Brief Summary: When Elise’s father, a German immigrant, is arrested for suspicions that he is a Nazi Sympathizer, she and her family are moved to an Internment camp in Texas. Here she meets Mariko, a Japanese-American teen, and the two form a unique friendship and plan for
…more a better life after the war. When Elise’s family is sent back to Germany; she faces the realities of WWII head on. This is my second book by Susan Meissner and I was very excited to read it given this premise.
“How do you lose site of who you are when you are accused of something you are not?”
Highlights: Elise is a resilient “beyond her years wise” narrator and I loved seeing her grow up. Her narrative of the experience of being unjustly torn from the life she knew as an American teenager in Iowa is raw and so real. I was so interested in this book because the subject on internment camps is rarely found in historical fiction. Certainly, it is not a good part of American history but I found the glimpse of Elise’s experience fascinating. As much as I loved this novel, it did move slowly and I wasn’t totally sucked in until she went to the camp, then her story became a page turner; especially upon her return to war torn Germany. I also loved how the past and present storylines come together.
What makes this book unique?: The internment camp story premise of the experiences of German and Japanese Americans; this is not your ordinary WWII story or your typical narrator.
Explanation of Rating: 5/5 It’s such a unique story with an unforgettable heroine. When I wasn’t reading this I couldn’t get Elise out of my mind. The stigma and unjust treatment of the German and Japanese Americans will still resonate with minorities today.
Favorite Quotes: “Don’t lose site of who you are Elise. Don’t give in to anger and bitterness. But we did nothing wrong. Sometimes it’s not about right and wrong but now and later. Right now, we are having to put up with a difficult situation that we don’t deserve and it’s not right. But later, when the war is over, we’ll remember that we didn’t let it break us.” This is how they coped; true resilience.
Reese Witherspoon, if you are reading this it would be a great future book club pick! This is a must read for historical fiction fans, book clubs, and social justice enthusiasts.
Thank you to Berkley through BookBrowse for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review (less)
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