Graphic Novel Review – Displacement by Kiku Hughes (5/5 stars)
Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Graphic Novel/Time Travel/History
Length: 288 pages
Publisher: First Second
Release Date: August 18, 2020
ISBN-13 : 978-1250193537
Stand Alone or Series: Stand Alone
Source: Borrowed from Library
Rating: 5/5 stars
“Kiku is on vacation in San Francisco when suddenly she finds herself displaced to the 1940s Japanese-American internment camp that her late grandmother, Ernestina, was forcibly relocated to during World War II.
These displacements keep occurring until Kiku finds herself “stuck” back in time. Living alongside her young grandmother and other Japanese-American citizens in internment camps, Kiku gets the education she never received in history class. She witnesses the lives of Japanese-Americans who were denied their civil liberties and suffered greatly, but managed to cultivate community and commit acts of resistance in order to survive.”
Series Info/Source: This is a stand alone book that I borrowed from the library.
Story (5/5): Kiku is on vacation with her mother in San Francisco, her mother is trying to find the house her grandmother lived in but it’s been knocked down. In the middle of the trip Kiku finds herself back in time, in a 1940’s Japanese-American internment camp, then suddenly she is back in the present. As these displacements continue they get longer, until Kiku finds herself stuck in the past for an extended period of time and living next to her young grandmother in one of these internment camps.
This was really well done and interesting. I knew that the Japanese-American internment camps existed but it was really interesting to learn more about them. This was really well done and easy to follow.
Characters (5/5): I really loved the characters here. Kiku was really well done. All the characters in the past and present were engaging. I loved her interactions with her mother and with the people she befriends in the internment camps. The characters are very easy to engage with and I loved spending time with them.
Setting (5/5): The setting of the internment camps was fascinating and really helped me imagine what it might be like to live in one of those camps. It’s a unique historical setting and I learned a lot from it.
Writing/Drawing Style (5/5): The drawing is very colorful and cartoony in style; it was well done and easy to follow. The story was incredible, again easy to follow and unique. This was really well put together and I enjoyed it a ton.
My Summary (5/5): Overall I really loved this graphic novel and so did my 13 year old son. It’s not only just really well done and really engaging, but tells a very impactful story about an event in history that isn’t well covered in a lot of traditional books about World War II. Highly recommended to everyone.
