"The summer I was thirteen, the Japanese came to Ellis. Not Ellis, exactly, but to the old Tallgrass Ranch, which the government had turned into a relocation camp. Tallgrass was a mile and a half from Ellis, less than a mile past our farm, and it was one of the camps the government was building then to house the Japanese...." so begins the book, told from young Rennie's viewpoint as she watches the Japanese arrive and the events in the town unfold around her and in front of her. Life is no longer the same; instead, her sister leaves unexpectedly to live in Denver, her brother Buddie enlists and is captured in Europe, and Rennie is left to care for her ill Mother and forgetful grandmother. But when Rennie's best friend is raped and murdered, tensions in the town heighten and people point accusingly at the Japanese 'invaders.' Rennie's family surrounds her with lots of integrity, honesty, humor, and love as they face challenges together. This is an excellent coming of age book...with some good twists and surprises.About 3 years ago, we stopped just west of Granada, Colorado at the site of Amache, the World War II Japanese relocation camp. There is little left except for a tower, concrete slabs all precisely arranged, and a cemetery. This past October, we stopped again, and new signage guides the visitor to learn more about the camp history. It's a sobering statement of how Americans treated Americans...and a must-see if you are traveling along US 56 in eastern Colorado.
For more info on this book, take a look on Sandra Dallas' website: http://www.sandradallas.com/fiction/tallgrass.html
For more info on Amache, the camp upon which Tallgrass is loosely based, see http://www.colorado.gov/dpa/doit/archives/wwcod/granada.htm and http://www.amache.org/
1 comment:
I loved this book when I read it a few months ago. I thought Dallas did a wonderful job of portraying the varying emotions and reactions of the local townspeople. It is a story that has lingered with me.
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