The Children of Topaz: The Story of a Japanese-American Internment Camp Based on a Classroom Diary

By Michael O. Tunnell and George W. Chilcoat

Book Overview

The Story of a Japanese-American Internment Camp: Based on a Classroom Diary.During World War II, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on December 7, 1941. Hardworking and patriotic, Japanese Americans were as stunned by the attack as the rest of the country. Still, the U.S. government questioned their loyalty, and within hours of the invasion, FBI agents searched their homes. On February 19, 1942, President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, giving the army the power to establish military zones in the U.S. "from which any or all persons may be excluded as deemed necessary." As a result, thousands of Japanese Americans were ordered to leave their homes and move to war relocation centers.Lillian "Anne" Yamauchi Hori was among the unfortunate Americans removed to an internment camp in Topaz, Utah. During her time there, she taught a third-grade class that kept a daily diary. Although the words and drawings in the twenty entries excerpted here reveal the injustices experienced by the children, the students were remarkably resilient. They collected desert pets, put on plays, and celebrated holidays. With invaluable commentary and archival photographs, Michael O. Tunnell and George W. Chilcoat have placed the diary in a historical context, expanding on the details of daily life in a war relocation camp.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0823412393
• ISBN13: 9780823412396
• Release Date: April 1996
• Publisher: Holiday House
• Length: 74 Pages
• Weight: 1.08 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 7.9" x 10.3"
• Age Range: 9 to 12 years
• Grade Range: Grades 4 to 7

Customer Reviews

Amazing book

This is an amazing and powerful book. I used it as research for my own historical novel and found it to be not only immensely useful, but touching as well. I learned so much about the dignity of the Japanese Americans and their fight to maintain joy under the worst of circumstances. This book is a must read.