Dear Miss Breed: True Stories of the Japanese American Incarceration during WWII and a Librarian Who Made a Difference, by Joanne Oppenheim (oversize HC, 2006, 287 pages, $3)
The author "has aptly portrayed this quiet and gentle librarian as a hero, a determined and courageous fighter against racial injustice, who made a difference in the lives of a community of children of Japanese descent- with her personal affection for her children, her gifts of books to them, and her bold protest against the incarceration of American citizens whose only wrong was to look like the enemy."
This book was published by Scholastic, so it could be assumed to be meant to be read by non-adults, but do not be fooled. This book should be read by all. I remember the controversy when the Smithsonian first opened its exhibit on the WWII Japanese-American camps. Till then, few people knew about them. Is it any different now? If we are not to repeat our mistakes, we must remember them. Look for this book on the new non-fiction table, avail. 12/21.
