Lost Childhood: My Life in a Japanese Prison Camp During World War II

by Annelex Hofstra Layson, Herman J. Viola

Lost Childhood is the vivid, first-hand account of the horrors of war through the eyes of a child. This real-life memoir breaks a 60-year silence to tell one woman’s riveting story of prisoner life during World War II. As a little Dutch girl in Indonesia, Annelex Hofstra’s comfortable world was torn apart when she and her family were sent to Japanese prison camps for three and a half years.

The story begins in 1942 when four-year-old Annelex is living on the island of Java in the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia). Her grandfather is a successful planter, and her father is a pilot instructor in the Royal Netherlands Navy. But her carefree childhood ends as the Japanese invade Java, and along with 10,000 other Dutch residents, Annelex's family is rounded up. With few belongings, they are shipped off to interment camps, to a helpless, unknown future.

In a shockingly honest narrative, we learn of the tactics used by their captors to dehumanize the Dutch prisoners. We learn of the grinding daily routine of the prisoners, the food rations, the sleeping arrangements, and the awful sanitary conditions. We share in Annelex’s near-death bout with malaria. We also share some of the awful things she witnessed—extracting parasitic worms from a fellow-prisoner’s throat; the agonizing death by starvation of women punished for stealing food; and the sight of bodies being piled high on a truck.

Eventually the hell ends and the family is liberated. But the girl’s personal hell plagues her in freedom. Just days after she is reunited with her father, he is killed in an explosion. World war is replaced by civil war in Indonesia, forcing the family to flee first to Holland and then to the U.S., where the family tries to mend their broken lives.

For 60 years Annelex Hofstra Layson has repressed her early memories, shielding even her husband and children from the horrors of her past. With Lost Childhood, her harrowing ordeal is finally revealed. The author shares her story now to provide hope in young lives torn apart by war, and to inspire future generations to work for peace.

Genres: Nonfiction, Memoir, History, Biography, Childrens, Biography Memoir, Asia

112 pages, Hardcover

First published October 14, 2008

About the author

Annelex Hofstra Layson spent three of the first seven years of her life in Japanese prison camps. The heartrending story of her lost childhood has remained untold for 60 years.

Reviews

[Greg · Rating 4 out of 5]

I appreciated this first hand account of one young girl's experiences in a Japanese civilian internment camp for the Dutch inhabitants of the East Indies (now Indonesia). As she says, “…they set up about 300 internment camps – prison camps for enemies who hadn’t committed any crimes but who still might be dangerous…” Sounds similar to what was done with the Japanese Americans in the U.S. at around the same time. Tragically, only days after her father and mother were reunited following the war, her father was killed as a result of the fight for independence by the Indonesians.

The author writes in an unmistakably authentic voice, sharing with us her unembellished memories of her experiences, and powerful for that reason. It's a short book, only 105 pages, and worth the couple of hours it might take to read.

Thanks for the loan, Kirsten!

[Lilly Cowart · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book ''Lost Childhood My Life in a Japanese Prison Camp During World War 2'' is about Annlex Hofstra Layson a little girl at the time who got taken to a Japanese Prison Camp. She had to live there a long time and her bother got taken away to get trained as a Japanese soldier. The author wrote the book in first person and I like it like that because it makes me fell like I'm there in person.The author uses expressive words that makes me fell like I'm in the camp with Annlex. In summary I loved this book and would recommend this book.

[Kara Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Over the years I’ve read so many amazing personal accounts that came out of World War II, but I had never considered the perspective of a Dutch child living in Indonesia. I don’t think I ever learned about this country being colonized by the Dutch, and I certainly didn’t know how brutally its residents were treated when captured and imprisoned by the Japanese. So grateful to have the opportunity to continue to learn from the experiences of others!

[Bonnie Kay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lost Childhood is a gripping account of a young Dutch girl's internment and survival in the East Indies during World War II. The Japanese hold her with her grandmother and mother to an Internment camp. She endures seeing her mother and others beaten, malnutrition, and great sickness all before the age of eight.

I would not choose to read this book to my class in its entirety, due to a couple of the more intense passages. I think this would be a good book to read excerpts from to help students understand the breadth of human experience during World War II.

[Valencia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was good, but sad.

[Katherine C. Hirstein · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5

[Annalyssa Minh · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book looks good keep up the good story.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful YA memoir of a time most of us Americans are not aware of.

[Brenda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Part of WWII I didn't know about. Also great thoughts of staying positive during challenging times!

[Iyesha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Told from the point of view of a very young child. The perspective spares you some of the atrocities that these people endured. Suitable for some younger readers.

[Arjun Kumar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book with great detail of what happened in World War 11 in the Japanese camps. A girl was living a great childhood, but in 1941 the Japanese were taking over the pacific and heading to take over where she lived. After that life changed for her. Her dad was fighting in the war as a pilot for a plane and crashed. Her dad couldn't be found and the Japanese took over her place where she lived. She was separated with her brother to go to a different camp with her mom and grandma plus very little supplies to live. Many people died on the way to the camps and when they reached the camp it was worse. Many diseases were there and no food or clothing provided. It was very bad and it was like that for 3 years for her. After that 3 years, the war was over for the Japanese and was saved by U.S. They lived happily with their dad back.

[Aniket K · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lost Childhood: My Life in a Japanese Prison Camp During World War II written by Annelex Hofstra Layson with Herman J. Viola is a compelling memoir of a young Dutch girl who, along with her family, endures horrible predicaments as a prisoner of her Japanese captors during World War II. When the Japanese take over her hometown of Java in the Dutch East Indies, Annelex, a four-year-old girl and her family are separated and sent to prison camps for three and a half years. By narrating her perspective as a prisoner of the prison camp, the author tries to convey the central message to continue to stay positive and never give up hope, no matter how unfavorable and adverse conditions are. At the prison camp, Annelex, along with her mother and grandmother, faces harsh and unsanitary conditions and constantly lives in fear of starvation and dying from infection or some dreadful disease. Despite these adverse conditions, Annelex learns to cling to hope by self-promoting a positive attitude. The author encourages all those, who are victims of unfortunate circumstances in life, to never give up and continue to hope.

In my opinion, this detailed memoir highlights the brutalities of war vividly. “The guards built a cage around them with chicken wire. They were tied to a fence with their hands behind their backs, and then cords were strapped across their bodies so they couldn’t bend down. No one was allowed to give them any food or water. The women died a slow death from sunstroke or dehydration or maybe both”(70). This quote clearly illustrates the inhuman punishment the prisoners in the camp received for stealing food. It was only one of the many harsh predicaments the prisoners faced in the camp. “Because of the poor diet and lack of sanitation, Halmaheira was riddled with disease. Soon after we arrived, I came down with malaria, and I suffered from it off and on throughout my time at the camp”(70). The prisoners constantly lived in the fear of dying from some infectious disease or another. The above quote describes the terrible predicament Annelex endures during her three and a half years in the Japanese prison camp. However, despite these awful conditions and doubts if this horrible suffering would ever come to an end, Annelex continues to hope. “Am I ever going to be free? Am I ever going to have a normal life again? Somehow you force yourself to believe everything will be OK’’(76). Although, it seems like she would continue to lead the torturous life she was leading, she forces herself to think positively. Eventually, Annelex is liberated and reunited with her family. The author shares her story through this well crafted memoir to illustrate the power of positive thinking. Positive thinking can truly help one get through adversities in life and turn one’s life around.

[Janna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Annelex is a 5 year old, Dutch girl, living in the East Indies when the Japanese invaded. Thinking she is going on a "vacation" with her family she later finds out that this is no vacation. Right away she is separated from her 10 year old brother but she is fortunate enough to still be with her mother and grandmother. Her brother was shipped alone to a separate camp. They were then shipped to a prison camp where they stayed for 4 straight years in the squalled conditions. Annelex passed the time remaining positive and dreaming about life after the war. Lex, as she liked to be called saw horrific things in the camp. She saw two women die because they were tied to a fence and left in the hot sun (for stealing vegetable). She saw corpses being thrown into piles and loaded onto a truck; she endured heat, dust, malnutrition, malaria and being separated from her father and brother, all before the age of 8.
This is an inspiring little book, a memoir, not a biography, that really makes you cheer for the human spirit.

In all of my learning I did not know that other countries used internment camps. I had always learned of the American interment camps, and of course the holocaust camps, but it was eye-opening to me to realize how many citizens were “rounded” up and treated inhumanely all around the world. I think this is an important story to be told, at the end of the book I was asking more questions then it had answered. I will definitely have my kids read this book and we will talk about it as a family.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lost Childhood by Annelex Layson


The Lost Childhood, by Annelex Layson is a movie going through your head as you read. The scenes in the book are very descriptive and emotional. In this book, the main character is Annelex Layson when she was still very young. She has finally collected the courage tell people about her painful memories in Japanese prison camps.
So young and not always sure what is going on, Lex is in a time where the Japanese took over and brought thousands of people into their prison camps. She was put into a camp with her mom and grandmother who she called Oma. Her brother Jack got sent to a different camp for all boys and men. Her dad was in the military. Lex and Oma grew very close together while they were in the prison camps because Lex’s mom was always doing a job she was assigned. The Japanese soldiers would bark out commands that nobody could really understand. Lex had gotten very sick with malaria and had the chance of dying. Would she survive and be reunited with Jack and her father again?
If you have ever felt frightened, trapped, abused, or left alone, you could relate to this book in a million different ways. If you enjoy reading emotional, descriptive, and historical books, I can guarantee you that you will love this quick easy read book. I loved this book and I highly recommend it because it was an interesting and emotional book that taught me about times in the Japanese prison camps and kept my attention.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about a 5 year old girl named Annelex who has a normal carefree life just like any other kid; until she goes on a “vacation” with her family. She soon realized this was no vacation and she may never return from this nightmare. Annelex was separated from her beloved 10 year old brother right away but she was lucky enough to have her mother and grandmother with her to look after her. They were shipped to a prison camp where they lived in constant fear for almost 4 years. Annelex saw and experienced things that no child or adult should ever have to, but she stayed positive and dreamed of how life would be after the war was over when they were free again and never lost hope. Over 60 years later Annelex finally reveals her deepest memories in this book. It is hard to think about the reality of this book, because it’s not just another story it’s real and millions of people were tortured in these prisons camps for no reason at all. Annelex teaches her readers to always stay positive and never ever give up hope. I would tell everyone to read this book, because even though it is a tragic story it is very inspiring.

[James Crawford · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is by a Dutch woman who was four years old at the time the Japanese overran Java. The book opens with her describing the type of life they were having before the attack. They had their own servants and a nice life.


Then the war came and the Japanese attacked. They quickly overran the island, and the author, her brother, mother and grandmother were packed up by the Japanese and taken to one of the prison camps. The brother was separated and set to a men's camp. The rest of the book describes the harsh life they had in the prison camps, where punishment by the guards was frequent and, at times, deadly. Gradually they all suffered malnutrition and the author in particular contracted malaria. She paints a very vivid picture of the harshness of the camp.


Eventually, though, the war ended, but her troubles did not. Revolutionaries on the island wanted the Dutch gone (preferably dead), and again she was placed in a situation that was dangerous and potentially fatal. Eventually she has to leave the island.

It's a good book, showing how bad the Japanese prison camps were.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked up this book thinking that it was going to be the story of a Japanese-American in the US who was put in an internment camp during WWII. Much to my surprise, I learned that the Japanese also had internment camps on the island of Java for the Dutch who were living in the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia) during WWII!
This is the memoir of Annelex, who was only 4 years old when she and her family were forced to relocate to an internment camp. She relates her memories of her life before and during their imprisonment. Her relationship with her Oma (grandma) became particularly strong during this difficult time. Annelex was 8 when the war ended, but that was not the end of her struggle. Japan had previously promised independence to the Indonesians, but when they surrendered, they gave the Dutch East Indies back to the Netherlands. The Indonesians then began another war for their independence and the prisoners were caught in the middle.
A fascinating story and a quick read.

[Ricki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Annelex is a 5 year old, Dutch girl, living in the East Indies when the Japenese invaded. Thinking she is going on a "vacation" with her family she later finds out that this is no vacation. Right away she is seperated from her 10 year old brother but she is fortunate enough to still be with her mother and grandmother. Her brother was shipped alone to a seperate camp. They were then shipped to a prison camp where they stayed for 4 straight years in the squaller conditions. Annelex passed the time remaining positive and dreaming about life after the war. I think this book is neat because it's nonfiction and it's interesting to hear a personal story from not someone researching the topic but from someone who actually expierenced it. The only downfall to the book is that its only 111 pages.

[Kirsten Murphy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another book that brought me to the realization that I don't think I really know ANYTHING about WWII! I had no idea about the internment camps in America for Japanese-American until I was in college, and now I have just learned about the internment camps in the East Indies where the Dutch were imprisoned by the Japanese. How can there be so many things that we don't know?

This book, from the author's experience as a young girl in an internment camp in the East Indies, was a quick and yet very powerful reading experience for me as I came to realize just how much is out there that we should know, but don't.

[Ryland Davidson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lost Childhood: My life in a Japanese Prison Camp During World War II by Annelex Hofstra Layson is a great book. The genre of this book is an autobiography depicting the life of the author Annelex during World War II. The setting of this book is Japanese prison camp in the East Indies during the early 1940's. The main characters are Annelex, her mother, her grandmother, and her brother Jack. This book follows Annelex, a four year old girl, as she lives out her early childhood as a captive prisoner. She witnesses events no four year old should witness. I rated this book five out of five stars because it depicts an inspirational story about an amazing person.

[L Frost · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a short, easy to read book about a little known part of WWII. There is no foul language or sex. There are some relatively graphic descriptions of disease, death and punishment in the camp. But those are important to understanding the events. Most people are familiar with the camps Hitler had in Europe, but much less is known about the horrific camps run by the Japanese that imprisoned civilians in the Pacific region. To have a well-rounded understanding of WWII and the toll it took on people worldwide, students and adults need to hear these stories too. It would be a good non-fiction book for upper elementary and middle school students as part of a WWII unit.

[Celia · Rating 4 out of 5]

A different WWII story, as this was about a Dutch girl who was living on the island of Java when the Japanese took over, and her family became POWs. Annelex is only 4 when the Japanese make her a prisoner. She is one of the "lucky" ones though, because she is able to be with her mom and grandmother. Her brother, who was only 10, was sent with the men to a different camp. This is a quick, easy read, and a perfect way for middle school students to learn about this phase of history.

[Jill · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is absolutely amazing! I believe most people only know of the suffering of Jews by Germans during the Holocaust but do not know about the suffering of Dutch by Japanese during the same time. So, this book is an enlightening and touching piece of history. It is also a fairly quick read in that it is a little over a 100 pages. In my opinion, this book is a must read for 8th graders through adults.

[Laurie]

This brief memoir presents a child's memories, a Japanese prison camp as seen through the eyes of a four-year-old. Much is confusion and terror; while the author herself was seldom threatened, she remembers the times her mother was attacked and punished most vividly. An interesting look at the experiences of the European civilians in Indonesia during World War II.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Annelex Hofstra was born in the Dutch East Indies (now indonesia) and was a Dutch citizen. When she was 4, the japanese invaded her country and she and her mother and grandmother where sent to a concentration camp. Her 10 year old brother was sent, alone, to a seperate camp and her father's, a Dutch Pilot, whereabouts were unknown. Would pair well with "When My Name was Keoko"

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was the first book for week "two". A sad, but ultimately uplifting, tale about a girl who spent 4 years in a Japanese prison camp in Indonesia with her mother and grandmother. They all survived the camp and were released only to end up in the middle of a revolution between the natives and the Dutch.

[Adrianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting read. Of course I have heard about Japanese internment camps in the U.S. during WWII, but I didn't realized that the Japanese had iternment camps for Dutch citizens or that the Netherlands had interment camps for German citizens.

This book is an easy read account of a woman remembering her experiences in the Dutch internment camps in Japanese occupied Java.

[Sidney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Annelex Hofstra Layson's memories of life in the Dutch East Indies after the Japanese conquered the area in 1942 and after WWII when Indonesian revolutionaries were taking control from the Dutch help the reader understand life for citizens during war. This is an easy but powerful middle school read.

[Tommy Luo]

The Japanese are really cruel to their captured people!! They didn't even do anything, and they get punished. A lot of times they get hit just because they don't understand what they are saying in Japanese

[Sylvia]

Mestinya ada buku tandingan: Lost childhood: My life in a Dutch colonial time. Jangan cuma org Belanda yang di penjara ama org Jepang yang curhat. Orang Indonesia juga kudu nulisin penderitaan selama 350 tahun dijajah Belanda -- in English. Biar dibaca seluruh dunia.