Within These Lines by Stephanie Morrill - ESSENTIAL

Within These Lines by Stephanie Morrill, 348 pages.  Blink, 2019.  $18.  

Language: G; Mature Content: G; Violence: PG (fighting, shooting and vandalism). 

BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS – ESSENTIAL 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE 

It’s World War II, and Evalina and Taichi have to keep their relationship on the down-low as Taichi’s parents are Japanese and Pearl Harbor is still raw in the hearts of all American’s. Taichi and Evalina are torn apart as Taichi’s family is taken away to the Manzanar Relocation Center better known as an internment camp. Taichi is faced with rebellion, war, and fear and finds comfort and hope in Evalina’s letters. As Taichi fights the battle of fear and racism in the internment camps, Evalina fights the same battle on a more public stage, taking political science classes and writing news articles against the suppression of Japanese Americans. As the young couple is faced with some of the most trying situations of their time, it becomes a fight to keep their love alive.

I loved this book because I thought it was very well written. I thought the character development was excellent and the author made it easy to empathize with the characters even though the World War Two era can be difficult to relate to. I would recommend carefully reading the dates before each chapter. I loved this book because it was a topic I haven’t really been exposed to. It was very thought-provoking and interesting.

Reviewer, Isabelle, 10th grade