The Campus Reading Program Book for Fall 2009

Color of the Sea by John Hamamura is an engaging story of survival through separation from family, WWII, and internment. It’s the story of a young man trained as a samurai who moves from Japan to Hawaii to California. This novel is a 2007 Alex Award winner.  There will be many opportunities to engage with this book and connect with others on campus.

Reading Guide from the SJSU Campus Reading Program (1 page) (PDF)

Events calendar (URL) (pdf)

• Note: The author will be on campus for two free events on September 23, 2009.

Blog - share your comments; see what others have to say

2009 Campus Reading Program poster (pdf or pdf)
        - designed by SJSU student Joanne Kwok

For more information about the book and author:

• Author's website
• Video of interview with author
• Information from Google
• Information from Random House
• Information from Barnes & Noble
• Book review from PopMatters
• Alex Award Winners - 2007

Information about the time period and events of the story:

• Local connections to the story:
  • Outstanding videos from KQED and KTEH on Japanese-American soldiers from the Bay Area who served in WWII - most are 30 minutes long
  • KTEH's Return to the Valley - about Japanese-Americans returning to the Bay Area after internment during WWII  +  FAQ on the video and topic. There is an amazing amount of information, videos, and photos at this site.
  • Photos from KQED
  • Check Reading Program events calendar for dates when this film will be shown on campus
• Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor:
  • Info from Wikipedia
  • Info and links from Online Schools
  • Info from US National Park Service
  • The San Jose State football team was in Hawaii getting ready to play a game when Pearl Harbor was bombed
• Information about internment camps:
  • Info from Wikipedia
  • Children of the Camps from PBS
  • Camps in Arkansas
  • Photos by Ansel Adams from Library of Congress
  • Information from Congressman Mike Honda:
    • Preservation of camps
    • Day of Remembrance
• US bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki:
  • Info from Wikipedia
  • Info from Dept of Energy
  • Photo-essay from Univ. Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
• California Japantowns
  • Atlas
  • Lodi Japantown
  • 1940 map of Lodi Japantown
• Martial Arts
  • Naginata
  • Aikido
  • Judo
  • Karate
  • Tae Kwon Do
  • Tai Chi

Other books you might like:

• Farewell to Manzanar by Jeanne and James Houston (SJSU alums)

• When the Emperor was Divine by Julie Otsuka

• Japanese American internment during World War II : a history and reference guide, by SJSU Professor Wendy Ng. Available in the King Library.

• Understanding Asian Americans. Available in the King Library at E184.O6 U5 1990 MLK 6th and 5th Floors.

• The Asian American Encyclopedia v. 1 - 6 in the King Library at E184.O6 A827 1995 MLK 6th and 5th Floors

• Reference Library of Asian America v. 1 - 3 in the King Library at E184.O6 R438x 1995 MLK 5th Floor

• Japanese American History: an A to Z Reference from 1868 to the Present in the King Library at E184.O6 L44 1991 MLK 6th Floor or 973.0495 MLK 3rd Floor

• The Color of Honor - VHS, XS0416, IRC Room 112

   

   

Campus Reading Program - upcoming events