Book Club Suggestions
We are delighted that you would consider Destination: Neys as a selection for your book club. Below are some questions you could use to guide your discussion and some suggestions for ambience. Enjoy!
Also, please feel free to email me (Cathy) if you have any further questions pertaining to the book or us as authors:
cathy.miyata@gmail.com
Possible Discussion Questions:
- Why do you think the authors decided to write this book?
- What was your most surprising insight regarding the subject matter?
- Did you at any point in the story have a visceral/gut/ emotional reaction to what was happening?
- Did you find the book accessible to read or challenging?
- Why do you think there is no recorded information or even any novels or short stories written about the Neys Internment Camp?
- What knowledge can you add to the incidences portrayed or the era depicted in this novel?
- Do you feel this was an honest portrayal of the camp?
- As a result of this book, do you have a desire to learn more about the subject matter?
- What do you think was our purpose in writing this novel?
- What major themes stood out for you?
Ambience
Sharing food and drink are very important in Japanese Canadian culture. Before partaking, say "itadakimasu" (ee -tah -dah-key-mus) aloud. This honours the food and drink and shows gratitude.
Drinks:
We suggest you serve hot green tea. It is soothing and very healthy! Serve the tea with both hands and receive the tea with both hands. (You can purchase a decaffeinated brand in your local grocery store if you prefer). Traditionally, milk and sugar are not added to the tea. Smell first, hold the cup in both hands to savour the warmth and sip slowly.
If it is a hot day, the tea can also be served iced.
Snacks:
Several Japanese treats are now available in our local grocery stores. We recommend:
- Poky Sticks- stick biscuits dipped in chocolate or strawberry flavored icing
- Mochi Ice Cream- a western variation on traditional mochi . Oiishi desu!
- Ichiban instant noodles- quick and easy to make. Add chopped vegetables or chicken pieces if desired. Eat with chopsticks!
- Wasabi flavored peas- nutritious and spicy!
More Traditional Foods:
- Sushi- a wide variety of sushis are available even at your local grocery store. I like the ones with sashimi (raw fish). Kaz hates them!
- Udon- noodle soup. Slurp the soup and be noisy!
- Ramen- also a noodle soup. Can be bought dried.
- Mochi- very traditional! A pounded rice ball stuffed with sweetened red bean paste. Very different texture!
Novel Fare:
If you wish to create a more realistic experience that was encountered by our characters in the POW camp, we recommend serving the following:
- Baloney with a small cup of white rice
- Spam
- Canned peaches
- Canned potatoes
- Dandelion tea
- Blueberries
- Blueberry jam on toasted white bread
- Boiled eggs
- Oatmeal (without maggots)
Our Favourite Japanese Canadian Recipes
(These are indeed originally Japanese recipes but have been influenced by Western tastes).
Onigiri (Stuffed rice ball)
We both love to eat onigiri at a picnic or as a snack while on a long car ride. We wrap them in waxed paper and keep them in a cooler.
Ingredients:
- Japanese white rice (cooked and still slightly warm)
- Tuna salad (tuna and mayo, salt and pepper)
Instructions:
- Make a pot of Japanese white sticky rice and let cool a bit. (Two cups of rice will make 4-6 rice balls)
- When cooled enough, dampen hands with salted water, scoop up rice in one hand, and form into a ball the size of a baseball.
- Hold ball in palm of hand and with the other hand, poke a hole into the centre and slightly widen the hole with your finger. Be careful not to poke your finger through the wall of rice. (You can buy a plastic onigiri mold online to help shape the rice. The mold is usually in the shape of a triangle).
- Fill the inside with tuna salad.
- Close up the hole with more rice. Lightly salt the outside. Can also wrap the onigiri in seaweed and/or sprinkle with sesame seeds.
Okonomiyaki (Cabbage pancake) Cathy's favourite
Yield 8 med sized pancakes
Pancake Ingredients:
- 1 pkg dashi (powdered fish stock)
- ½ cup hot water
- 4 cups shredded cabbage (I cheat and use coleslaw mix)
- 1/2 thinly sliced onion
- ¼ cup flour
- 4 eggs
- I tsp salt
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 2 tins crab meat (optional)
- 6-8 chopped shrimp (optional)
Sauce Ingredients:
- 4 Tbs sweet BBQ sauce (If you don't have BBQ sauce substitute with Tbs Worchester sauce, 1 Tbs ketchup & ½ Tbs sugar)
- 2 Tbs soya sauce
Instructions:
- Dissolve dashi in water (as per package instructions).
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and cornstarch.
- Add eggs and flour mixture to cabbage and stir. (Note: the mixture will be very loose, not like a regular pancake batter. If it's very dry, add another egg or some more water).
- Add in onions, shrimp and crab. Stir.
- Heat a nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Brush the skillet with olive oil and use a ½ measuring cup to scoop the cabbage mixture into the skillet. (It's ok if it doesn't seem cohesive, it'll bind together as the egg cooks). Flatten gently with a spatula so that the mixture is about 1/2 inch thick.
- Cover and steam 3-5 minutes until bottom is lightly browned. Brush on sauce and flip. Steam another 3 minutes. Brush on more sauce.
- Serve hot and drizzle on more sauce if needed. Can also drizzle on thin strips of squeezed mayo. Optional: Top with sesame seeds, pickled ginger, and shredded seaweed. Serve hot.
- Freezes well.
- (You might need to wipe out the skillet and brush on more oil between pancakes).
Okazu (stir fried meat, vegies over noodles or rice) Kaz's favourite
Ingredients:
- 2 cloves diced garlic
- 2 Tbsp oil (may want to use more)
- 10 leaves Nappa (approx.)
- 1 pkg Rice noodles (vermicelli noodles work well)
- I pkg Tofu (medium firm)
- 1 pound Hamburger
- ½ cup Sugar
- ½ cup Soya sauce
- ½ cup water
- Eggs (one per person)
Instructions:
- Wash and chop nappa into bite sized pieces.
- Drain & rinse tofu, cut into bite size pieces.
- Boil water and put in rice noodles to soak. Set aside.
- Fry garlic in oil, add hamburger, brown meat.
- Add nappa to cooked meat and steam (with lid on pan) until nappa is cooked.
- Add water, soya sauce, and sugar. Stir well.
- Drain noodles and stir into meat mixture.
- Add tofu.
- Fry eggs.
- Serve Okazu in a bowl with fried egg on top.