Displacement
Displacement is a young adult graphic novel about the dark time in American history when Japanese Americans were put in internment camps during World War II. Kiku is a modern teenager who is suddenly displaced in time during a vacation to San Francisco. She finds herself in the 1940s and is put into an internment camp, close to her grandmother’s family.
This is an interesting graphic novel, and I learned a lot about the Japanese internment camps, including their names and how Japanese Americans were treated there. I feel readers of this book will be drawn to do further research on this topic. The artwork is good, but the method of time travel is not well explained. Kiku, though she was living near her grandmother, did not really interact with her. I found this unbelievable and a little disappointing. However, I learned a lot about this period in history and the unfair rounding up and confining of Americans just based on their ethnicity. Alarming occurrences, such as the killing of James Wakasa, are discussed. Research led me to at least six others who were killed by gunfire in these camps. The most important thing about this book is that it ignites a desire in the reader to investigate and find out more.
If you are interested in World War II history, the history of the Japanese internment camps, or young adult historical graphic novels, you will enjoy this book.
