David Wallechinsky

j¡toó No k sSe«ff '■ “firstsnwì litersfc>r (Debbie Sh^w) ALSO availabl e on m icrofilm Yoshiko Uchida: A Life of Affirmation by Deborah Storms to be an elite, intellectual group as Like the young girl portrayed in well. They were trained in literature, Journey to Topaz (a fictionalized the arts, and Chinese philosophy. account of her experience), Uchida Their code included the values of refused to become embittered. discipline, loyalty, respect for elders, "That your own country would put and being strong, yet having a heart you behind barbed wire without any that could understand beauty." trial, simply because of race, is a real Beauty was very important in the tragedy," she says sadly. "I know Uchida household. Unlike many many young Japanese-Americans to Japanese families during the day blame us for having acquiesced, Depression, the Uchidas were fairly as they see it. But the world was a well-off. This allowed Yoshiko to different place. Our thought was to enjoy a childhood rich in cultural show that we were loyal Americans. activities. Her parents took her and We believed we could prove this by her sister everywhere —to museums, doing what the government asked. art shows, concerts, and operas. "Most Japanese responded with a Her book-oriented mother found great deal of dignity. Yes, we were time to read Japanese stories to her angry, but I think we should dis For Yoshiko Uchida, living is a joy, daughters, as well as to write her own tinguish between anger and bitter and writing an affirmation of life's poems. This undoubtedly influenced ness. I always feel that when you're positive values. "I know there's a lot Uchida, who remembers her first bitter, you're only destroying yourself. of brutality in the world, a lot that's book, which she wrote on brown This is something I hope to convey to grim and ugly. Children need to be wrapping paper at the age of ten. young people in my writing." Uchida was allowed to leave Topaz exposed to these things, and they are, The dark side of growing up everyday. But when I write for young in 1943, when she received a scholar people, I like to give them a sense of But life was not always easy for ship to study at Smith College. She hope and purpose," she says. young Yoshiko, a fact hard to remem earned an M.Ed. degree in elementary Uchida, a resident of Berkeley, ber when talking to this woman who education the following year, and California, has written twenty books seems to overflow with exuberance taught in a Quaker school in Phil for adolescents and younger children, and the joy of eternal youth. Uchida adelphia for a while. including Journey to Topaz and tells about the darker side of her Since the war, her life has only Samurai of Cold Hill. They reflect her childhood: "There was a lot of become fuller. In 1949, her first book, proud identity as a Japanese-American, discrimination. Japanese people The Dancing Kettle, was published. A an identity she hopes to reaffirm would never go into certain stores collection of Japanese folk tales, it among the third- and fourth-gene and restaurants because we were launched a successful writing career. ration Japanese-Americans growing made to feel so uncomfortable. I In the early fifties, Uchida spent two up today. They're a unique group, she remember when I was going to get years in Japan under a Ford Foun feels: "They are perceived immedi my first haircut, I was so afraid of dation Foreign Study and Research ately as Japanese, but at the same being rejected that I called first to Fellowship collecting folk tales and time, they have been brought up in make sure they would take me. Once, studying folk arts. She became very American society, with an American my Girl Reserves group was having its interested in crafts, particularly education. They have a great need to picture taken for the newspaper. The pottery, and has written a number of explore their roots and future; they photographer carefully eased me out, articles for such magazines as Craft need and want their goals and ideals and I knew why. Horizons. A talented artist herself, defined for them by an Asian. I hope "I was tremendously hurt by these she has illustrated two of her own my books can help them in their incidents —they color a child's out books. search for knowledge and self-respect look on life enormously. One never Recently Uchida completed an as Japanese." forgets." adult novel. It's still unpublished, but this doesn't daunt a vital personality Uchida is well suited to this task, Horse stalls and concentration camps having been raised by Issei (first like Yoshiko Uchida's. As she says, "I generation) parents with strong ties to Her most traumatic experience love my life. If I had been allowed to both the old Japanese and the new coincided with the end of her studies choose, this would be it!" American ways. She describes them at the University of California. Uchida Editor's note: The stories "I Feel Much Better Now” graduated Cum Laude, but wasn't and "Oh Broom, Get to Work" by Yoshiko Uchida as "loving, caring, warm people" who appear respectively in Sense and Image, Books 7 were very active Christians in the allowed to attend the ceremonies. It and 8, of Scott, Foresman's Signal Series. Japanese church and community in was May, 1942. Her family, along Berkeley. They maintained many with thousands of Japanese on the Answer Key to puzzles on page 6 Japanese traditions which Uchida West coast, were forced to leave their Mixed-Up Buildings: (starting from top, down left to homes and move to "relocation cen right) barn, store, garage, house, church, factory, remembers with fondness. Moreover, school, museum, theater, hospital. Word Olympics: both of her grandfathers were sam ters." She explains, "My family was cross country, Ultimate Frisbee, rugby, rowing, first put in a horse stall at Tanforan football, table tennis, judo, basketball, volleyball, urai who lived at the tail end of the karate, skating, badminton, wrestling, auto racing, feudal system in Japan. Thus, both Race Track. It was there I received hockey, karting, archery, golf, boxing, fencing, my diploma, delivered in a cardboard swimming, rodeo, soccer, skiing, polo, darts, pool, Christian and samurai values were baseball. Crossword; Across: 1. child, 3. sting, 6. score, transmitted to Uchida as a child. tube." 9. two, 11. tip, 12. diploma, 14. retreat, 16. his, 17. ear, The horse stall was bad enough, 18. blush, 20. trunk, 21. speed. Down: 1. crate, 2. Les, A heart that can understand beauty 4. tie, 5. grape, 7. capital, 8. reopens, 10. odors, 11. but Topaz, the next camp the family taste, 13. shoot, 15. bread, 18. Ben, 19. hip. Mixed-Up According to Uchida, the samurai was sent to, was worse. Uchida lived Desserts: (clockwise from top) cake, brownie, crepe, in this dusty, desolate place in the cookie, Jell-o, ice cream, gingerbread, tart, sundae, were much more than the violent war cream puff, Cherries Jubilee, pudding, sherbet, Baked riors our modern stereotype makes Utah desert for a year. True to her Alaska, custard, pie. Typewriter Code, #1: The only them out to be. "They were members upbringing, she decided to make the way to escape wearing the fool's cap is by proving that it will never fit you. #2: Most professional race of the military class, but, as retainers best of a bad situation: she volun car drivers are afraid to drive on highways because of to the great nobles, were considered teered to teach in the camp school. all the other people who cannot drive. Fo rc-Smcin's n ¡English fash hq hrk ut !cir7rJ An Unabashed Advertisement for Ourselves Shortly after the school year began, Scott, Foresman received the following letter: m t Broadmoor Intermediate School Pekin, Illinois 61554 Dear Department of Customer Satisfaction: I just had to write today to tell you how really tremendous I think your new literature book is. I am referring to Image in the Sharon Altman, reading and literature SIGNAL series. teacher: "My goal is to help students Today in my eighth-grade literature class, I introduced the book refine their reading skills so that reading and told the students we were going to study a story on courage. might become an important and enjoyable The story I chose was "The Tigers and the Sharks." After they had part of their lives/' begun reading just a bit, we were notified by the P.A. that we would be having two practice fire drills and a disaster drill. When the buzzer sounded, my students trooped out, but as soon as the signal Pleased and excited by Mrs. Altman's sounded, they immediately returned to their seats and began reading. praise for Signal, we wanted to know They did the same during the next fire drill. Since we are in an open classroom situation, I could readily observe that they set a more about Broadmoor School. record for the school in returning to work. What we discovered is that Broad moor has an innovative program for Finally, when the disaster signals sounded, all the students squatted down on their knees, bent over, and put their hands over grades 6-8; that it is dedicated to their heads. Only then did I notice that practically all had taken "improving the reading skills of all their books with them, and were continuing to read during the entire drill! Never in my teaching career has such an event occurred.

Load more