Here’s another book I picked up just because the cover art looked interesting: Under the Blood-Red Sun, by Graham Salisbury. This is a YA book, historical fiction.
The story follows a Japanese-American boy in his early teens, living in Hawaii during World War II. Of course, for the first half of the book, the war is only background noise, because the U.S. isn’t involved yet. But after Pearl Harbor is bombed, Tomi starts noticing people treating him differently because he’s Japanese. Soldiers start asking questions about Tomi’s family, especially his grandfather and father. His father, out on a fishing boat when the bombs hit, is arrested on his way back into shore and put into a detainment camp.
This story does a great job of showing what war is like for the people on the ground, especially in areas where it might not hit every single day. It also explores what racism and fear can do to a community, and where those fears come from. This is a beautiful book. ♦
Advertisements Share this:
