By Maya Patterson

As the 75th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor approaches, we examine Arizona’s experience of World War II. This experience encompasses both the American Indian code talkers and two Japanese-American internment camps, the Gila River Internment Camp in Phoenix and the Colorado River Internment Camp in Poston. Newbery Award-winning author, Cynthia Kadohata, sets her novel, Weedflower, in Poston. The book connects the worlds of Japanese-Americans in the camps and American Indians, whose land the camps occupied.

Weedflower, reviewed in WOW Review, follows 12-year-old Sumiko as the U.S. government forcibly relocates her family from their flower farm. Like so many other Japanese-Americans at the time, they packed what they could carry and sold the rest of their belongings for a fraction of what they were worth. Sumiko worries about who would take over the farm and care for her kusabana, her weed-flowers. Her neighbor, Mrs. Ono, worries about who would care for her dog.

When the family reaches the “permanent camp,” Sumiko meets a Mohave boy, Frank. Over time, both characters begin to see the other side of the situation that they are in. Sumiko, who had no choice in coming to the camp, feels guilty for intruding on Frank’s people’s land. Frank appreciates the labor that the Japanese-Americans in the camp do — cultivating the land, setting up irrigation — all without proper pay. As these two friends build an understanding of the other, so does the reader.

WOW’s exhibit, Code Making and Perspective Taking, explores perspectives on the Japanese-American experience in WWII. The activity “Pack Your Suitcase” encourages visitors of all ages to think critically about the Japanese-American experience during the war. With instructions to pack your suitcase with no more than six items in under one minute, participants feel pressure similar to Sumiko and the others who were forced to vacate their homes. The items to choose from vary from a favorite book to a family photo album to medication to extra shoes. Paired with this activity are the Van Buskirk response art pieces and a text set for further exploration. The exhibit remains open until December 15, 2016. WOW encourages teachers to schedule a field trip to take in the exhibit by calling (520)621-9340.

For further reading, check out Pima County Public Library’s list of children’s and adolescent literature featuring fiction and nonfiction books for young people about the internment camps. Some of the most recent books include Paper Wishes by Lois Sepahbah (2016), Gaijin by Matt Faulkner (2014), Painting the Rainbow by Amy Gordon (2014), Barbed Wire Baseball by Marissa Moss (2016), and A Place Where Sunflowers Grow by Amy Lee-Tai (2012).

Journey through Worlds of Words during our open reading hours: Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Check out our two online journals, WOW Review and WOW Stories, and keep up with WOW’s news and events.

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• Themes: Maya Patterson
• Descriptors: Books & Resources, WOW Currents