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The Japanese American Experience During World War II
by Albert Marrin
On the 75th anniversary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor comes a harrowing and enlightening look at the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II - from National Book Award finalist Albert Marrin.
Just seventy-five years ago, the American government did something that most would consider unthinkable today: it rounded up over 100,000 of its own citizens based on nothing more than their ancestry and, suspicious of their loyalty, kept them in concentration camps for the better part of four years.
How could this have happened? Uprooted takes a close look at the history of racism in America and carefully follows the treacherous path that led one of our nation's most beloved presidents to make this decision. Meanwhile, it also illuminates the history of Japan and its own struggles with racism and xenophobia, which led to the bombing of Pearl Harbor, ultimately tying the two countries together.
Today, America is still filled with racial tension, and personal liberty in wartime is as relevant a topic as ever. Moving and impactful, National Book Award finalist Albert Marrin's sobering exploration of this monumental injustice shines as bright a light on current events as it does on the past.
"Starred Review. The author asks a chilling question: can another uprooting happen? The short answer: yes." - Kirkus
"Starred Review. With masterful command of his subject and a clear, conversational style, Marrin (FDR and the American Crisis) lays bare the suffering inflicted upon Japanese Americans by the U.S. during WWII." - Publishers Weekly
"Starred Review. As with Marrin's Flesh and Blood So Cheap (2011) and FDR and the American Crisis (2015), this is a prodigiously researched, indispensable work of history, generously illustrated with period photographs. It belongs on every library's shelves." - Booklist
"Starred Review. Packed with details yet well organized and carefully annotated, this excellent treatment of a shameful episode in U.S. history is highly recommended for library collections serving teens. Grade 7 and up." - School Library Journal
This information about Uprooted was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Albert Marrin is the author of numerous nonfiction books for young readers, including the National Book Award finalist Flesh and Blood So Cheap: The Triangle Fire and Its Legacy, A Volcano Beneath the Snow: John Brown's War Against Slavery, Thomas Paine: Crusader for Liberty, Black Gold: The Story of Oil in Our Lives, and FDR and the American Crisis. His many honors include the Washington Children's Book Guild and Washington Post Nonfiction Award for an "outstanding lifetime contribution that has enriched the field of children's literature," the James Madison Book Award for lifetime achievement, and the National Endowment for the Humanities Medal, awarded by President George W. Bush. Visit him online at AlbertMarrin.com.
If you liked Uprooted, try these:
by Nancy Jensen
Published 2025
Drawing upon a long-suppressed episode in American history, when thousands of German immigrants were rounded up and interned following the attack on Pearl Harbor, In Our Midst tells the story of one family's fight to cling to the ideals of freedom and opportunity that brought them to America.
by Matthew Delmont
Published 2024
The definitive history of World War II from the African American perspective, written by civil rights expert and Dartmouth history professor Matthew Delmont.
by Pamela Rotner Sakamoto
Published 2017
Alternating between American and Japanese perspectives, Midnight in Broad Daylight provides a fresh look at the dropping of the first atomic bomb.
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