As a result of their citizenship status, bank accounts and liquid assets were frozen. The relocation centers were located as follows, Manzanar and Tule Lake in California, Minidoka in Idaho, Heart Mountain in Wyoming, Topaz in Utah, Granada in Colorado, Poston and Gila River in Arizona, and Rohwer and Jerome in Arkansas. These camps were located in remote areas where weather conditions weren't benign. The areas had not been inhabited before the camps and have not been since. The abrupt evacuation and loss of freedom forced the Japanese to change their outlook on American life.
Additional illustrations supplement the text, making the experience more real and vivid.
The move to the internment camps was a difficult journey for many Japanese-Americans. Many of them were taken from their homes and were allowed only to bring a few belongings. Okubo colorfully illustrates the dramatic adjustment of lifestyle that Japanese-Americans had to make during the war. Authentic sketches accompany each description of the conditions that were faced and hardships that were overcome. The illustrations were drawn at the time each event described throughout the story took place.