Rating: 3/5
This book was okay. It takes a different approach than I've seen for the Japanese internment camps during World War II, and I liked that aspect of it.
The story is about a half-Japanese boy and his white mother that are sent to an internment camp because the government suspects the father of being a spy. The treatment of the boy before going into the camp and when he is there is similar because he is a bit of an outsider in both cases.
I enjoyed the illustrations very much. They captured the feeling of the story well and work for the target audience, middle grade readers.
What didn't work for me was the motivation the protagonist has for some of his actions. There is some reference to bullying and peer pressure, but the other influences in his life seemed like they would outweigh both of those based on what is presented. I felt like this could have been expanded upon to make his choices more plausible. I also would have preferred to see more of the conditions within the camp and how they changed as the war progressed.
No comments:
Post a Comment