Ken Mochizuki

Inspired by a true story, this graphic novel follows a Jewish immigrant’s efforts to help his Japanese neighbors while they're incarcerated during World War II. Winner, Best in Young Adult Non-Fictionfrom the Excellence in Graphic Literature Awards“A powerful book about advocating for friends and neighbors during times of great division.” —Kazu Kibuishi, #1 New York Times bestselling author-illustrator of the Amulet series An evocative and beautiful graphic novel revealing the truth of one man’s extraordinary efforts, We Are Not Strangers converges two perspectives into a single portrait of a community’s struggle with race, responsibility, and what it truly means to be an American. Marco Calvo always knew his grandfather, affectionately called Papoo, was a good man. After all, he was named for him. A first-generation Jewish immigrant, Papoo was hardworking, smart, and caring. When Papoo peacefully passes away, Marco expects the funeral to be simple. But he' caught off guard by something unusual. Among his close family and friends are mourners he doesn’t recognize—Japanese American families—and no one is quite sure who they are or why they are at the service. How did these strangers know his grandfather so well? Set in the multicultural Central District of Seattle during World War II and inspired by author Josh Tuininga’s family experiences, We Are Not Strangers explores a unique situation of Japanese and Jewish Americans living side by side in a country at war. Following Papoo’s perspective, we learn of his life as a Sephardic Jewish immigrant and his friendship with Sam Akiyama, a Japanese man whose life is upended by Executive Order 9066, which authorized the incarceration of nearly all Japanese Americans and residents of Japanese ancestry. Determined to keep Sam’s business afloat while he and his family are unjustly imprisoned, he and Papoo create a plan that will change the Akiyama’s lives forever."At its core, a relatable tale of friendship, shared experiences of discrimination, and the power of individuals to make a difference." — The BeatIntroduction by award-winning author Ken Mochizuki Afterword by Devin Naar, author of Jewish Salonica

The daughter of Japanese immigrants, Michi Nishiura Weglyn was confined in Arizona’s Gila River concentration camp during the Second World War. She later became a costume designer for Broadway and worked as the wardrobe designer for some of the most popular television personalities of the ’50s and early ’60s. In 1968, after a televised statement by the US Attorney General that concentration camps in America never existed, Michi embarked on an eight-year solo quest through libraries and the National Archives to expose and account for the existence of the Second World War camps where she and other Japanese Americans were imprisoned. Her research became a major catalyst for passage of the Civil Liberties Act of 1988, in which the US government admitted that its treatment of Japanese Americans during the Second World War was wrong. Thoroughly researched and intricately told, Michi Challenges History is a masterful portrayal of one woman’s fight for the truth—and for justice.

The second installment in the series of graphic novels that began with Washington State Book Award Finalist We Hereby Refuse: Japanese American Resistance to Wartime IncarcerationBasketball-loving Sumiko Tanaka, then 11, narrates this graphic novel about the World War II incarceration of Japanese Americans. Through her eyes, we watch as her family is forced from their home and subjected to indiscriminate racism as they are shipped off to the concentration camp called Minidoka in Idaho.But Sumiko and her 17-year-old sister Yuri also see acts of charity and solidarity from their non-Japanese neighbors and friends in the Seattle area that make them hopeful for the future. As the young girls struggle with the horrors of being imprisoned in the dusty desert, they also find solace in the fact that some people chose to help. This story highlights the actual actions and experiences of those neighbors and friends.

A Japanese American boy learns to play baseball when he and his family are forced to live in an internment camp during World War II, and his ability to play helps him after the war is over.

Looks at the Chinese diplomat who used his powers--against the orders of his own government--to assist thousands of Jews in escaping the Nazis in Lithuania

A Japanese American boy learns to play baseball when he and his family are forced to live in an internment camp during World War II, and his ability to play helps him after the war is over