Synopsis: Jeanne Wakatsuki was seven years old in 1942 when
her family was uprooted from their home and sent to live at Manzanar internment
camp--with 10,000 other Japanese Americans. Along with searchlight towers and
armed guards, Manzanar ludicrously featured cheerleaders, Boy Scouts, sock
hops, baton twirling lessons and a dance band called the Jive Bombers who would
play any popular song except the nation’s #1 hit: "Don't Fence Me
In." Farewell to Manzanar is the
true story of one spirited Japanese-American family's attempt to survive the
indignities of forced detention . . . and of a native-born American child who
discovered what it was like to grow up behind barbed wire in the United States. (from the back of the book)
Review: Told from the
viewpoint of Jeanne Wakatsuki, this covers her experience as a child in the
Internment camps for Japanese-Americans during the Second World War. Jeanne
left California at seven and spent over three years in the camps. Not only does
she speak about the trip there, and life in the camps, but she speaks intimately
about how being in the camps effected the rest of her life. This is what makes
the book so powerful. Not only to we walk through the camps with her, but we
walk through the camps after. Several times she states that her Father died in
the camps, although he lived for twelve years after. This is a profound statement
in that illustrated how the camps followed those imprisoned there long after
the camps were reduced to rubble and dust. When I learned about this part of our history,
we never spoke about life after, so this was the first time I understood the
lasting effects of what our government did to our citizens. Given today’s
particular social and political climate, this book is a vital read.
Bookmarks: 4 of 5
Awards: None
ISBN: 0-553-27258-6
Year Published: 1973
Date Finished: 2-8-2017
Pages: 203
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