Inheritors

This book fundamentally centers the Japanese experience of World War II, the before, during, and after, but does so without constantly referencing the Western story so many of us are familiar with. Serizawa doesn't shy away from unpacking the problematic and systematically harmful actions the Japanese took in order to assert power. Some make concerted choices to participate and be complicit in imperialism. Other characters I empathized with, watching them make impossible decisions amid hardship. 
 
Serizawa is deft at weaving complex storytelling and analysis into beautiful prose that feels labyrinthine. If you've ever read a book told from multiple character voices but they all sounded alike, and you were annoyed, then good news – the voices in this book all sound different. She also jumps forward in time – not to current day, but to the future, and envisions what the world could look like. 
 
As I keep turning around the events that transpire within this family, I wondered: 
- How do we inherit identities? 
- Is to inherit also to take? Is it more taking than giving? 
- What does it mean to inherit trauma? 
- Family trees are like spokes that all feed back into one trunk, but what happens when breakage happens (intentional or otherwise)? 
 
“Luna,” “Train to Harbin,” and “Pavilion” are the stories in this book that defined the reading experience for me.

Ultimately, I was also curious about the dearth of books - at least in English - that are about World War II that pertain to non-Western experiences. 
 
Thank you to Doubleday Books for gifting me a finished copy of this book. It did not influence my review and I was not compensated.