I Hotel

 

Karen Tei Yamashita's remarkable book I Hotel begins with the line

So I’m Walter Cronkite, dig?

 

I Hotel is a long book (more than 600 pages) that is divided into ten novellas that, taken together, tell a story of the yellow power movement in the San Francisco Bay area between 1968 and 1977. Yamashita offers the following explanation of how she chose to structure the book:

... the structure I chose for the book is based on such multiple perspectives, divided into ten novellas or ten "hotels." Multiple novellas allowed me to tell parallel stories, to experiment with various resonant narrative voices, and to honor the complex architecture of a time, a movement, a hotel and its people (p 610).

Despite its length, I did not find I Hotel to be difficult. If anything, most of the novellas are very dialogue heavy, making them easy to follow. I read a paper version of the novel and listened along with the Libby audiobook version. Given the length and weight of the text, I would have appreciated an electronic version, if for no other reason than being easier on the wrists. 

I would rank I Hotel up there with other great books from Asian American writers like Charles Yu's Interior Chinatown. And I would also rank is as one of the long books -- check out Emily Temple's list for more suggestions -- I have enjoyed in recent years like Lonesome Dove, Ducks Newburyport, Mason & Dixon, Earthly Powers. JR, Skippy Dies, Fingersmith, or 1Q84.

It might take some effort to find a copy of Yamashita's book, but it is worth your time.