Shizuko's Daughter by Kyoko Mori

Mori, Kyoko. Shizuko's Daughter. New York: H. Holt, 1993. 

224 p.    ISBN: 978-0-449-79433-2

     Shizuko’s Daughter is a novel written by Japanese-American author Kyoko Mori.  The novel depicts the adolescent struggles of Yuki, a young girl growing up in Japan, from her childhood through her adolescence.  However, Yuki’s once simple life is complicated in the first chapter when her mother, Shizuko, commits suicide.  Despite her love for her daughter, Shizuko leaves Yuki to live with her cold, stubborn father and, shortly thereafter, his new wife.  Yuki’s situation lends itself to a story that is emotionally startling as well as enticing.  The reader cannot help but sympathize with Yuki even when it seems as if no one else will.  Eventually, Yuki’s maturity and life-experience as a young adult brings her to a better understanding of her situation, her mother’s death and her place within her family.
    

     Although dramatized in the context of the novel, Yuki’s feelings of loneliness and confusion are feelings felt universally by adolescents, specifically middle-schoolers.  Along with this intensity, the novel also describes Yuki’s experiences as the track star, struggling with stubborn teachers, making friends and eventually feeling confused about love.  These aspects of the novel make it relevant to a middle school classroom despite the foreign setting and culture.  While it might be slightly more enjoyable for girls, I think that the novel could surely be taught in a co-ed classroom.  In addition to the plot, the novel is also rich in imagery, symbolism and motifs as well as many other literary devices.  It presents a wonderful opportunity for students to become invested in a story while also learning about literary devices and their role in the quality of the novel.  Overall, I found the novel to be highly teachable as well as compelling for a middle school setting.