Write to Me: Letters from Japanese American Children to the Librarian They Left Behind by Cynthia Grady, Amiko Hirao
Published by Charlesbridge Publishing on January 9th 2018
ISBN: 158089688X
Pages: 32
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Write to Me: Letters from Japanese American Children to the Librarian They Left Behind by Cynthia Grady and illustrated by Amik oHirao is narrative nonfiction for children ages 6 through 10. Grady researched postcards of librarian Clara Breed to and from the Japanese American children (her former public library patrons) who were imprisoned in internment camps during WWII. She selects just enough details and letters from the children to make a compelling story of both shame on America for locking these children up and hope for the world through acts of goodness continued during the war. The San Diego children’s librarian gave the children postcards with postage included so they could write to her, and they did throughout the war years. She also sent them books, seeds, and craft supplies. She visited them in the prison/internment camps and spread the word through radio,  newspaper, and magazine articles. At the end of the book there are five pages of additional information including sources, bibliography, selected dates, and credits. Illustrator Amiko Hiraw is herself a Japanese American, and her pastel colored drawings add a softness to this true tale.  Recommended by Margy Soule Coffin Elementary School, Brunswick, Maine