Peace is a Chain Reaction: How World War II Japanese Balloon Bombs Brought People of Two Nations Together by Tanya Lee Stone. 176 p. Candlewick Press, September, 2022. 9780763676865. (own)
Happy Friday! Did you know that the Japanese military dropped bombs on U.S. soil during WWII? Seventh and eighth graders who read the picture book biography, Thirty Minutes over Oregon: a Japanese Pilot's World War II Story, know about Nobuo Fujita, the pilot who flew his aircraft from a submarine to drop a bomb in Oregon. It landed harmlessly in the woods. This past summer, I read our Fact Friday feature and learned of a second incident. Peace is a Chain Reaction: How World War II Japanese Balloon Bombs Brought People of Two Nations Together by Tanya Lee Stone presents the story from multiple perspectives in a succinct, highly readable narrative that is profusely illustrated with photos, drawings and maps. Beginning with the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor and the resulting internment of Japanese Americans, then explains the technology behind balloon bombs and how they were able to float on air currents to the U.S. Unfortunately, a group of people, mostly children, out walking in the woods, came upon an unexploded bomb and six died. Ms. Stone weaves the story of Yuzuru Takeshita, an internee with the stories of the survivors and siblings and townspeople with the story of the factory in Japan, where high school students, mostly girls, were tasked with constructing the bombs. Extensive back matter shows how well researched this work was. Highly recommended!
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