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A review by simoneandherbooks
This Light Between Us by Andrew Fukuda
4.0
It's been quite some time since I've read a historical fiction novel, but it's also been a long time since I've read one based in World War 2. Because there are so many WW2 novels I stopped reading them all together. When I was offered to read a book that covers the war, but also the Japanese internment camps and the all Japanese-American military unit called the 442nd (also known as the most decorated military unit of the United States with the most losses). This particular point in American history isn't really talked about, but it should. It's a point of shame for an entire race of humans who peacefully lived in the United States only to be discriminated and hated against because of their ethnic background. Like, it's sad when Drunk History covers this part of United States history, but you don't hear about it in the classroom.
This Light Between Us follows Alex Maki, a young Japanese American boy living off the coast of Washington state on Bainbridge Island. For all intents and purposes, he's your average teenage boy with a love for comic books and reading. He also has a pen pal since he was 13 years old named Charlie Levy. Charlie is a young French Jewish girl living in Paris and as their friendship grows over the years, the turmoil during World War 2 deepens. On the day the Japanese bomb Pearl Harbor, Alex, his family, and the small Japanese community on Bainbridge Island are immediately met with discrimination. And as the Japanese community is forced off the island and sent to the Manzanar internment camps, Alex shares this all with his pen pal. However, as turmoil in Europe progresses, letters from Charlie come less frequently causing Alex not only to worry about his family but also about his friend.
When American military arrive at the camp, Alex makes the decision to join the army in hopes of freeing his father in prison and finding his best friend in the chaos of war. He joins the 442nd military unit, a regime of all Japanese-American soldiers segregated from other troops because of their race. But as Alex spends years training and fighting, his search for Charlie continues only to find out the truth when the war finally ends.
I have to hand it to Andrew Fukuda. He expertly incorporated two of the major moments in Japanese American history into one book. First is the Japanese internment camps set up after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. I loved how Andrew Fukuda captured this moment in history. When the radio announces what happened at Pearl Harbor, the first thing Alex's family experiences is just utter hatred. They were no longer the friendly neighbors who cared about their community, but a threat and an enemy. It was so stark that people would hate them so easily and that really broke my heart. And when they were shipped off to the internment camps, I was so surprised that the conditions there were similar to the ones many immigrants experienced in cages on the border of Mexico and the United States. Talk about watching history repeat itself.
But what I found interesting is how the Japanese spent their time in the camps. For many, it was just trying to get back to a normal routine, but for others it was a slap in the face by the country they were so loyal to. I loved the depictions of how most Japanese tried to make the best of the situation but how others grouped together to revolt. But then it couldn't get worse when the US military came calling to the camps looking for recruits into the US army.
The second was the 442nd military unit which was completely comprised of Japanese-Americans and completely segregated from the rest of the military. They were sent to the front lines of Europe to essentially die, but the 442nd isn't just a group of men willing to lie down for the cause. Instead, they were the hardest fighting unit losing the most men, liberating a concentration camp in Germany, and being awarded the most medals than any other American military unit at the time. Sadly, history doesn't remember it this way.
The flow of this story and the usage of American history is really what I applaud Andrew Fukuda for. He expertly connects a Japanese American to the two distinct moments in their history in America and it really made sense. Although I was skeptic that Alex, the introverted book worm, would join the military, I can understand his reasoning and he didn't run into the situation like some hard-headed teenager. The scenes of war were well described with several losses for Alex making it feel more real. I honestly felt like I was reading the story of someone's grandfather.
However, the book wasn't perfect and I felt the story between Charlie and Alex was secondary to the historical aspects of the story. I loved the letters passed between these two friends and I loved how they conveyed not only their friendship but also what's happening around them. It was definitely difficult for me to read Charlie's letters without the inevitable happening. But during the years Alex was working in the military and deployed to Europe, there wasn't much from Charlie. Instead, Andrew Fukuda uses a small amount of magical realism to portray Charlie as immaterial being that visits Alex while he's in the military. I honestly could have done without that, but it did provide a little bit of a romantic feeling to the story.
But the ending was phenomenal. I'm not happy about what happens because it is tragic and sad, but I like the fact Andrew Fukuda stayed realistic with his storytelling and the ending reflected that.
Overall, great story and if you're already a die-hard fan of historical fiction, then definitely add this one to your list. Read this one if you don't know about Japanese internment camps or the 442nd as well. It's a part of American history that we don't discuss and honestly reflects the world that we live in today.
I received a copy of this book from Tor Teen for free in exchange for an honest review. My opinions have not been influenced by the publisher or the author.
This Light Between Us follows Alex Maki, a young Japanese American boy living off the coast of Washington state on Bainbridge Island. For all intents and purposes, he's your average teenage boy with a love for comic books and reading. He also has a pen pal since he was 13 years old named Charlie Levy. Charlie is a young French Jewish girl living in Paris and as their friendship grows over the years, the turmoil during World War 2 deepens. On the day the Japanese bomb Pearl Harbor, Alex, his family, and the small Japanese community on Bainbridge Island are immediately met with discrimination. And as the Japanese community is forced off the island and sent to the Manzanar internment camps, Alex shares this all with his pen pal. However, as turmoil in Europe progresses, letters from Charlie come less frequently causing Alex not only to worry about his family but also about his friend.
When American military arrive at the camp, Alex makes the decision to join the army in hopes of freeing his father in prison and finding his best friend in the chaos of war. He joins the 442nd military unit, a regime of all Japanese-American soldiers segregated from other troops because of their race. But as Alex spends years training and fighting, his search for Charlie continues only to find out the truth when the war finally ends.
I have to hand it to Andrew Fukuda. He expertly incorporated two of the major moments in Japanese American history into one book. First is the Japanese internment camps set up after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. I loved how Andrew Fukuda captured this moment in history. When the radio announces what happened at Pearl Harbor, the first thing Alex's family experiences is just utter hatred. They were no longer the friendly neighbors who cared about their community, but a threat and an enemy. It was so stark that people would hate them so easily and that really broke my heart. And when they were shipped off to the internment camps, I was so surprised that the conditions there were similar to the ones many immigrants experienced in cages on the border of Mexico and the United States. Talk about watching history repeat itself.
But what I found interesting is how the Japanese spent their time in the camps. For many, it was just trying to get back to a normal routine, but for others it was a slap in the face by the country they were so loyal to. I loved the depictions of how most Japanese tried to make the best of the situation but how others grouped together to revolt. But then it couldn't get worse when the US military came calling to the camps looking for recruits into the US army.
The second was the 442nd military unit which was completely comprised of Japanese-Americans and completely segregated from the rest of the military. They were sent to the front lines of Europe to essentially die, but the 442nd isn't just a group of men willing to lie down for the cause. Instead, they were the hardest fighting unit losing the most men, liberating a concentration camp in Germany, and being awarded the most medals than any other American military unit at the time. Sadly, history doesn't remember it this way.
The flow of this story and the usage of American history is really what I applaud Andrew Fukuda for. He expertly connects a Japanese American to the two distinct moments in their history in America and it really made sense. Although I was skeptic that Alex, the introverted book worm, would join the military, I can understand his reasoning and he didn't run into the situation like some hard-headed teenager. The scenes of war were well described with several losses for Alex making it feel more real. I honestly felt like I was reading the story of someone's grandfather.
However, the book wasn't perfect and I felt the story between Charlie and Alex was secondary to the historical aspects of the story. I loved the letters passed between these two friends and I loved how they conveyed not only their friendship but also what's happening around them. It was definitely difficult for me to read Charlie's letters without the inevitable happening. But during the years Alex was working in the military and deployed to Europe, there wasn't much from Charlie. Instead, Andrew Fukuda uses a small amount of magical realism to portray Charlie as immaterial being that visits Alex while he's in the military. I honestly could have done without that, but it did provide a little bit of a romantic feeling to the story.
But the ending was phenomenal. I'm not happy about what happens because it is tragic and sad, but I like the fact Andrew Fukuda stayed realistic with his storytelling and the ending reflected that.
Overall, great story and if you're already a die-hard fan of historical fiction, then definitely add this one to your list. Read this one if you don't know about Japanese internment camps or the 442nd as well. It's a part of American history that we don't discuss and honestly reflects the world that we live in today.
I received a copy of this book from Tor Teen for free in exchange for an honest review. My opinions have not been influenced by the publisher or the author.