Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston is the author of this wonderful and personal memoir Farewell to Manzanar. She was born in Inglewood, California on September 26, 1934 and lived in Ocean Park and Terminal Island with her family up until she was seven. Her father, Ko Wakatsuki, was a fisherman he was a first generation Japanese immigrant who was from “Ka-ke, a small town in Hiroshima-ken, on the island of Honshu” (page 60). From Japan he moved to Honolulu, Hawaii and then to Idaho with Jeanne Wakatsuki’s mom, Rigu Sukai Wakatsuki. Her father had a lot of pride and dignity so when the FBI took him and imprisoned him, because they thought that he was a spy, it really affected him. During his time in jail and the camp that he was at, he became an alcoholic …show more content…
Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston narrates and describes the characters and events that happened and the things that she experienced in Manzanar. Although, the point of view changes in three chapters where it talks about Papa, Kaz, and Woody’s experiences. The point of view changes to third person in the chapters “Fort Lincoln: An Interview”, “The Reservoir Shack: An Aside”, and “Ka-ke, Near Hiroshima: April 1946”. By using first person point of view, the author allows the reader to imagine the camps and the life that she and others also experienced in Manzanar. By using first person perspective the reader is able to understand her thoughts as she describes her experiences before, during and after Manzanar. Since Jeanne was seven at the time that she and her family were relocated she explored the camps often and she did a lot of things that young kids would do. The author states:
“In addition to the regular school sessions and the recreation program, classes of every kind were being offered all over camp: singing, acting, trumpet playing, tap-dancing, plus traditional Japanese arts like needlework, judo, and kendo. The first class I attended was in baton twirling, taught by a chubby girl about fourteen named Nancy.” (Page