Alone Again - Monthly magazine Bungeishunju, the Book review

Alone Again: The Loss of My Beloved Husband Pete Hamill

The book begins with the line, ‘From the time my husband passed away in August 2020 until about two years later, everything reminded me of him.’ It is a sketch-like memoir where author Fukiko Aoki reflects on her 33 years with her husband.

Aoki made her debut with Goodbye with a Leica, which depicted war photographer Kyoichi Sawada. She then moved to the U.S. to help launch “Newsweek Japan.” Her husband, Pete Hamill, was a columnist and novelist who was a leading figure in ‘new journalism’ and known in Japan as the author of the movie The Yellow Handkerchief directed by Yoji Yamada.

Their meeting was nothing short of fateful. In March 1984, during an interview with Hamill at the Palace Hotel in Tokyo for a project by Shokun! Magazine, Aoki was coincidentally asked the next day, ‘Would you like to work in New York?’ When she informed Hamill of this offer by letter, he responded with, ‘What wonderful news!’ This led to their marriage after several years of twists and turns.

Aoki learned about New York and its people from Hamill, who loved them dearly. They too are the ‘protagonists’ of this book.

‘His friends were not only journalists and writers but also countless others, including people in the film industry (etc.) He also befriended immigrants working in barber shops and coffee shops, as well as neighbors like apartment janitors and parking attendants.’

Hamill was described as someone who integrated literature into journalism:  ‘I began writing the stories included here in the 1960s. At that time, I was covering wars, riots, assassinations, and demonstrations (etc.) However, even in an era where crowds seemed to expel individuals, I was aware that there were still people living more modest dramas,’ ‘The themes are moments of crisis in life, love and its absence, urban loneliness, and the weight of an encroaching past.’ (From “New York Sketchbook”)

Hamill, once a heavy drinker and playboy, seemed to have found an ‘eternal home’ with Aoki. ‘Even my daughter from a previous marriage noted how much he changed before and after our marriage.

He would say, ‘The greatest happiness in my life was marrying Fukiko.’ I believe that was his true feeling (laughs). He was sincere and had a boyish heart. Simply being together made us happy.’

The book’s title is inspired by Gilbert O’Sullivan’s famous song. It was a song Aoki promoted during her early career at a music publisher. The book concludes with, ‘Alone Again, I find myself alone once more.’