Stuff contributed by gasagasagirl
As You Like It
Chapter Three—The Perfect Cut
Naomi Hirahara
My feet are swollen and sore, and it’s all because of pork belly. In Japan we had a special distributor which brought our okonomiyaki restaurant fresh cuts two times a week. They were sliced thin like American bacon with just the right amount of marbling. The slices cooked perfectly on …
As You Like It
Chapter Two—Trade Secrets
Naomi Hirahara
A-ra, I think, struggling to turn off the hot water shower faucet. My uncle. The last person in the whole wide world that I want to talk to.
As You Like It
Chapter One—Throwaway Girls
Naomi Hirahara
“I guess we are throwaway girls,” Risa says, helping me to unpack one of my boxes. I do not know why it is taking her so long. That box has my special okonomiyaki cooking tools—my extra shiny and sharp spatulas, my special knives to slice cabbage extra thin. It will …
Death of an Origamist
Chapter Ten—The Innocents
Naomi Hirahara
Surprisingly, after learning that her flirtatious relationship with Kenji the bodyguard was based on secrets and lies, Sachi felt liberated. She hadn’t even considered any kind of romance after her husband Scott had died, but here her heart and body had been willing and open. She just felt thankful that …
Death of an Origamist
Chapter Nine—Better Than She Seems
Naomi Hirahara
The two Orange County detectives then left Sachi’s hotel room, taking Kenji the bodyguard with them. “We want to ask you more questions,” Detective Flanagan told Kenji. “We want a minute-by-minute account of what you were doing while you were away from Mr. Buck the evening he died.”
Death of an Origamist
Chapter Eight—Personal Matters
Naomi Hirahara
Jag Griffin sputtered like a malfunctioning garden hose. “Old lady, are you saying that I killed Craig Buck? You seemed incompetent before, but now I see that you’re delusional.” There were several of them in the hotel lobby, facing the two Orange County detectives.
Nanka Nikkei Voices
The Alan Hotel
Naomi Hirahara
For journalists, there are stories, perhaps only a handful, that never leave you. That’s the way I feel about the Alan Hotel in Little Tokyo.
Death of an Origamist
Chapter Seven—I Spy—You
Naomi Hirahara
Sachi never saw herself as an undercover agent type, but she definitely had to always chip away at the truth. She had been an emergency room nurse her whole professional life. Her job was to quickly size up a situation and to ask the right questions—“what did he eat today?” …