Synopses & Reviews
For Tetsu, baseball is so much more than just a game
On December 6, 1941, Tetsu is a twelve-year-old California boy who loves baseball. On December 7, 1941, everything changes. The bombing of Pearl Harbor means Tetsu's Japanese-American family will be relocated to an internment camp.
Gila River camp isn't technically a prison, but with nowhere to go, nothing to do, and no time frame for leaving, it might as well be. So when someone has the idea of building a baseball diamond and starting a team, Tetsu is overjoyed. But then his sister gets dangerously sick, forcing him to choose between his family and his love of the game. This is an impeccably researched, lyrical story about baseball, honor, and a turbulent period in U.S. history.
Review
"Moving the story forward with fluid language and vivid imagery, Fitzmaurice hits home with this important piece of historical fiction." School Library Journal, starred review, February 2012
Review
"A solid, affecting choice for multicultural and WWII studies, with resources for student research appended." Booklist, March 15, 2012
Review
"This book provides a striking glimpse at internment camp life and would fit well with the study of World War II or human rights." Library Media Connection, August/September 2012
Review
Praise for A Diamond in the Desert by Kathryn Fitzmaurice: "Moving the story forward with fluid language and vivid imagery, Fitzmaurice hits home with this important piece of historical fiction." —School Library Journal, starred review
"A solid, affecting choice for multicultural and WWII studies, with resources for student research appended." —Booklist
"This book provides a striking glimpse at internment camp life and would fit well with the study of World War II or human rights." —Library Media Connection
Synopsis
Twelve-year-old Tetsu eats, sleeps and breathes baseball. It’s all he ever thinks about. But after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Tetsu and his family are forced from their home into an internment camp in the Arizona desert with other Japanese Americans, and baseball becomes the last thing on his mind. The camp isn’t technically a prison, but it sure feels like one when there’s nothing to do and no place to go. So when a man starts up a boys’ baseball team, Tetsu is only too eager to play again. But with his sister suddenly falling ill, and his father taken away for questioning, Tetsu is forced to choose between his family and his love of the game.
About the Author
Kathryn Fitzmaurice (www.kathrynfitzmaurice.com) is also the author of The Year the Swallows Came Early. She lives with her husband, two sons, and her dog, Holly, in Monarch Beach, California.