Songs of Willow Frost by Jamie Ford

The plight of the Chinese Americans in depression era Seattle is the background for Jamie Ford's second novel, Songs of Willow Frost.  Once again Ford has made the central characters of his story two "second class" citizens.  William Eng is a Chinese boy left orphaned at the age of five by his single mother who he knows did not want to abandon him.  Willow Frost, or Liu Song, is the troubled mother who is powerless to keep her son.   She is a victim of both a US governmental system that believes only fathers have rights where children are concerned and the Chinese culture where a man could rape and entrap a woman because the male gender was totally powerful over females. Ford slowly reveals the sad story of Willow and her son.  Through perserverance the two eventually find each other, but there is little doubt their lives will not be easy in the aftermath of all they have been through.  The historic background of this novel shows a dark time in our culture too.  Ford obviously cares deeply for the Chinese Americans of the early 20th century, but his story also enlightens readers to the lives of other less fortunates like Native Americans, physically handicapped and poor people in general.  Readers will sympathize with all the characters and their longing for a home and a family to love.  This novel will affect anyone who reads it.  Hopefully, we will gain more empathy for those less fortunate in the end.