edwina 's review for:

This Light Between Us by Andrew Fukuda

5.0

---

From start to finish, "This Light Between US" by Andrew Fukuda had me hooked from the rawness and poignancy of the novel, its characters and the historical background in which the novel is set in. This book is set during the events before, during and after the Second World War and navigates Alex Maki's life, a Japanese-American teenager and his family living on Bainbridge Island in Washington and subsequently to the internment camp at Manzanar following the events of Pearl Harbour. At the core of me, as I was reading this, I realised just how significant the impact on the lives the internment camps had on those who were of Japanese-American descent having done nothing wrong but live their lives truthfully as who they were - Japanese-Americans. Not only does it serve as a pillar for the dark side of American history to be unveiled but Fukuda aims to portray the storyline with historical accuracy. Alex and his friendship with Charlie Levy across the Atlantic also gripped my heartstrings - their friendship endures through time and space through their letters as pen pals. I could not put this book down - everything about this novel really woke me up and made me question about my place and my identity in this world. It's also a stark reminder that as a global citizen, a young woman of Asian descent and a history major - that I must never forget what occurred within the most darkest times of the lives of Japanese-American society in those internment camps and educate others about as history is doomed to repeat itself. A fantastic and superbly written novel. 5 stars!