Starting from Loomis and Other Stories

by Hiroshi Kashiwagi, Tim Yamamura (Editor)

A memoir in short stories, Starting from Loomis chronicles the life of accomplished writer, playwright, poet, and actor Hiroshi Kashiwagi. In this dynamic portrait of an aging writer trying to remember himself as a younger man, Kashiwagi recalls and reflects upon the moments, people, forces, mysteries, and choices—the things in his life that he cannot forget—that have made him who he is. Central to this collection are Kashiwagi’s confinement at Tule Lake during World War II, his choice to answer “no” and “no” to questions 27 and 28 on the official government loyalty questionnaire, and the resulting lifelong stigma of being labeled a “No-No Boy” after his years of incarceration. His nonlinear, multifaceted writing not only reflects the fragmentations of memory induced by traumas of racism, forced removal, and imprisonment but also can be read as a bold personal response to the impossible conditions he and other Nisei faced throughout their lifetimes.

Genres: World War II, Memoir

186 pages, Paperback

First published October 15, 2013

Reviews

[Pamela Okano · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charming book of short vignettes and essays about the author's life as a Japanese American and nisei, both in Tule Lake, a WWII concentration camp, and before and after. Particularly affecting were the chapters on being a No-No boy and renunciant, going to the soda fountain with a Filipino American, and what being a Nisei has been like. Since the author's life in many instances was similar to my parents' lives, I often found myself wondering whether my parents had had similar experiences and reactions. Indeed, the author speaks of meeting with other Japanese Americans with whom he would not have thought he had anything in common, but then he discovered they did in fact have a lot in common (gee, how many nisei men were, when they were young, "houseboys", a job I'm not sure even exists anymore?). Since many nisei have been reluctant to speak of their younger days (particularly during WWII), this book offers a rarely seen insight into the Japanese Americans' greatest generation.