Set in Hawaii and Las Vegas, Father of the Four Passages tells the story of Sonia Kurisu, a streetwise young mother, who struggles to raise her child, Sonny Boy, as she seeks to come to terms with the three children she aborted. In sequences alternating between the past and the present, we learn of Sonia's early life -- her abandonment by her father and mother; her contentious relationship with her sister, Celeste; her string of bad lovers; her problems with drugs and alcohol -- and of her wish to reconcile with her father and make something of her life by being a good parent to her son, who has begun to show signs of developmental problems. A haunting novel about fathers, forgiveness, spirituality, and solace, Father of the Four Passages is Yamanaka's most ambitious work to date.