a plan to bring a beloved lost place to life, one that they hope will offer the safety and sense of belonging they both need, no matter the cost. A story of intergenerational friendship, family, coming of age, identity, and love, The Turtle House illuminates the hidden lives we lead, the secrets we hold close, and what it truly means to find home again when it feels lost forever.
Review:
I knew nothing about this book going into it and ended up really liking it. This emotionally engaging and beautifully written novel explores the bond between a grandmother and a granddaughter.
The story centers around 25-year-old Lia Cope and her 73-year-old grandmother, Mineko (aka Minnie). Lia was chasing her dreams of becoming an architect in Austin, but something happened that caused her to abandon a job at a prestigious firm and move back to her small Texas hometown. Mineko’s house just burned to the ground, and she has moved in with her son and his wife (Lia’s parents). Now Lia and Mineko have found themselves sharing a bedroom. Despite their differences and the distance that has always persisted between them, they begin to connect through late-night conversations, with Mineko opening up about her early life in Japan and the secrets she carries.
As Mineko shares her story of her first love, who was killed in the early days of WWII, and how she met Lia’s American military grandfather and became a war bride, Lia starts to gain insight into her grandmother’s pain and sacrifice. Mineko’s stories of The Turtle House – a sacred place she used to sneak away to as a kid – innocent swimming lessons, a love lost too soon, meeting an American soldier, and then leaving her home country all deepen Lia’s understanding of Mineko’s past.
When Mineko’s children decide to move her into an assisted living community against her wishes, she and Lia devise a plan to recreate Mineko’s beloved Turtle House to replace the lost ranch house. This joint endeavor becomes a beacon of hope for Mineko and reignites Lia’s love of architecture and design, forcing her to finally confront the secret she has been carrying and take back her life.
What I loved most about this novel was how easily I was able to lose myself in it. The descriptions are very rich and vibrant. From the landscapes of small-town Texas to the streets of pre-World War II Japan, the vivid imagery allows readers to immerse themselves in the settings and feel as though they are walking alongside the characters. This, along with the author’s attention to detail and ability to convey complex emotions, creates a truly immersive reading experience.
The book alternates between past and present and focuses mainly on Lia and Mineko. Our characters – especially Mineko – live through some pretty devastating things, but despite the challenges they face, there is an underlying sense of hope and resilience, even when it feels like all may be lost. It is the perseverance of these women that leaves the reader feeling inspired and deeply moved by the end of the book.
While I liked Lia’s character and felt for her and what she endured, it was Mineko who stole the show for me. I loved how headstrong she was as a child, and I also loved seeing bits of that same headstrong young girl pop up now and then 60+ years later in the spry elderly woman she has become. Despite enduring many hardships and even more heartbreaks in her life, nothing was going to keep her down.
Overall, I felt this was a remarkable debut novel. The bond between Lia and Mineko is beautifully portrayed. I loved watching their bond strengthen and how, in the end, they saved each other. This is a book that is filled with hope and will stay with you long after you’ve turned the last page.
