Sylvia & Aki

by Winifred Conkling

Sylvia never expected to be at the center of a landmark legal battle; all she wanted was to enroll in school.

Aki never expected to be relocated to a Japanese internment camp in the Arizona desert; all she wanted was to stay on her family farm and finish the school year.

The two girls certainly never expected to know each other, until their lives intersected in Southern California during a time when their country changed forever.

Here is the remarkable story based on true events of Sylvia Mendez and Aki Munemitsu, two ordinary girls living in extraordinary times. When Sylvia and her brothers are not allowed to register at the same school Aki attended and are instead sent to a “Mexican” school, the stage is set for Sylvia’s father to challenge in court the separation of races in California’s schools. Ultimately, Mendez vs. Westminster School District led to the desegregation of California schools and helped build the case that would end school segregation nationally.

Through extensive interviews with Sylvia and Aki—still good friends to this day—Winifred Conkling brings to life two stories of persistent courage in the face of tremendous odds.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Middle Grade, Childrens, Historical, Fiction, Cultural, Friendship

160 pages, Hardcover

First published July 12, 2011

About the author

WINIFRED CONKLING studied journalism at Northwestern University and spent the next 25 years writing non-fiction for adult readers, including for Consumer Reports magazine and more than 30 books. As part of her transition to writing for young people, she is working toward her Master of Fine Arts in Writing for Children and Young Adults from the Vermont College of Fine Arts.

Sylvia & Aki is her first work for children.

Reviews

[Noah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just finished reading this book to my 10 & 8 year old kids, and almost broke down reading the epilogue. I can't recommend it more highly.

The book explores the experiences of real-life children at the center of two vital moments in US history: a Japanese girl removed from her family's farm as part of the WWII internment of Japanese Americans and a Mexican girl whose family tends the farm but is not admitted to the local white school.

I'm grateful for the results of the Mendez case, which paved the way for Brown vs. Board of Education, and therefore has allowed my children to attend integrated schools with diverse student populations (in both Grand Rapids Public and Chicago Public Schools). And I'm grateful that this experience has shaped my children such that the arguments of the superintendent who was fighting to maintain segregation sounded completely ridiculous to their ears. I'm also grateful for a book that prompted my 8yo daughter to ask, "What does it mean to be white?"

This nation is on a journey, and if more children engage in that journey through literature like this, our future will be brighter when it comes to the hope for "liberty and justice for all."

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Prejudice is the theme of this historical novel set in World War II and based on the lives of two real-life young girls. Sylvia Mendez is living with her family on a farm in California, which they are renting from the Munemitsu family, who is interned in a relocation camp in Poston, Arizona. Sylvia finds a doll and a photograph on a shelf in the closet of her room that belongs to Aki Munemitsu, and the two girls eventually begin writing to each other. Both girls and their families are dealing with prejudice. In chapters alternating in point of view between the two girls, the author relates how the Munemitsus, though loyal Americans, are rounded up and sent to a relocation camp because they are Japanese, and how the Mendez family is fighting a legal battle to allow their children to attend a white school near their farm instead of an inferior school for Mexican children. I first learned about the Mendez family in Duncan Tonatiuh's picture book Separate Is Never Equal and I had read many other books about the treatment of the Japanese Americans after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. I liked Conkling's combination of the two stories, showing the parallels between prejudice against Japanese Americans and Mexican Americans at this time. Conkling does an excellent job of describing how both Sylvia and Aki felt and the attitudes of adults at the time. She provides additional information at the end of the book about the real-life Sylvia and Aki (including pictures), relocation camps, and the impact the Mendez case had on desegregating schools in California and, eventually, all of the United States. Conkling packed a lot into this short middle-grade novel, which I highly recommend.

[Rilee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audience: Upper Primary-Intermediate

Appeal: The author personalizes the discrimination of the time in a way that today’s readers will be able to relate to and they are able to understand the importance of the historic events. It is a little-known case that is a huge turning point in Latino history. It makes events seem read to the readers.

Award: Tomas Rivera Book Award

[Shelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

Seeing all the wonderful reviews for this book gives hope - people are interested in reading about important issues in history and sharing them with their children.
I hope their enthusiasm for this book propels them to seek out others - books like A Place to Belong, We Are Not Free, and Separate Is Never Equal.

I gave this book one star for working to bring an important story to a wider audience, and one star for writing about real people. I cannot speak to awkwardness in the scenes with Sylvia's family. The scenes with Aki's family just don't sound authentic. The descriptions of Potsdam are stilted. The descriptions of camp life are brief. The conversations of both mothers helping their children understand what was happening to them sound like something the majority would say, and not what Japanese or Mexican parents.

I do not reccomend Sylvia & Aki. I am grateful that it seems to have inspired so many, and hope readers will go on to read some of the other excellent books on this period of history.

[Kathryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a great way to introduce children to the topics of racism and civil rights. A gentle way to start the conversation. No, it is not critical race theory but it is history that we can all learn from.

[The Library Lady · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing and dialogue are a bit stilted, but this is a nice little story about prejudice, about family and about friendship for younger readers.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is so much going on in this story, but my biggest take-away is yes, one person can make a difference, not just in the world, but in history! This chronicles actual court dialog of a lawyer on the side of truth, hired by a courageous, persistent, loving father who wanted something better for his children than what he had.

[Sarah Nelson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm a sucker for historical fiction like this. It's the teacher in me. When a Aki's family is sent to an internment camp with other Japanese Americans, Sylvia's family rents their farm. But Sylvia and her siblings are denied access to the public school and her parents lead the fight to end school segregation in California public schools. Sylvia and Aki were real girls in the 1940s whose families' struggles against discrimination intertwined. Fascinating.

[Margo Tanenbaum · Rating 4 out of 5]

In her first work for young people, author Winifred Conkling brings to light an important but little known story in our nation’s civil rights history. Several years before Brown v. Board of Education, third-grader Sylvia Mendez wanted nothing extraordinary--just the right to attend her neighborhood school rather than a “Mexican” school near her family’s farm in Westminster. Her family challenged the policy in court, leading the way to a landmark school desegregation case that would pave the way to the abolition of school segregation nationwide.

Conkling weaves Sylvia’s story with that of Aki Munemitsu; Sylvia is living in Aki’s house and farm, since Aki’s family was sent away to an internment camp in Arizona becaue of the war. Sylvia discovers that Aki has left behind her beautiful Japanese doll, whom Sylvia names Keiko, and Keiko becomes the friend of Sylvia’s Mexican doll Carmencita. Sylvia wonders if she will ever meet the girl who owns Keiko, and whether they might be friends some day.

The book’s chapters alternate between telling the story of the two girls. We discover how Aki’s world changes overnight with the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the beginning of whispers and prejudices from their neighbors. Aki has to hide her Japanese doll, hoping it will still be there when the war is over. Aki and her family are sent to Poston, 250 miles away in the Arizona desert where the flimsy barracks didn’t keep out the summer heat or the winter chill.

Sylvia is forced to go to a second-rate “Mexican” school, rather than the beautiful school in her neighborhood. Her father was ignored when he complained and sent letters; but when he decided in 1945 to sue the school system, it was about more than just Sylvia and her family. Something bigger was underway, not just for Sylvia but for children she would never meet. “Her father said, ‘Sylvia, there cannot be justice for one unless there is justice for all.’”

The author takes us inside the courtroom for the trial, as Sylvia’s father’s attorney questions one of the Orange County school superintendants. This section is drawn almost entirely from court records. His responses seem shocking to us now, but of course were indicative of the attitudes of many people at that time (i.e. he considered the Mexican children to be inferior to whites in regard to everything from personal hygiene to scholastic ability).

In the epilogue, Sylvia graduates from high school, proud of what her father had done not only for her but for Mexican students across California. An afterword provides additional notes about both the Mendez family and the Munemitsu family, Japanese internment camps, as well as on the end of school segregation in America and the nationwide impact of the Mendez case, particularly on Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka ruling in 1955. The book also includes a bibliography as well as suggestions for further reading.

This is a sensitively written novel that is well suited for elementary school students. The author covers not only the prejudice toward the Mexican American community in California, but also the prejudice toward Japanese Americans because of the war. These two themes dovetail very well together, and enrich the narrative as well as providing ample fodder for discussion if this book is used in class or for home schoolers. I loved the moving cover illustration from award-winning illustrator Raul Colon, whose distinctive style you may recognize from his many picture books (including Pat Mora’s Dona Flor and Frank McCourt’s Angela and the Baby Jesus).

[Dorothy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dorothy Schultz
TED 2360
Children's Lit.
7/15/13

"The blanket felt soft against Sylvia's head as she leaned back. She thought about Aki. How does she celebrate a holiday that's all about freedom when she's inside an internment camp?
What can the word freedom mean to someone trapped behind a barbed-wired fence?" (Insert from page 97).

2012 (Honored) Tomas Rivera Award and Jane Addams Children's Book Award "Sylvia & Aki" by Winifred Conkling is a wonderful book about friendships that can build when we tear down the barriers of race. In her story Conkling describes in such expressive details of landmark events in the 1940's. She writes about the Mendez vs. Westminster School District case that segregated Latino children in California which set up the case for Brown vs. Topeka Board of Education. She narratives the account of how two lives intertwine to build a lasting friendship between Sylvia (a young Hispanic girl) who wanted an education and Aki (a young Japanese girl) who's family has to move to the Japanese Internment camps during WWII because of their nationality.

I had never read of the Mendez case concerning the segregation of Latinos in Southern California, I learned more about our country's past from this book. Most of us when considering segregation we think of the South and Topeka. "Sylvia & Aki" would be a great read for someone who enjoys historical fiction and books about friendships. It would be a book to choose for someone who wants to learn about segregation and internment camps of WWII.

The target audience for this book would be Intermediate readers. The genre is a multi-cultural chapter book with historical fiction.

Remembering: What was the main crop grown on the farm that both Sylvia and Aki lived on? What two states does this story takes place in?

Understanding: Overnight Aki world changed with the bombing of Pearl Harbor, how would you react to the suspicious looks and whispers she encountered by her neighbors and in town.

Applying: Sylvia and her brothers fear they are on the wrong school bus, why? Have you ever been in a circumstance where you felt unsure or out of place, how did you feel. How can you relate that experience to Sylvia and her brothers?

Analyzing: Considering the risk and opposition that Sylvia's father took for his cause, why do you think it was so important for Gonzalo Mendez to file a lawsuit against the school board.

Evaluation: Knowing the racist views of the surrounding community and that one could get deported. What choice would you have made if you were Gonzalo Mendez? Would you have the same courage to take this fight to the courts?

Creating: Towards the end of the story the author has Sylvia and Aki giving each other their prized possession, their dolls. How would you recreate this important interaction between the two girls? Would you use the same symbol of friendship or use something else?

[Laura · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is another of those books that I wouldn’t have picked up on my own. I’d never even heard of this book until I had to read it for class. When I began reading it, I was excited about the subject. It didn’t quite live up to that initial excitement.

Japan has just bombed Pearl Harbor, and the U.S. is turning against its Japanese-American citizens. Aki and her family are shipped off to an internment camp. Sylvia’s father takes over their farm, and Sylvia is excited to start school at Westminster. Unfortunately, the school board doesn’t want Sylvia and her brothers to go to Westminster. They’re forced to attend the “Mexican” school, next to the barrio.

Initially, I was excited about this book. I had never read juvenile fiction covering internment camps. I didn’t even know about the issues with Mexican schools in California during that time. This was an opportunity for me to learn something new. I did learn something new, but I was disappointed by the book. The characters never felt real to me. Sylvia and Aki weren’t developed characters, and the rest of characters might as well have not been there. It’s weird because Sylvia and Aki were real people, and this really happened. It makes me think the book was just a device to fictionalize their story. It’s not a very good attempt either. Yes, I learned something I didn’t know; I learned about this story and the issues surrounding it. Still, there were no real character development, and the plot felt more like a relation of events than a story. It’s a short book, and clearly meant for younger children; that may have something to do with the lack of story and development. I just don’t think many kids would find it interesting either. A huge part of what makes books work is the execution, and it’s just off in this book. I think Conkling could have worked more to develop a good plot, rather than setting up what amounts to a framework of facts. The book just felt more like a first draft than a finished novel. I’ll admit that my normal reading comfort zone is with books meant for an older audience. That could have something to do with my reaction to this book. I just know that I was left wanting more in almost every respect.

Read more reviews at Owl Tell You About It.

[L13F_Jana Wilkening · Rating 4 out of 5]

This 2012 America’s Award Commended title AND 2012 Tomas Rivera Award winning book tells the amazing true story of two third grade girls, Sylvia and Aki. The chapters alternate with each girl’s point of view as we follow their journey during the 1940s. Aki tells the story of her family’s forced relocation to a Japanese internment camp. Sylvia’s family moves into Aki’s family’s farm where she tells the story of her father’s fight to allow her and her brothers to enroll in the nearby school as opposed to the “Mexican school” where girls were taught homemaking skills and boys were taught trades. In a courtroom scene that will make your blood boil, Sylvia’s father challenges the school district’s separation of races. Her father’s case, Mendez vs. Westminster School District, ultimately helped lead to the famous Brown vs. Board of Education case.

I had never heard of this court case before. This would be an incredible story to intertwine during a Civil Rights unit where the Brown vs. Board of Education case is frequently discussed. It would also work really well during a study of the Japanese internment camps. This book would fit well in grades 3-5. However, I think studying the true story behind the Mendez case should be used in grades 3-8. I am just shocked that in all of my classes on Civil Rights and school integration, etc…, this was never mentioned.

I loved the back and forth points of views of the two girls, although I did find myself most interested in Sylvia’s story. I also loved how each chapter started with either a Mexican or Japanese proverb. The end of the book contains a great afterword and further resources. This is a powerful book that would work perfectly in bringing nonfiction to the upper elementary classrooms.

[Emily Mateos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Grade/interest level: Upper Elementary (4th-5th grade)
Reading level: No lexile level available but because of length, words used, and content I would say 4th grade
Genre: Information book, Multicultural

Main Characters: Sylvia and Aki
Setting: rural Westminster California on the family farm and at the school where Sylvia was turned away
POV: 3rd person narration

This book tells a story about a young Mexican American girl who is turned away from the closest school, Westminster, because of the color of her skin, and of Aki a Japanese American girl whose family was sent away to camps because of the war. When Sylvia goes to register for school with her aunt and her cousins, who are all fairer complexioned, she is turned away and is told that she must go to the Mexican school even though it is further away. Her family begins the fight to get her to go to the Westiminster school. Aki's schoolyear is over and on the new report she hears that the Japanese bombed pearl harbor. Now anyone with Japanese ancestry had to be registered and moved to another centralized location. They left their farm where Sylvia's family rented several months later. Since the family is renting, they must deliver the rent to Aki's family in the internment camp they were sent to. There Sylvia and Aki meet and start writing each other and eventually become close friends.
I would use this book to bring about a discussion about civil rights and how the two girls' rights were extinguished because of circumstances not of their own making. I think this book offers two valuable perspectives in WWII: those of a Mexican American child and a Japanese American child.

[Dona · Rating 5 out of 5]

Discussion questions:

remember: From which foreign countries did Sylvia's parents come?(Ch.1, p.10)
From which over-seas country did Aki's parents come? (Ch.2, p.26)
What world event changed the lives of Sylvia and Aki? (Ch.2, p.20)

understand: How did WWII effect these two families?
(Ch. 1, p.4 Ch.2, p.19-24 Ch.13, p.126)

apply: Today the enemies of the United States are Iran and Pakistan and other countries in the Middle East. What should the American government do to protect us from Iranian people who live in the United States?
Some Iranian people are citizens of the USA. Are the camps a good idea for protecting the citizens?

analyze: How are immigrant children treated today compared to the Mexican children in the story? (Ch.3, p.39-46 Ch.5)

Compare the treatment of the Mexican people in the story, to the treatment of our Black American citizens during the same time period of 1941-1955. (Ch.11, p.112-116)

evaluate: Mr. Ortega chose not to sign the letter to the school board asking for better schools for the Mexican children. Did he make a good choice? Would you have signed the letter? (Ch.5, p.61-64)

create: If people today were forced to leave their homes and live in a camp for security reasons, what should that camp look like?
(Ch.6, p.67-75)

audience: grades 4-8 intermediate
genre: historical fiction

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story chronicles the lives of two young girls & their families who faced racial segregation during World World II. First, there is Aki Munemitsu, a Japanese-American, and her family who owns an asparagus farm, but is sent to internment camps after the Japanese attack Pearl Harbor. Second, there is Sylvia Mendez, a Mexican-American, whose family takes over the farm from the Munemitsu family and the children are denied the ability to go to the local white school. Each chapter rotates between the girls’ perspectives sharing their experiences of being denied their rights. The characters in this story are real life individuals who faced these exact battles. Even more so, the father of Sylvia Mendez was the man who filed the Mendez vs. Westminster School District of Orange County and won, paving the way for future lawsuits that ultimately affirmed the decision in Brown vs. the Board of Education Topeka. Appropriate for grades 4- 6, this book covers two large issues in American history, interment camps and racial segregation. The author used both Japanese & Spanish words that assisted in helping represent the two cultures in a positive, authentic light.

[Penny Peck · Rating 4 out of 5]

A charming book based on two true stories that are important to California history - perfect for 4th graders, relatively brief and easy to read chapter book fiction that would also make a great classroom readaloud. Sylvia and her brothers are denied admittance to the nearby school, and are told to enroll at the "Mexican" school across town (near the barrio). And Aki is at a Japanese American Relocation camp in Poston, AZ. Sylvia's family has leased their farm from Aki's family, and the girls' used the same bedroom (although not at the same time). They meet, and become friends, and their two parallel stories of injustice will help children identify with them. Sylvia's father sued the school district and won, in a case that helped set a precedent later used in Brown v. Board of Education. Backmatter helps fill in the factual information, but the fictional account is heartfelt without becoming maudlin or manipulative, told in alternating chapters from the point of view of each girl.

[Kylie Svoboda]

Audience: 3rd-6th graders. Great for girls but boys would enjoy it too.
Appeal: The book is very good. One of the best books I have read this summer. The book would tie in perfectly when learning about World War II in social studies class. The book shows the racism and segregation that the Mexican Americans edured aswell as the Japanese Americans during the Japanese interment camps. This novel would give students a perspective on the Japanese and Mexican American's living the 1940's. This book would especially appeal to children with Mexican and Japanese heritage because most of American history is taught from the white man view point and this story give the Japanese and Mexican viewpoints and tells their stories.
Award: Diego Rivera Children's Book Award

[Maira · Rating 5 out of 5]

The 2012 Tomas Rivera Book Award was given to Sylvia & Aki along with another winner. I really enjoyed this book which told the stories of two young girls of different backgrounds and their challenge with segregation. This book would be a great read for students 3rd grade & up & also could be for teacher seeking to teach students about rights. Over the course of this class, I think this was my favorite book. This book would be appealing to students of different backgrounds that could possibly relate or have family members this story can relate to.

[QNPoohBear · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a simple book for kids 7-10 about injustice. It tells two different stories and the girls only come together in the end. Sylvia's plot leads up to her father's landmark court case desegregating California schools. The epilogue and author's note are more interesting than the story. I'd like to know more about these two women.

[The Reading Countess · Rating 4 out of 5]

The girls in this story have much to teach modern day readers about social injustice, speaking out against said injustice, and how we are doomed to repeat our mistakes if we do not learn from them. Though the dialogue felt a little stilted, I think my fourth graders would benefit from reading this story in lit. circles when we read about immigration and migrant workers in the spring.

[MrsMitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, what a fascinating true story, and this book tells it in such a wonderful way! The alternating chapters made me feel connected to both Sylvia and Aki, and I loved seeing how they came together! What an important story in American history!

[Gina · Rating 4 out of 5]

True story about two girls who lived through the 1940's and the injustices of Japanese internment camps and segregated schools. Easy read to tackle tough topics.

[Yeshe Lhamo · Rating 5 out of 5]

SYLVIA AND AKI summary


Two young girls, Sylvia and Aki suffered from dehumanizing effect of racial segregation. Japanese American and her family operates an asparagus farm In Westminster California until they are summarily uprooted and dispatched to an interment camp in Poston, Arizona for the duration of the World War 2. As Aki endures the humiliating and deprivation of the hot,cramped barracked as wonder if there is “ something wrong to be Japanese”. Aki and her family must cope with meager housing supplies, and an almost 3 years sesperation from her father.
Meanwhile Sylvia’s Mexican American family leases the Munemitsu farm. She expects to attend a local school but faces disappointment when authorities assigned her to separate, second rated school for Mexican kids. In response her dad brings a legal action against the school district arguing against school segregation, in what actually became a successful landmark case. Their life intersect after Sylvia find Aki’s doll, meets her in Poston and sends letters to each other.
This is a sensitivity written novel that is well suited for everyone one especially immigrant. The author not only covers the prejudice towards the Mexican American community, but also the prejudice towards Japanese American due to the war.

I like that Conkling writes a story that makes this information accessible to readers. She personalizes the discrimination. I wish this had been a nonfiction book that it.

[Sofia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sylvia & Aki is a book about 2 girls going through many racial hardships in the 1930s and 1940s. Aki lost her home because of World War 2, Sylvia rents Aki's farm, and finds her doll, Sylvia is not allowed to go to the school she wants to go to just because she is Mexican. Aki was separated from her father and then taken to Poston camp just because she is Japanese. Sylvia's the father then files a lawsuit against the school. Sylvia and Aki meet because Sylvia and Aki meet and become best friends due to similarities in their hardships, and as the author said," Friendship has no boundaries".
This book teaches many life lessons and helps kids and adults understand the hardships that occurred in the past history.
Although this book teaches a lot of life lessons this book got boring. This book could have used a lot more details, and I felt as if the book was rushed due to the fact that it goes from 1933 to 1940's very quickly and just skips a lot of years. I was really confused about the age of Sylvia and Aki and what year it was in each chapter.
I would recommend this book because of the life lessons for children 12 and under, and for immigrants or people that are recognized as bad because of their race and not their personality. This book would help them realize that there is a solution to every problem and not give up on themselves. This book truly sends out a message.

[Kathy Reed · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the true story of two little girls, each of which faced institutional racism.

Sylvia, a Mexican-American, moves to a farm her family has leased and finds she will not be allowed to attend the school in her district because “she must go to the Mexican school, one with damaged textbooks, overworked teachers, and a curriculum that prepared the students only for work in the home or the fields, not for college.

Aki is a Japanese American child who is taken from her home (which they leased to Sylvia’s family) along with her family, to an interment camp, with sad living conditions and fences with barbed wire.

The girls meet and form a friendship as their families struggle against a system of hatred and bigotry.
This is a middle grade book, but is relevant for any age who wants to learn more about this time in history. I was very moved by the girls’ stories.

[Gail · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read while looking for additional titles for a social justice unit with a focus on taking a stand. Too simplistic for 8th grade in my opinion but great for 4-6. I found one line to be problematic towards the end when this is said: ”my being sent to Poston was bad. Nothing will ever change that. But yes, I can still see how some good came from it” (Aki’s family having to go to the Japanese internment camp led to Sylvia’s family moving into their house in a neighborhood where they were not allowed to go to the local school which spurred her father to take legal action and California schools were desegregated). I understood what was being said but didn’t like the “silver lining” aspect being applied to Japanese internment. It just didn’t sit well with me.

[Adrienne · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic book that is timeless. The meeting of the Japanese immigrants and descendents of Japanese being sent to internment camps by the US government in WWII and the Mendez case about segregation in schools in California packs a large education in racism in the US. The children this is meant for (ages 9-12), teens and adults should read this book. The tough topics of prejudice and injustice are handled with care

The story told from the perspective of two third grade girls whose lives are in upheaval through American politics is educational but also light enough for younger readers. The two girls, Sylvia and Aki, face their respective challenges with different emotions and expressions, anxiety, fear, anger, and resilience.

I highly recommend this to readers of all ages (9 and up through adult).

[teacupsandunicorns · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great look at racism against both Japanese and Mexican American citizens in USA during WWII. we often forget segregation affected more than just Black people in the South.
It was widespread and affected millions of people—our own American people. We criticize Germany for internment camps yet forget we did very similar deeds.
We also see this through the eyes of two different young girls who eventually become friends.
It’s a fictional book based on real people and events. It’s more so aimed at elementary schoolers or even middle schoolers but I really loved how the innocence of the young girls as children allowed us to see how racism is hatred born of fear and it is taught— it’s not logical and it’s not natural.

[Barb Purvis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked up this young teen's book as I wanted to understand more about the family and circumstances surrounding how education was ultimately changed for the better in California where I currently am a public school teacher. I enjoy books from a young person's perspective and this was a nice introduction in a "short evening read" to the cause.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am blown away with this book. I knew a little of Sylvia's story, but none of Aki's, least of all that they intertwined. Beautifully written and saturated with emotion, this will be one for my permanent collection.