I had never read anything by this author before, actually I had never even heard of this author, but think this would be a great addition to our school library. I don't think we have any books covering the Japanese being sent to internment camps during WWII. I don't remember how old I was when I found out, but I remember being shocked that our country did that to people who had not given the government any reason to distrust them. This particular book is about Emi and her family, minus the dad, who had already been sent away, leaving their house to move into a prison camp because they were Japanese. I think the book captures the feeling well of someone being forced to leave their house and belongings behind and the inhumanity of making them move into a horse stall. Emi's friend Laurie gives her a gold bracelet to remember her by before they leave, but Emi loses it somewhere during the move and is unable to find it. Her mom shares with her that even though the bracelet and their house is gone the memories stay in their hearts. I thought Uchida did a great job at weaving the human side of this story in with the factual side. I recently read another adult book on this subject titled On the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, which was also a good read. There aren't too many titles out there on this subject, especially not children's books. Other books by this author include The Best Bad Thing, A Jar of Dreams, and Journey Home, which all seem to take place in California during the Depression.
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