"Novels like Asha Lemmie's debut allow me to experience the high of the endurance athlete-consumed by a far-flung odyssey, coming up only for a sip of water... I inhaled Fifty Words for Rain in one day. I had no choice." -The New York Times Book Review
"Usually I take my time with books, but I found it very hard to step away from this story. Filled with mystery, music, sadness and adventures, Fifty Words for Rain flies by-yet lingers long after... Anyone who has ever lost a friend-or, more happily, found a family-will love this beautiful story."-Malala Yousafzai, Nobel Peace Prize-winning activist
"Fifty Words for Rain is a lovely, heartrending story about love and loss, prejudice and pain, and the sometimes dangerous, always durable ties that link a family together. This coming of age tale about a biracial girl in postwar Japan is an assured, confident debut by a talented new author." -Kristin Hannah, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Nightingale
"A hugely compelling debut about Noriko, a mixed race girl growing up in Japan after WWII. Moving and honest and at times intense, Asha Lemmie takes us on an emotional journey that spans years, one which sheds light on Noriko's family traditions, prejudices, struggles, triumphs and ultimate transformation. This is a well-researched and eye-opening tale, told with compassion that breathes through each page." -Abi Dare, New York Times bestselling author of The Girl with the Louding Voice
"[An] epic, twisty debut... Sometimes bleak, sometimes hopeful, Lemmie's heartbreaking story of familial obligations packs an emotional wallop." -Publishers Weekly
"Lemmie's debut novel is a gripping historical tale that will transport readers through myriad emotions... Lemmie intimately draws the readers into every aspect of Noriko's complex story, leading us through the decades and across the continents this adventure spans, bringing us to anger, tears, and small pockets of joy. A truly ambitious and remarkable debut." -Booklist
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