During World War II, the U.S. government rounded up and detained 120,000 Japanese Americans, including 70,000 U.S. citizens. Bucknell welcomed two of the detainees, enabling them to gain a college education and build a better life. They were among 3,000 Japanese American students allowed to leave the camps to attend college. This feature recreates the women's experiences in the camps, at Bucknell and life after graduation. The era is recreated through the voices of Bucknell's only living camp survivor and the children of the now-deceased graduate, as well as through extensive research.
From the Judges
The true hero here is the research—and it shines. The prose is good, and the editing, too, but mostly the research required to find and bring these stories to the foreground is what stood out here.
