Nisei


Fiction - Historical - Event/Era
292 Pages
Reviewed on 06/27/2017
Buy on Amazon

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Free Book Program, which is open to all readers and is completely free. The author will provide you with a free copy of their book in exchange for an honest review. You and the author will discuss what sites you will post your review to and what kind of copy of the book you would like to receive (eBook, PDF, Word, paperback, etc.). To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email.

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Review Exchange Program, which is open to all authors and is completely free. Simply put, you agree to provide an honest review an author's book in exchange for the author doing the same for you. What sites your reviews are posted on (B&N, Amazon, etc.) and whether you send digital (eBook, PDF, Word, etc.) or hard copies of your books to each other for review is up to you. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email, and be sure to describe your book or include a link to your Readers' Favorite review page or Amazon page.

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Donation Program, which was created to help nonprofit and charitable organizations (schools, libraries, convalescent homes, soldier donation programs, etc.) by providing them with free books and to help authors garner more exposure for their work. This author is willing to donate free copies of their book in exchange for reviews (if circumstances allow) and the knowledge that their book is being read and enjoyed. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email. Be sure to tell the author who you are, what organization you are with, how many books you need, how they will be used, and the number of reviews, if any, you would be able to provide.

    Book Review

Reviewed by Raanan Geberer for Readers' Favorite

Nisei by J.J. White tells the story of Hideo, or Bobby, Takahashi, a young Hawaii-born Japanese-American, and his adventures during World War II, as revealed in a memoir that his son discovers after his death and his son’s reaction. Unlike the Japanese on the West Coast, the Hawaiian Nisei were basically left alone—with some exceptions. Bobby’s family is one of those exceptions, since his father sent scrap iron home to Japan until the eve of the war and some drawings Bobby made of Pearl Harbor found their way into the hands of Japanese pilots. Soon, the family is sent to a series of mainland internment camps. Bobby had hoped to marry his sweetheart, a white Hawaiian, but her parents now forbid it. Instead, his father forces him to marry the Japanese-born Chiyoko, whose family knew his in Japan, and who’s a bit of a trollop. Bobby finally gets the opportunity to enlist in a Japanese-American regiment and prove his loyalty, but his troubles are just beginning—his sergeant is Big Eddie, a huge Hawaiian bully who terrorized him during his teens.

White is an excellent writer, and he’s one of the few fiction writers who basically follows the rules of brevity laid out by my journalism professor—three sentences per paragraph, 30 words per sentence. I was fascinated by his recreation of Hawaiian Pidgin, a dialect that islanders frequently use, even those who are educated. Nisei also has great historical detail—I always wondered about the relationship between Hawaiian-born Japanese and California-born Japanese in the World War II army, and this book provides the answer. Above all, I must applaud J.J. White for getting a handle on the Japanese-American culture. For those who are interested in the story of Japanese-Americans during World War II, Nisei is a must-read. An excellent book.