From the dust jacket: "During World War Two, a Community called Manzanar was hastily created in the high mountain desert country of California, east of the Sierras. Its purpose was to house thousands of Japanese Americans. One of the first families to arrive was the Wakatsukis, who were ordered to leave their fishing business in Long Beach and take with them only the belongings they could carry. For Jeanne Wakatsuki, a seven-year-old child, Manzanar became a way of life in which she struggled and adapted, observed and grew. For her father it was essentially the end of his life.

At age thirty-seven, Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston recalls life at Manzanar through the eyes of the child she was. She tells of her fear, confusion, and bewilderment as well as the dignity and great resourcefulness of people in oppressive and demaaning circumstances. Written with her husband, Jeanne delivers a powerful first-person account that reveals her search for the meaning of Manzanar."

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

Farewell, little book. Enjoy your travels!

I was just about to journal this when I discovered the newspaper article tucked in the back of the dust jacket - interesting! When I first saw the title, I thought that this had also been made into a movie - now I see from the back inside dust jacket flap that it was a tv drama (which I think I saw a long time ago). So I am very interested in reading a first hand account - thank you so much for sending me this book!

This was a really good book - I read it in one sitting. As a child Jeanne lived the experience but didn't really understand all the nuances and implications, so I liked that we then followed her through her teenage years just after the internment and then as an adult, when she returns for a last visit. I found her farewell visit to Manzanar incredibly moving and touching and I hope it brought some closure if any can be found.

The book (and later tv drama) has benefited all by educating those to young to know about this part of history or those (like me) who never heard the details of what really happened.

Adding this to the I've Been Everywhere book box - happy reading!

Chosen from "I've Been Everywhere" Bookbox

I never got to read this book, hopefully someone else will enjoy it.
In the Little Library.