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Journey to Topaz

Journey to Topaz

Author: Yoshiko Uchida
Illustrator: Donald Carrick
Genre: Historical Fiction
Grade: 4th grade and up


The story took place during World War 2 and it is about the Japanese American evacuation. The story is about Yuki, an 11-year-old Japanese girl, who is living in America during the bombing of pearl harbor. This event changed her life forever. Her father was taken by the FBI, while Yuki, her mother, and her brother were taken to a concentration camp in Topaz, Utah. The remainder of the book is about her life in the camp and how her and her family adjusted to their new environment. There were major changes that occurred in the story, like her brother enlisting for the army, and the death of her grandfather. There were also happy moments like her friendship with Emiko. In the end, Yuki’s father became a victim of suspicion because he talks a lot to Caucasian which made the community suspicious of him and decided to send his family and him off. Yuki now is moving to the next city and beginning her journey in a different place.

This is a good book for upper grade level for it is about the Japanese concentration camps and the World War 2. It is a good story because it gives insight of what is like to live in the concentration camp and what people go through. This is very informative about what goes on during the war and how people are treated and reacted. I will highly recommend this book to the students because it teaches the reader how to be brave and kind to one another. The book is mostly words and only a few sketches. The drawings are charcoal drawing and are drawn with marks and patterns.



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