It was based on the 1973 memoir of the same name, written by Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston, who was incarcerated at Manzanar as a child, and her husband James D. Houston.
Film tersebut didasarkan pada memoar berjudul sama yang diterbitkan tahun 1973, karya bersama Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston yang tinggal di Manzanar sewaktu kecil, dan suaminya, James D. Houston.