Japan and Japanese-Americans...

Of Nightingales that Weep
Karen Paterson

One of Paterson's many popular books, Of Nightingales that Weep, is a story of a young Japanese girl who learns that whatever choice she makes, she cannot run away from her family honor.


To learn more about this book, go to:
Of Nightingales that Weep Link


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So Far from the Bamboo Grove
Yoko Kawashima Watkins

During World War II, a Japanese girl, living in Korea with her family try to flee, to return to Japan. Unable to return to Japan, the girl and her family become refugees in Korea. Based on her childhood, Yoko Kawashima Watkins portrays a vivid story of a family during the war.

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Japanese-Americans...

Kira-Kira
Cynthia Kadohata

Set in the 1950's in Georgia, this is a heart-warming story about two sisters and their family. In Japanese, kira-kira means glittering, shining. And that is what Katie's sister is to her. This is a story of love and hope, and is very touching.

To read more about Kira-Kira, go to:
Kira-Kira Link

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When the Emperor was Divine
Julie Otsuka

In the author's first novel, Otsuka tells the emotional story of a Japanese family, living in California, who is moved to an internment camp after the attack on Pearl Harbor. The story is narrated in five points of view, including that of the eleven year old daughter.

Part of the VOYA review: "Their middle-class, close-knit Japanese American family could have been any of the thousands uprooted from their homes in the Pacific coast and sent to internment camps in distant states during World War II "for the sake of national security" and "for their own protection." Otsuka eloquently chronicles in five chapters, one from each family member, their reactions as they are removed from their friendly neighborhoods and thrust into a strange new world where they are now the enemy."

To learn more about this book, go to:
When the Emperor Was Divine Link

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