Weedflower

This book was a touching account of what life was like for Japanese children right after Pearl Harbor. I always have heard about what happened with Americans around that time but not what happened to innocent Japanese Americans. My favorite part in the book was when she was trying to grow the seeds in the desert and they wouldnt grow until she went and worked hard on the soil until they were nurtured enough to grow. When they finally grew they were the color of the rainbow and it made her proud of something that she had accomplished. Its amazing that in the face of adversity she still found something that could make her happy and proud of herself

Weedflower and The Bracelet

Weedflower and The Bracelet were both good historical fictions books. They portrayed the stories of Japanese-American girls placed in American concentration camps. Sumiko was teased at school and finally made a real friend at the camp. The Bracelet's main character is Emi, and she had a best friend, whom gave her a bracelet as a going away gift. I felt a strong connection with both characters.
Like Sumiko, I was teased in school for being different. Sumiko was teased for her race, and I was teased because my family was poor. I grew up with many good friends in my neighborhood, but I did not know what a good friend really was until I met Ginni. If the Japanese would not have bombed Pearl Harbor, Sumiko would not have met an Indian boy named Frank, and if Katrina would not have hit, I would not have met Ginni. We both had to say goodbye to our friends in the end.
Emi reminded me of my friend, Sahara. She lived in my neighborhood, and we were really good friends. One day September 11th happened and idiots started to harass Sahara and her family. Sahara's family constantly had to pick trash off their lawn. Even though Sahara did not move to a concentration camp, her parents would not let her out play. They were afraid someone would try to hurt her. She was a prisoner in her own home. Eventually, her family could not take the abuse anymore and sold their house.
I never really understood what the Japanese-Americans' went through until now. I grew up knowing that the United States had concentration camps for the Japanese-Americans, but I did not care. They were not slaughtered like the Jews. I went through Katrina, so I know what type of mental toll it takes to be forced to leave everything behind. At least people were nice to the evacuees; Japanese-Americans faced a ton of racism.

Weedflower

The Party

Her blue dress rustled as she stepped onto the street.

She breathed deeply of the scent from her beautiful bunch of peach stock.

The maid looked surprised to see Sumiko but took her present and flowers.

Something kind of rolled across the room,

Silence.

Marsha’s mother was staring right at Sumiko.

She put out her hand. “I’m Marsha’s mother,” she said.

Sumiko smiled with relief.

She gushed, “Your house is beautiful!”

Marsha’s mother put her arm around Sumiko and moved her onto the front porch.

She’d scarcely had a chance to see the house.

Her eyes were kind.

She smiled so warmly,

Sumiko couldn’t help smiling even harder than she already was.

“Marsha didn’t tell me you were in her class.”

“It’s not me, dear, but my husband…”

“I just want you to understand that if it were up to me…”

And Sumiko realized that she was being uninvited.

She understood,

Sumiko stood on the porch with the cake.

The ballerina,

The music,

The door.

She was Humiliated Sumiko.

This is what it felt like to be lonely.

Weedflower

Weedflower really opened my eyes to what happened in the United States during WWII. I do not remember learning about this during my history classes. I think we might have talked about it once but it was "The U.S. put Japanese Americans in camps." And that was all that was said. I thought this book was an amazing story of relationships. There were so many different relationships between all of the characters. I loved that Sumiko was able to find a friend in the most unlikely place. I found this book to be sad because I couldn't do anything to help Sumiko. I enjoyed this book and I was glad we read The Bracelet before reading Weedflower.

Weedflower

Weed flower shows what the people of Japan went through during World War II. I was very unaware of what the Japanese Americans went through or how they were treated until I read this book. Weed flower is a wonderful work of historical fiction. If I was teaching a class of fourth graders or older then this would definitely be a great book to teach.

WeedFlower

I think the book Weedflower accurately shows what Japanese Americans went through around the time of world war II. I was very unaware of Japanese American culture and how they were treated in the past. I think this book would be a wonderful story to share with a 4th or 5th grade classroom. It is a great work of historical fiction. The usage of flowers and gardens makes the story creative and fun. Sumiko uses these things for survival and hope. She then meets a boy name Mohave and they become great friends. I think that Sumiko is a great character for the children to connect with and learn about. This would be a wonderful book for a history lesson as well as teaching diversity. It would be wonderful for the children to learn about racism and different cultures.

Weedflower Response

The book Weedflower portrays Japanese Americans around the time of World War II in an accurate way. Many children, as well as adults, are unaware of how Japanese Americans were treated during this time. The book is a great work of historical fiction to be used in the classroom. Sumiko makes the most of her situations in life and finds outlets through flowers and a garden. The book focuses on her garden a lot when she is at the Japanese internment camp. Just like Sumiko’s flowers, she finds a hope in survival. She meets a Mohave boy and they develop a unique friendship. Weedflower is a great story to use as a read aloud in an upper elementary grades classroom. Fifth graders for example would love this book and feel a strong connection with Sumiko.

My favorite quote from Weedflower said by Sumiko’s cousin, Bull:

"In the world of change, you accept the changes that can't be helped. You suffer so you can learn, and you learn so you can be a better person in your next life."