About the Book:

Gordon Parker is an eager eighteen-year-old Australian boy desperate to fight for his country, and Nobuko ‘Cherry’ Sakuramoto is a sixteen-year-old girl struggling to survive in Japan in the aftermath of World War II. But when they fall in love, they change the course of history.

When Gordon arrives in Japan, he expects ruthless samurai, angry Japanese men ready to kill Australians at every corner. Instead, he finds Cherry, terrified of ex-enemy soldiers, a survivor of the atomic bomb. Against all the rules and all the odds, they fall in love. But when Gordon discovers the White Australia Policy prevents Cherry coming home with him as his war bride, he does what any 20-year-old soldier would do. He vows to fight. Leaving Cherry alone and pregnant in post-war Japan, Gordon has to convince his family to accept his marriage and wage a desperate campaign against a xenophobic and war-scarred government to allow his wife and children to come home.

A sweeping story spanning seven years and two countries reeling from the aftermath of war, At the Foot of the Cherry Tree is a powerfully moving novel about faith, trust, and the power of a love that alters history – written by Gordon and Cherry’s granddaughter, accomplished scriptwriter, Alli Parker.

Published by HarperCollins Publishers Australia

Released August 2023

My Thoughts:

Rating: 4 stars

Why I chose it: It’s based on a true story, written by the granddaughter of the main characters.

Themes: War, displacement, racism, xenophobia, Australian immigration history, love, family.

For fans of: Novels set in the post WWII era that focus on social and political issues.

The good: There was a lot that was good about this one. I love that it was written by the granddaughter of Cherry and Gordon, making it such a personal project for the author. The author notes at the end detailing the family history were fascinating and my favourite part of the novel. That’s not to say I didn’t enjoy the novel, far from it, but it was so wonderful to hear the ‘real’ story behind the story and the way in which Cherry and Gordon’s marriage changed history, in terms of changing the law to allow Japanese war brides into the country. Cherry was also the first Asian person to be naturalised as an Australian. I’m thrilled that Alli Parker decided to write this story and share it with everyone. One of the other parts of the story I really appreciated was the focus on life in a war-torn country, post war. So many war stories end at the time of peace, but I’m always fascinated by the way in which a country and its people build their lives and society back up from the brink. I wasn’t aware that Japan was occupied for so long after the war by Australian and American troops. The devastation of the atomic bomb was well realised within this story too, with a harrowing chapter whereby Cherry recollects the day the bomb hit in Hiroshima. One other thing I loved – the title of the book is what Cherry’s Japanese name means translated into English. How lovely is that?!

The not so good: It’s heavy on the romance in the start, giving the impression that it’s a romance novel set against the backdrop of war, which is not a favourite trope of mine. Fortunately, it moves on from this rapidly.

In brief: Set-in post-war Japan and Australia, spanning seven years, At the Foot of the Cherry Tree tells the story of a young man’s fight to change the immigration laws in Australia preventing him from bringing his Japanese war bride home. It’s a thought-provoking and deeply moving story of love set against a backdrop of Australian political history. Based on a true story, it’s an ideal novel for book clubs, offering up many topics for discussion. I listened to it on audio and enjoyed it immensely. The narration was fantastic.