UNDER THE BLOOD-RED SUN, by Graham Salisbury

TWU course
Book Review: UNDER THE BLOOD-RED SUN, by Graham Salisbury

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Salisbury, Graham. 1994. UNDER THE BLOOD-RED SUN: Delacorte:New York.
ISBN 0-385-32099-X

2. PLOT SUMMARY
"UNDER THE BLOOD-RED SUN," is an action packed novel that focuses on the Japanese American perspective during World War II.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
This historical fiction novel "Under The Blood-Red Sun," is a story about the attack on Pearl Harbor. The story is told from Tomi during a game of baseball. Tomi tells the story of what he witnesses as the Japanese military destroys all of Pearl Harbor and its destroyers. Starting on an early Sunday morning, the Rats (Tomi's baseball team) watch from the baseball field as they play a game of baseball. The Japanese bombers fly into Pearl Harbor and began destroying Pearl Harbor.  
       
4. REVIEW EXCERPTS
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY: Torn between his love of all things American and the traditional ways of his parents and grandparents, a young Japanese American comes of age during the political upheavel of WWII. Ages 10-up.

BOOKLIST: Salisbury captures the dilemma of the Japanese who lived in Hawaii during World War II through the narrator, Tomi, born in Hawaii, and his Japanese parents, who had escaped the poverty of Japan, only to find themselves enmeshed in a war they are unprepared to fight.

5. CONNECTIONS
*Activities*
Research Pearl Harbor, December 7, 1941 try to locate as many pictures as possible of battleship row.
Explain why the Japanese caught America off guard and why the attack on Pearl Harbor was successful.
*Other engaging books*
Napoli Jo Donna. THREE DAYS. ISBN-10: 0142500259
Gidwitz, Adam. A TALE DARK AND GRIMM. ISBN-10: 0142419672