Silver Like Dust

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What to expect

The poignant story of a Japanese American woman's journey through one of the most shameful chapters in American history.

Sipping tea by the fire, preparing sushi for the family, or indulgently listening to her husband tell the same story for the hundredth time, Kimi Grant's grandmother, Obaachan, was a missing link to Kimi's Japanese heritage, something she had had a mixed relationship with all her life. Growing up in rural Pennsylvania, all Kimi ever wanted to do was fit in, spurning traditional Japanese cuisine and her grandfather's attempts to teach her the language.

But there was one part of Obaachan's life that had fascinated and haunted Kimi ever since the age of eleven—her gentle yet proud Obaachan had once been a prisoner, along with 112,000 Japanese Americans, for more than five years of her life. Obaachan never spoke of those years, and Kimi's own mother only spoke of it in whispers. It was a source of haji, or shame. But what had really happened to Obaachan, then a young woman, and the thousands of other men, women, and children like her?

Obaachan would meet her husband in the camps and watch her mother die there, too. From the turmoil, racism, and paranoia that sprang up after the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the terrifying train ride to Heart Mountain, to the false promise of V-J Day, Silver Like Dust captures a vital chapter of the Japanese American experience through the journey of one remarkable woman.

Her story is one of thousands, yet it is a powerful testament to the enduring bonds of family and an unusual look at the American dream.

Critics Review

  • “This vivid
    account of a Japanese American woman’s imprisonment at the Heart Mountain
    Relocation Camp during WWII takes the form of a dialogue between the
    once-imprisoned grandmother and the author, who is her granddaughter. Narrator
    Emily Woo Zeller does an extraordinary job of varying the voices in the
    dialogue without losing the intimacy of the story. Her delivery is well paced
    and easy to understand. The author’s grandmother was not only a prisoner but
    also a Japanese American, a woman, a new bride, and a mother. All of these
    facets of her identity, together, shaped her experience and come through in her
    memories.”

    AudioFile

  • “Growing up
    in rural Pennsylvania, wanting to fit in, Grant felt far removed from her
    Japanese heritage, including the internment of her grandparents during WWII…Grant offers a portrait of the stoicism and
    patriotism of her family as well as differences in generations, as the stories
    evoke her own feelings of rage. But throughout is a portrait of a courageous
    woman who endured hardship and later established a delicate balance of trust
    with her granddaughter that allowed her to finally tell the family’s story.”

    Booklist

  • “As the
    author learns about her grandmother’s young adulthood, marriage, and first
    child, she forms a relationship with the older woman that hadn’t existed
    before. Verdict: This is a heartwarming, informative, and accessible tale of
    personal family history. Grant seamlessly intersperses the narrative with facts
    about World War II, Japan, and the period. Grant’s narrative is not just a
    story of the Japanese internment; it is a loving tribute to her grandmother.
    Narrator Emily Woo Zeller allows the story to flow beautifully. Recommended to
    fans of Theresa Weir and Amy Tan.”

    Library Journal (audio review)

  • “The author
    weaves rich supporting material throughout the narrative, providing a solid
    context for the relocation and internment of 112,000 Japanese throughout the
    West…This is also the story of a young woman navigating her marriage to a
    strong but exacting personality and family ties weakened by the stress and
    separation of internment…[A] well-written book about life in a Japanese
    internment camp and the social and political forces that allowed their existence.”

    Kirkus Reviews

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