The Good Daughter: A Memoir of Losing my Father and Finding Home

Taguchi, Kumi. The Good Daughter: A Memoir of Losing my Father and Finding Home. 2025. 304p. ISBN 9781925750799.

Growing up, Australian broadcaster Kumi Taguchi perceived her Japanese father as a difficult, silent, and excessively frugal figure, who became largely absent after her parents' divorce when she was younger. Living with her Australian mother and despite attempts to sever their limited connection, Kumi found it impossible to deny this part of her identity. When her father passed away, her complex emotions about him and her Japanese heritage remained unresolved and tangled.

Over time, Taguchi began to understand the profound influences that shaped her father, particularly his harrowing experiences as a child during wartime Japan, and the cultural heritage that both captivated and burdened her. This led her to embark on a journey to Japan, seeking their family home in an effort to reconcile with her past and lay some ghosts to rest. This evocative exploration delves into Taguchi's internal conflicts—the tension between duty and freedom, her relationships, and the challenge of finding a sense of belonging between two distinct worlds—culminating in a candid and resonant narrative about self-acceptance.

Readers who want to learn more about what it is like navigating two very different worlds will appreciate Taguchi's story and what she learned in the process about her family, her ethnic heritage, and herself.