Browse > Reading Level > Grades 3-5
47 articles
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Journey Home (book)
- Books
- Grades 3-5
- Grades 3-5
- Children's, Young Adult
- Evils of racism, Family - blessing or curse, Importance of community
- Available
Novel for young adults about a Japanese American family leaving the concentration camps and eventually returning to their home by prolific author Yoshiko Uchida, written as a sequel her 1971 book Journey to Topaz .
Journey of Heroes: The Story of the 100th Infantry Battalion and 442nd Regimental Combat Team (book)
- Books
- Grades 7-8, Grades 9-12, Adult
- Grades 3-5, Grades 7-8
- Heroism – real and perceived, War – glory, necessity, pain, tragedy, Evils of racism
- Widely available
A comic book version of the story of the 100th Infantry Battalion and 442nd Regimental Combat Team told in the first person voice of a Nisei from Hawai'i.
Justice Denied: A History of the Japanese in the United States (book)
- Books
- Grades 3-5, Grades 7-8
- Grades 3-5, Grades 7-8
- History, Children's
- Evils of racism, Immigrant experience, Injustice, Overcoming – fear, weakness, vice
- Limited availability
Early overview of the history of Japanese Americans for young readers by British author/activist Jennifer Cross.
Lucky Ears: The True Story of Ben Kuroki, World War II Hero (book)
- Books
- Grades 3-5, Grades 7-8
- Grades 3-5
- Children's, Biography
- Patriotism – positive side or complications, Role of men, Heroism – real and perceived, Overcoming – fear, weakness, vice
- Widely available
Biography of Nisei war hero Ben Kuroki , written for a fourth grade audience.
The Lucky Baseball: My Story in a Japanese-American Internment Camp (book)
- Books
- Grades 3-5
- Grades 3-5
- Historical fiction, Children's
- Coming of age, Displacement, Identity crisis
- Available
A Japanese American boy is forcibly removed from his home in Southern California and incarcerated in a concentration camp but learns important life lessons through continuing to play baseball.
Hello Maggie! (book)
- Books
- Grades 1-2, Grades 3-5
- Grades 1-2, Grades 3-5
- Children's, Picture Book
- Companionship as salvation, Growing up – pain or pleasure, Loss of innocence
- Widely available
Autobiographical children's picture book about a pet bird who enlivens a Japanese American family's confinement in a World War II concentration camp.
Home of the Brave (book)
- Books
- Grades 3-5, Grades 7-8
- Grades 3-5, Grades 7-8
- Children's
- Injustice, Knowledge versus ignorance, Power of the past, Progress – real or illusion
- Widely available
Children's picture book by Allen Say inspired by the mass incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II.
Heroes (book)
- Books
- Grades 1-2, Grades 3-5
- Grades 1-2, Grades 3-5
- Children's, Picture Book
- War - glory, necessity, pain, tragedy, Growing up - pain or pleasure, Heroism - real and perceived
- Widely available
Children's picture book by Ken Mochizuki and illustrated by Dom Lee about a young boy facing Asian stereotypes and bullying in the postwar years. Donnie Okada is continually made to play the part of the "enemy" in war games with friends, even as he tries to explain that his father and uncles served on the American side. A school visit by Donnie's father and uncle in their uniforms and medals changes the way he and his friends view their histories.
The Fences Between Us: The Diary of Piper Davis (book)
- Books
- Grades 3-5, Grades 7-8
- Grades 3-5, Grades 7-8
- Children's, Historical Fiction
- Coming of age, Injustice, Loss of innocence
- Widely available
Novel for elementary and middle schoolers about a young white teenage girl's experience of World War II including the Japanese American removal and incarceration told in the form of a diary. The Fences Between Us is part of the Dear America series, all of which are written in the form of diaries by young women/girls from various key moments in U.S. history.
Fish for Jimmy (book)
- Books
- Grades 1-2, Grades 3-5
- Grades 3-5
- Children's, Picture book
- Growing up - pain or pleasure, Heroism - real and perceived, Family - blessing or curse
- Widely available
Fish for Jimmy: Inspired by One Family's Experience in a Japanese American Internment Camp , written and illustrated by Katie Yamasaki, is based on the author's great-grandfather's family experience at the Granada camp in Amache, Colorado. This picture book for young readers which expresses in few words an older brother's act of kindness and daring that kept a family strong during their imprisonment.
Dash (book)
- Books
- Grades 3-5, Grades 6-8
- Grades 3-5, Grades 6-8
- Children's, History
- Companionship as salvation, Evils of racism, Displacement, Heartbreak of betrayal
- Widely available
Dash, Kirby Larson's book for 4-6 grade readers, tells the story of 11-year-old Mitsi Kashino and how the love for her dog Dash gives her strength while she and her family are sent to an incarceration camp.
Fred Korematsu Speaks Up (book)
- Books
- Grades 3-5, Grades 7-8
- Grades 3-5, Grades 7-8
- Children's, History
- Heroism – real and perceived, Injustice, Rights - individual or societal
- Widely available
Book for middle school audiences on Fred Korematsu , who challenged the forced removal of Japanese Americans during World War II.
Enemy Child: The Story of Norman Mineta (book)
- Books
- Grades 3-5, Grades 7-8
- Grades 3-5, Grades 7-8
- Biography, Children's
- Growing up – pain or pleasure, Overcoming – fear, weakness, vice, Power of the past
- Widely available
Short biography of American politician Norman Mineta by Andrea Warren, published in 2019. The book, which is written for young adult readers, focuses on Mineta's childhood, with an emphasis on the years he and his family were incarcerated at Heart Mountain . The book includes historical War Relocation Authority photographs and a few personal photos from the Mineta family collection.
Flowers from Mariko (book)
- Books
- Grades 1-2, Grades 3-5
- Grades 3-5
- Children's, Historical Fiction
- Growing up – pain or pleasure, Heartbreak of betrayal, Optimism – power or folly, Overcoming – fear, weakness, vice, Working class struggles
- Widely available
Picture book for children about a Japanese American family's World War II incarceration and difficulties in restarting their lives after the war, told from the perspective of a young girl of about nine of ten. Mariko, her little sister Emi, and their parents live in Los Angeles before the war, where their father works as a gardener. When they are forced to leave, he leaves his gardening truck and equipment with their landlord. When Japanese Americans are allowed to return to the West Coast in 1945, the family makes plans to return. However their father finds that his truck and equipment have been sold, and the former landlord is nowhere to be found. The family is forced to live in a government-run trailer park upon their return, and her father is unable to find work. One day, he finds some old equipment in the trash, along with some flower seeds. …
Painting the Rainbow (book)
- Books
- Grades 3-5, Grades 7-8, Grades 9-12
- Grades 3-5, Grades 7-8
- Children's, Historical Fiction
- Family – blessing or curse, Coming of age, Communication – verbal and nonverbal, Growing up – pain or pleasure
- Widely available
Coming-of-age novel for young readers about two thirteen-year old cousins at a New England family summer retreat in 1965 who grapple with both their changing relationship and with the discovery of family secrets stemming from the World War II period that tangentially involve the wartime incarceration of Japanese Americans.
Paper Wishes (book)
- Books
- Grades 3-5, Grades 7-8
- Grades 3-5
- Children's, Historical Fiction
- Communication – verbal and nonverbal, Growing up – pain or pleasure, Lost love, Power of silence
- Widely available
Children's novel by Lois Sepahban centering on a young girl from Bainbridge Island, Washington , who turns mute when she and her family are uprooted and sent to Manzanar .
Red Berries, White Clouds, Blue Sky (book)
- Books
- Grades 3-5, Grades 7-8
- Grades 3-5
- Children's, Historical Fiction
- Coming of age, Displacement, Evils of racism, Role of women
- Widely available
Children's novel aimed at ages 8 to 11 by Sandra Dallas centering on the wartime incarceration experience of the Itano family at the Tallgrass, Colorado, camp, featuring as its protagonist twelve year old Tomi Itano. The book is a sequel of sorts to Dallas' adult novel, Tallgrass (2007).
A Diamond in the Desert (book)
- Books
- Grades 3-5, Grades 7-8
- Grades 3-5
- Children's, Historical Fiction
- Coming of age, Disillusionment and dreams, Forgiveness, Overcoming – fear, weakness, vice
- Widely available
Novel for children centering on Tetsuo Kishi, a teenager at the Gila River , Arizona, concentration camp who finds solace in baseball.
Our Burden of Shame: Japanese-American Internment During World War II (book)
- Books
- Grades 3-5, Grades 7-8
- Grades 3-5, Grades 7-8
- Children's, History
- Displacement, Evils of racism, Hazards of passing judgment, Injustice, Patriotism – positive side or complications
- Available
Book by Susan Sinnott on the wartime forced removal and incarceration of Japanese Americans intended for a middle-school audience and published by Franklin Watts in 1995.
The Bracelet (book)
- Books
- Grades 3-5
- Grades 1-2, Grades 3-5
- Children's
- Growing up – pain or pleasure, Importance of community, Self-awareness, Will to survive
- Widely available
A children's picture book by Nisei author Yoshiko Uchida , with illustrations by Joanne Yardley, originally published in 1993. The Bracelet is a story derived from the author's own childhood experiences in an American concentration camp during World War II. The book opens as seven-year-old Emi, her mother and sister prepare to leave their home in Berkeley, California, for Tanforan , a racetrack that has been converted into a temporary camp for Japanese Americans. Emi's best friend, Laurie Madison, brings her a gold bracelet as a farewell gift, and as a reminder of the value of their friendship. Emi vows that she will never take it off, but as she helps clean out the filthy horse stable that will serve has her family's "apartment," the gold chain slips off her wrist and is lost. At first, she is desolate, but Emi eventually realizes that she does not need the bracelet …
Blue Jay in the Desert (book)
- Books
- Grades 1-2, Grades 3-5
- Grades 1-2, Grades 3-5
- Children's, Picture book
- Quest for discovery, Rights - individual or societal
- Widely available
Blue Jay in the Desert by Marlene Shigekawa and illustrated by Isao Kikuchi is a children's picture book about how the gift of a hand-carved wooden blue jay symbolizes the love and hope a grandfather gives to his grandson.
Baseball Saved Us (book)
- Books
- Grades 1-2, Grades 3-5
- Grades 3-5
- Children's, Sports, Picture book
- Character - destruction, building up, Fear of failure
- Widely available
Popular and acclaimed children's picture book written by Ken Mochizuki and illustrated by Dom Lee about the concentration camps and their aftermath through the prism of baseball.
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