Bound To Stay Bound

School Library Journal - 07/01/2020 Gr 6 Up—On a visit to San Francisco in 2016, Kiku, a biracial teen from Seattle, gains a better understanding of her heritage and the power of memory when she is thrust back in time to the 1940s and, alongside her grandmother and many other Japanese people and Japanese Americans, imprisoned in incarceration camps. Kiku uses the slight knowledge she possesses about the future to navigate life at Tanforan Assembly Center in California and, later, Topaz Relocation Center in Utah. Hughes has crafted a compelling look at this moment in history, relying on a blend of research and family memory. Kiku is an introspective narrator who guides readers through the challenges that detainees faced. Those unfamiliar with this period will walk away with a fuller picture of the struggles within these camps, as well as the different ways in which resistance bloomed. Reluctant readers will be pulled in by the book's exceptional design; the judiciously varied panel sizes and layouts coupled with gutter-breaking illustrations cinematically move the story along. The subdued neutral palette roots Kiku's experiences in the past and adds a layer of gravity. Hughes ties her narrative to the present by including moments from the 2016 presidential campaign, with its anti-immigration sentiment, underscoring the cyclical nature of prejudice and how those in power attempt to control the narrative to the disadvantage of marginalized communities. VERDICT A potent look at history and the lasting intergenerational impact of community trauma.—Pearl Derlaga, York County P.L., VA - Copyright 2020 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.

School Library Journal - 07/01/2020 Gr 6 Up—On a visit to San Francisco in 2016, Kiku, a biracial teen from Seattle, gains a better understanding of her heritage and the power of memory when she is thrust back in time to the 1940s and, alongside her grandmother and many other Japanese people and Japanese Americans, imprisoned in incarceration camps. Kiku uses the slight knowledge she possesses about the future to navigate life at Tanforan Assembly Center in California and, later, Topaz Relocation Center in Utah. Hughes has crafted a compelling look at this moment in history, relying on a blend of research and family memory. Kiku is an introspective narrator who guides readers through the challenges that detainees faced. Those unfamiliar with this period will walk away with a fuller picture of the struggles within these camps, as well as the different ways in which resistance bloomed. Reluctant readers will be pulled in by the book's exceptional design; the judiciously varied panel sizes and layouts coupled with gutter-breaking illustrations cinematically move the story along. The subdued neutral palette roots Kiku's experiences in the past and adds a layer of gravity. Hughes ties her narrative to the present by including moments from the 2016 presidential campaign, with its anti-immigration sentiment, underscoring the cyclical nature of prejudice and how those in power attempt to control the narrative to the disadvantage of marginalized communities. VERDICT A potent look at history and the lasting intergenerational impact of community trauma.—Pearl Derlaga, York County P.L., VA - Copyright 2020 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.

Booklist - 07/01/2020 In a nod to Octavia Butler’s Kindred, Hughes meditates on generational trauma and her grandmother’s experiences in incarceration camps during WWII. Kiku’s exploring San Francisco with her mother when she first travels back in time, but her longest displacement occurs when her grandmother, Ernestine, is imprisoned first at Tanforan and then Topaz, in Utah. Kiku finds herself stuck there, too, observing her grandmother and experiencing first hand not only the struggle to survive but the undercurrent of fear, the difficult choices faced by the Nikkei in the camps, and the sense of community they cobbled together. Spare, fine-lined artwork in muted earth tones emphasizes the flat desert landscape and echoes the staid, somber tone of the narrative overall, which is dense with voice-overs reflecting on the reverberating impact of the camps on her family and the Japanese diaspora in general. Hughes powerfully places this story amid the onset of Trump’s Muslim Ban and incarceration of refugees at the Mexican border, potently reminding readers that racism still permeates the fabric of our society. - Copyright 2020 Booklist.

Booklist - 07/01/2020 In a nod to Octavia Butler’s Kindred, Hughes meditates on generational trauma and her grandmother’s experiences in incarceration camps during WWII. Kiku’s exploring San Francisco with her mother when she first travels back in time, but her longest displacement occurs when her grandmother, Ernestine, is imprisoned first at Tanforan and then Topaz, in Utah. Kiku finds herself stuck there, too, observing her grandmother and experiencing first hand not only the struggle to survive but the undercurrent of fear, the difficult choices faced by the Nikkei in the camps, and the sense of community they cobbled together. Spare, fine-lined artwork in muted earth tones emphasizes the flat desert landscape and echoes the staid, somber tone of the narrative overall, which is dense with voice-overs reflecting on the reverberating impact of the camps on her family and the Japanese diaspora in general. Hughes powerfully places this story amid the onset of Trump’s Muslim Ban and incarceration of refugees at the Mexican border, potently reminding readers that racism still permeates the fabric of our society. - Copyright 2020 Booklist.

Booklist - 07/01/2020 In a nod to Octavia Butler’s Kindred, Hughes meditates on generational trauma and her grandmother’s experiences in incarceration camps during WWII. Kiku’s exploring San Francisco with her mother when she first travels back in time, but her longest displacement occurs when her grandmother, Ernestine, is imprisoned first at Tanforan and then Topaz, in Utah. Kiku finds herself stuck there, too, observing her grandmother and experiencing first hand not only the struggle to survive but the undercurrent of fear, the difficult choices faced by the Nikkei in the camps, and the sense of community they cobbled together. Spare, fine-lined artwork in muted earth tones emphasizes the flat desert landscape and echoes the staid, somber tone of the narrative overall, which is dense with voice-overs reflecting on the reverberating impact of the camps on her family and the Japanese diaspora in general. Hughes powerfully places this story amid the onset of Trump’s Muslim Ban and incarceration of refugees at the Mexican border, potently reminding readers that racism still permeates the fabric of our society. - Copyright 2020 Booklist.

Booklist - 07/01/2020 In a nod to Octavia Butler’s Kindred, Hughes meditates on generational trauma and her grandmother’s experiences in incarceration camps during WWII. Kiku’s exploring San Francisco with her mother when she first travels back in time, but her longest displacement occurs when her grandmother, Ernestine, is imprisoned first at Tanforan and then Topaz, in Utah. Kiku finds herself stuck there, too, observing her grandmother and experiencing first hand not only the struggle to survive but the undercurrent of fear, the difficult choices faced by the Nikkei in the camps, and the sense of community they cobbled together. Spare, fine-lined artwork in muted earth tones emphasizes the flat desert landscape and echoes the staid, somber tone of the narrative overall, which is dense with voice-overs reflecting on the reverberating impact of the camps on her family and the Japanese diaspora in general. Hughes powerfully places this story amid the onset of Trump’s Muslim Ban and incarceration of refugees at the Mexican border, potently reminding readers that racism still permeates the fabric of our society. - Copyright 2020 Booklist.