Japanese Immigrants,1850-1950

Children's Literature

This book, part of the series "Coming to America," follows the Japanese immigrants' journey from Japan to America. It discusses their incentives for leaving Japan, the journey over and the jobs and lifestyles they created in America. The text contains a lot of dates concerning legislation that affected or was targeted at Japanese Americans and immigrants. Included are many photos from the National Archives that are helpful for envisioning the lives of early Japanese immigrants. There are deliberate efforts to keep the reader engaged through various activities, for example, different Japanese words for successive generations of Japanese Americans, methods for creating haikus, lists of famous Japanese Americans, recipes, and a makeshift family tree. This makes the book more interactive than a purely historical account of Japanese Americans. The book does not skirt around issues such as the internment of Japanese Americansl or the hostility early immigrants experienced from other Americans who felt threatened. The book is informative but it could be more thorough, considering the topic. 2002, Blue Earth Books, $22.60. Ages 9 to 12. Reviewer: Rihoko Ueno AGES: 9 10 11 12