Description

Set in an internment camp where the United States cruelly detained Japanese Americans during WWII and based on true events, this moving love story finds hope in heartbreak.

To fall in love is already a gift. But to fall in love in a place like Minidoka, a place built to make people feel like they weren't human--that was miraculous.

After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Tama is sent to live in a War Relocation Center in the desert. All Japanese Americans from the West Coast--elderly people, children, babies--now live in prison camps like Minidoka. To be who she is has become a crime, it seems, and Tama doesn't know when or if she will ever leave. Trying not to think of the life she once had, she works in the camp's tiny library, taking solace in pages bursting with color and light, love and fairness. And she isn't the only one. George waits each morning by the door, his arms piled with books checked out the day before. As their friendship grows, Tama wonders: Can anyone possibly read so much? Is she the reason George comes to the library every day? Beautifully illustrated and complete with an afterword, back matter, and a photo of the real Tama and George--the author's grandparents--Maggie Tokuda-Hall's elegant love story for readers of all ages sheds light on a shameful chapter of American history.

Press

★ “The author’s gentle text captures the resilience of human dignity and optimism even during times of immense challenge and adversity. Imamura’s stunning gouache and watercolor illustrations convey both the setting and the emotions of the characters. . . Tokuda-Hall's author’s note discussing her grandparents, Japanese internment camps, and the continuing impact of racism caps off this powerful must-read.”
—Booklist (starred review)

★ “Love in the Library is an exquisite piece of historical fiction and a love story for the ages.” — Book Page (starred review)

”The gentle text shows how, no matter how bleak the outlook, people can find ways to hope, dream, and endure. . . . Imamura’s soft, exquisite illustrations capture the physical locale, using light and shadow in powerful ways. . . . An evocative and empowering tribute to human dignity and optimism.”
—Kirkus Reviews

★ “Love blooms in the Idaho desert at the Japanese prison camp called Minidoka in this stirring, compassionate narrative inspired by the experiences of Tokuda-Hall’s (Squad) Japanese American maternal grandparents. . . . Alongside a sensitive introduction to life in Japanese internment camps, this picture book transcends its central romance to encompass love for books, community, and being ‘human.’”
—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

★ “This lovely, inspiring story unfolds in Imamura’s muted art, cushioning the harsh reality of how Japanese Americans were treated during World War II.” —School Library Journal (starred review)