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10th out of 36 books
—
22 voters
Nisei Daughter
With charm, humor, and deep understanding, a Japanese American woman tells how it was to grow up on Seattle's waterfront in the 1930s and to be subjected to "relocation" dring World War II. Along with some 120,000 other persons of Japanese ancestry--77,000 of whom were U.S. citizens--she and her family were uprooted from their home and imprisoned in a camp. In this book, f...more
Paperback, 256 pages
Published
January 1st 1979
by University of Washington Press
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This is a fantastic account of what it was like to be a second-generation Japanese (Nisei) living in Seattle around WWII. The author tells us about her family life before the war, her experience with TB, and a visit to Japan to see extended family (and the historical context on why her extended family could not visit them in the US). Of special interest to those of us who live in Seattle is the local history - for example, I learned a lot about the development of what is today the International...more
Everyone knows that during WWII, Germany’s treatment on its prisoners were gruesome but what about the other side? In history class we constantly hear the descriptive horrid conditions that the Germans and Japanese inflicted on its enemies but we never hear about how America treated their prisoners during WWII. What kind of treatment did the people in America who had German or Japanese blood in them received? In the novel, Nisei Daughter by Monica Sone, it gives a small glimpse on the difficulty...more
This book, Nisei Daughter by Monica Sone, is an very interesting and historical, and has a unique writing style that makes it enjoyable to read. The book contained great historical facts about Kazuko and her family. Sone also did a terrific job when adding her own stories into this book. She wrote the book based on her own experiences as a child which tie in greatly with the overall story. The book contains intriguing events that makes me continue reading. The dialogue that is in the story keep...more
Monica Sone grew up in a hotel on Seattle's Skid Row just before World War II.
And she didn't know she was Japanese until her mother told her at dinner one night while she was still in elementary school. That night she also learned she would have to attend "Nihon Gakko" (Japanese language school).
We accompany Monica as she learns how to sit quietly, obey the strict school teachers, and experience the Japanese culture her Issei parents could provide her there in Seattle. They went to undokai (spor...more
And she didn't know she was Japanese until her mother told her at dinner one night while she was still in elementary school. That night she also learned she would have to attend "Nihon Gakko" (Japanese language school).
We accompany Monica as she learns how to sit quietly, obey the strict school teachers, and experience the Japanese culture her Issei parents could provide her there in Seattle. They went to undokai (spor...more
this was required reading for many years in Asian American studies, although by now many other similar narratives have been published so I think Monica Sone's account sometimes gets overlooked. Basically it's the story of how she and her family were uprooted after Pearl Harbor was attacked and the US Military institutionalized a campaign of terror against Asian Americans, specifically Japanese. The daughter of Seattle shopkeepers, and a nisei or second generation Japanese, born in the US, Monica...more
I had to read this book for my Pacific Northwest History class, but I enjoyed it spectacularly. The biggest draw, I think, was the character aspect. I loved Kuziko/Monica; her spirit shone brightly out of the pages and may have darted out to kick my shins once or twice, then darted away laughing. Her parents were also a riot. The things they said, they just felt so authentic and true and non-preachy, while still allowing for human (reader) empathy and emotion.
Actually, reading this book felt a l...more
Actually, reading this book felt a l...more
I think this book is important because it reminds us that the US government did not adhere to its principles of democracy when it orinded up citizens and put them into camps during WWII. But it does this with a light touch and an acceptance that most of us would struggle to find in ourselves under similar circumstances.
i think this book is worth reading because it is a delighltful memoir full of the blue skies of childhood with fleeting dark clouds when racism shows its ugly face. Monica Sone dr...more
i think this book is worth reading because it is a delighltful memoir full of the blue skies of childhood with fleeting dark clouds when racism shows its ugly face. Monica Sone dr...more
This truly was a great little book, written with all the truth a nisei must have felt during such rough years. It was really interesting to read about WWII from a young girl's point of view- a Japanese girl at that. Though I assumed this book would mostly be about the relocation efforts of the time, I was pleasantly surprised to read about everyday life prior to December 7, 1941.
Nisei Daughter is filled with honesty, courage and a true sense of family.
Nisei Daughter is filled with honesty, courage and a true sense of family.
A fantastic memoir about growing up Japanese-American before WWII, and the subsequent internment of all people of Japanese descent during the war. The author uses beautiful language and imagery to describe her childhood in Seattle, and skillfully covers twenty-odd years of her life in a relatively short book.
I really enjoyed this book.I had to read it for my PNW History class. This book proved to be very inspiring and informative account of an American born Japanese girl and her perspective of life during the Japanese war relocation on the West Coast. A true American story.
What a gift for writing Monica Sone has - this book is quite my favorite of the genre. And if you've ever wondered what became of the vivid fellow patient "Kimi" in Betty MacDonald's book, The Plague and I, about being treated for TB in the 1930s, here is your answer for Monica is "Kimi."
The injustice of being interned during WWII was so well written. It made me ashamed of my country all over again.
This is the kind of book that makes me wish I knew the author in real life. Highly recommended.
The injustice of being interned during WWII was so well written. It made me ashamed of my country all over again.
This is the kind of book that makes me wish I knew the author in real life. Highly recommended.
informative, interesting, sweet, in spite of what the her country did to her family in the Japanese internment camp during WWII. A good first-hand report of life in the first- and second-generation (issei and nisei) Japanese community in Seattle in the 30s and 40s.
I enjoyed reading about the Japanese community in Seattle. The girl is fun and unique. She is very humorous. The parts in the internment camp are enlightening. That whole experiance is of valuable historical interest. I was so happy to read of not just the prejudiced whites but of the people who had become friends and helped the family during bad times. Good read, it was assigned for my Pacific Northwest History course.
Very moving memoir. The woman in this story is an Japanese immigrant trying to find her place in the U.S. after the attack on pearl harbor. Very, very good read!
great historical perspective of a second generation Japanese American woman coming of age in the midst of WWII in Seattle.
True Story if you like that and though it's a dark part of America's history it's uplifting and well worth your time.
Read this for book club in conjunction with the Kimono exhibit coming to the Canton Musuem in Feb 2009.
I didn't know much about the US internment of the Japanese during WWII. Very enlightening.
This book is a memoir of a Japanese American girl who was forced to move with her family to an internment camp in Idaho during World War II. We hear a lot about the Holocaust and the Jews (and rightly so) but this is an interesting page in the American history of the war. Since it was a personal account of life experience, general historical facts are not emphasized, so I had to do some research to put everything into context. There are some sad stories and some really amusing anecdotes and I en...more
Interesting look into the life of a second generation (nisei) Japanese-American girl and her family in the US during the mid-1900's/Pearl Harbor. This is a fast read.
Sep 18, 2012
Kate
marked it as to-read
Written by the grandmother of one of my students! I look forward to reading it...
I am sure many immigrants lose some of their identity and culture as they blend into America. I didn't ever really think of the children of those immigrants. This book is a very interesting and enjoyable read. Great discussion book for a book club. At the end I felt a little cut off after getting so attached to this author.
Wonderful true story of the Japanese "evacuation" during WWII. It's the story of a Seattle family who had to leave their homes and business to go to camps to live, along with all the Japanese on the west coast.
This is a very powerful story of Japanese internment. It's interesting to compare it with David Suzuki's story of when his family was interred in a Canadian camp. He went on to become a famous scientist and is known for his tv program "The Nature of Things". This also fits in with the book I'm currently reading, "Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet" which is fiction compared to ND which is non-fiction.
Interrupters... this is a nice companion to "Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet." it's from the viewpoint of a teenage girl. It takes place close to the area in the other book and even mentions some of the same places.
It gives additional insight into the Japanese culture in Seattle at the time during the internment.
I enjoyed it thoroughly. If you want to borrow my copy, let me know.
It gives additional insight into the Japanese culture in Seattle at the time during the internment.
I enjoyed it thoroughly. If you want to borrow my copy, let me know.
This book is a very endearing story of a Nisei girl coming of age right at the start of WWII and living in an internment camp. I throughly enjoyed the narrative she paints for the reader.
I enjoy memoir, and read this for two reasons: being a transplant to the Pacific Northwest, to learn more about the Japanese American experience of WWII, and because of the connection to Betty MacDonald's THE PLAGUE AND I.
w
Interesting description of a horrendous period in the history of the United States. The ending doesn't really make sense, though. I can't help but think that Monica Sone had Stockholm Syndrome.
I couldn't put this book down..reading about the amazing life of a Japanese-American woman growing up in a relocation camp during World War II.
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