Journey to Topaz by Yoshiko Uchida

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     This is a great book.  The book is about a Japanese-American girl’s, Yuki, perspective of what happens to her and her family during World War II.  Her family was moved, by the U.S. Government, from the Bay Area in San Francisco to Topaz, Utah.   Yuki’s family had to sell all their belongings and report to a Civil Control Station in San Jose, CA.  Then they were transferred to a detainment camp in Utah.  This book falls in the category of World War II historical fiction.

Chapter 1

1.       How old was Yuki’s brother? _____________________________________

2.       Yuki’s brother was going to high school or the university? _______________________________

3.       How old was Yuki? ___________________________________

4.       What was Yuki’s last name? ________________________________

5.       What was the name of her dog? _______________________________

6.       What was the name of Yuki’s canary? _____________________________

7.       What influenced Yuki to give her canary that name? ___________________________________

8.       What was Yuki’s father’s name? __________________________________________________

9.       Where did the FBI take Yuki’s father? _______________________________________________

10.   Why did the FBI take her father? __________________________________________________

11.   Was the Chang family allowed to leave their home? ____________________________________

Chapter 2

1.       Did Yuki’s mother practice Japanese traditions? _______________________________

2.       If yes, what traditions did she practice? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3.       What did Yuki’s mother offered the FBI’s Agents? ____________________________________

4.       Where did Yuki’s father say they were transferring all the prisoners? _____________________________________________________________________________

5.       What does Issei mean? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

6.       Were other Japanese men, from the community taken by the FBI? _______________________

Chapter 3

1.       How long was Yuri’s father away until they received news from him? ______________________

2.       What did Mr. Toda whisper to Yuki’s mother? _________________________________________

3.       What did Garvis hissed to Yuki at school? ____________________________________________

4.       What did the teacher say to the class? ______________________________________________

5.       What is a Nisei? _________________________________________________________________

6.       Where did Father say he was held? _________________________________________________

7.       What did Mrs. Jamieson give Yuki as she dropped off her Christmas cookies? ______________________________________________________________________________

8.       Who was the U.S. at war with besides Japan? _______________________________________

9.       What day did President Franklin Roosevelt issue an executive order? ____________________

10.   Do you think this order of the President was fair to the Japanese people? ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Chapter 4

1.       What day did they have to report to camp? _________________________________________

2.       Where did they have to report to? _________________________________________________

3.       Japanese people had to turn in what objects? ________________________________________

4.       What were these objects considered if they kept them? ________________________________

5.       After what time were Japanese people not allowed outside? _____________________________

6.       Japanese people were forbidden to travel more than __________miles from home.

7.       What is a curfew? _______________________________________________________________

8.       Who had a curfew? _________________________________________________________

9.       What were some of the items they were required to take to camp? _____________________________________________________________________________

10.   Why do you think the Government told them to take all these items to camp? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Chapter 5

1.       Who drove them to the Civil Control Station? ________________________________________

2.       Where was the Civil Control Station? ____________________________________________

3.       Describe the scene at the Congregational Church. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

4.       Yuki noticed a large group watching all the Japanese people board buses from the Congregational Church.  What did Yuki wondered what they were thinking? ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

5.       Where was Yuki’s family taken once they reported to the church? ______________________________________________________________________________

6.       How many Japanese Americans were evacuated on the West Coast of the U.S.? ____________

Chapter 6

1.       Who did Yuki see first once arriving at the Tanforan Assembly Center? ____________________

2.       Who did they see next? _______________________________________

3.       Describe Barrack 16, Apartment 40. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

4.       Describe the latrines and washroom. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

5.       What did Ken get for dinner on his first night? _____________________________________________________________________________

6.       What did Mr. Toda bring Yuki? ___________________________________________________

Chapter 7

1.       What was the name of the girl who lived at the stall next to Yuki? (A)____________________

2.       What was the name of the girl’s grandmother? _____________________________________

3.       A’s grandfather said, shaking his head, “I never dreamed that America would do such a thing to us.”  What was he feeling that he said this? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

4.       Yuki tells the bald man playing with Mr. Toda that she hopes America will win the war because America is fighting for what’s right.  Do you think this is right of what America is doing to Yuki’s family? ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

5.       Do you think things will improve if the U.S. wins the war? ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Chapter 8

1.       What event happened at the camp? ____________________________________________

2.       The couple drove off in a decorated car.  Where did they go? __________________________

3.       How long did Mimi have to wait in line to visit Yuki? _________________________________

4.       Ken had a job that paid him $_____ a month.

5.       If Ken gets promoted he will earn $_______ a month.

6.       A top professional made $________ a month.

7.       Why was Ken excited about the dean’s visit? ____________________________________________________________________________

8.       Does it make sense to you that Japanese people are permitted to be free on the Eastern part of the U.S.? ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Chapter 9

1.       Were the children from the camp able to attend school?  Yes or No

2.       Who provided the school/schooling? _______________________________________________

3.       What did Yuki’s mother want Ken to be, as a profession, when he got older? ________________

4.       When Yuki was in the shower, she heard a teenage girl say what? ______________________________________________________________________________

Chapter 10

1.       Mrs. Jamieson wrote to Yuki that Mimi couldn’t write to her to inform her that something happened to Pepper.  What did she say happened to her dog, Pepper? ____________________

2.       What small town in Utah did Yuki’s family get transferred to? ___________________________

Chapter 11

1.       What was the name of the town the train stopped in Utah? ____________________________

2.       What was waiting for them when they arrived at this town? ________________________

3.       What was the name of the desert the buses entered? ______________________________

4.       The boy at the camp told Ken that once all the barracks are filled, they will be the _____ largest city in Utah.

5.       It took Yuki and her family several days to get used to the altitude and heat of Topaz.  What did the doctors give her? ______________________________________________

6.       What happened to Ermi (Emiko), on this chapter, while she was walking with Yuki? ____________________________________________________________________________

Chapter 12

1.       What illness did Yuki’s mother think Emi had? ______________________________________

2.       When they were stationed in Tanforan, Emi’s grandmother made her a broth to feel better.  What was the broth made of? __________________________________________________

Chapter 13

1.       Why do you think Ken gave up wanting to go to school/college? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Chapter 14

1.       Who got shot? ______________________________________________________________

2.       Who was he walking with when he got shot? _____________________________________

3.       Mr. Kurihara was __________________’s grandfather.

4.       Where was Mr. Kurihara buried? _________________________________________________

5.       What did the women from the church make for Mr. Kurihara’s funeral? ___________________________________________________________________________

6.       What did Yuki buried besides Mr. Kurihara’s grave? __________________________________

Chapter 15

1.       What holiday came and went? ____________________________________________________

2.       Mrs. Jamieson sent Yuki a package containing what inside? ______________________________________________________________________________

3.       From what state did Yuki’s father come from? _________________________________________

4.       Yuki’s father told them about stuff that happened at the Prisoner of War Camp that he had interned.  What did he say about winter at this camp? ______________________________________________________________________________

5.       Yuki took a small box to Emi at the hospital filled with what items? _____________________________________________________________________________

6.       Was Yuki allowed to see Emi at the hospital?  Yes  No

7.       How many people are in Yuki’s family? __________________________________

8.       What are their names? _________________________________________________________

9.       How many people are in Emi’s family? _____________________________________

10.   How many people ate Christmas dinner with Yuki’s family? ________________

11.   Who ate dinner with them? _____________________________________________________

Chapter 16

1.       Why did the army recruiters visit the camp? __________________________________________

2.       What were some of the questions people had for the army recruiters? ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3.       What did Yuki’s father tell Mr. Toda he would decide to do if he was allowed to enlist in the army? ________________________________________________________________________

4.       __________ and __________ decided to volunteer the next morning after the A______y R____________r made his speech.

5.       Who tried to change Ken’s mind on volunteering? ____________________________________

6.       Do you agree or disagree with this saying and why?  “When you do what you know is right,” father explained, “you find a dignity in yourself that makes you a happy person.” ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

7.       Where was basic training camp held? _______________________________________________

Chapter 17

1.       If you were an able-bodied men, you were allowed to go out of the camp and work where? ______________________________________________________________________________

2.       If you were a college student, you were allowed to do what? _____________________________________________________________________________

3.       If your father could find work outside the prohibited West Coast zone, what was your family allowed to do? _____________________________

4.       Why couldn’t Yuki’s father leave the camp as easily as the other families? ______________________________________________________________________________

5.       What did Mr. Toda say to Mr. Sakane regarding being in danger? ______________________________________________________________________________

6.       What happened one night? _______________________________________________________

7.       Was Yuki and her family able to get out of camp?  Yes  No

8.       Where did they go? ___________________________________________________________

9.       Was Yuki’s family allowed to take Mr. Toda with them?  Yes  No

10.   Was Yuki’s family allowed to take Emi and Mrs. Kurihara with them?  Yes  No

11.   Who sent Yuki the pale blue dress? _________________________________________________