Camp Minidoka

Oscar Holden

Oscar Holden is a legend in the jazz scene and plays piano in a jazz club. He lets Kaiko and Henry come in to hear him play. The jazz club Oscar plays in is in Nihonmachi, Japantown.

Examples of vandalism

Nihonmachi

When most of Nihonmachi is shut down, the Japanese residents start to put thier belongings in the Panama Hotel for storage, or they would ask trusted friends to care for their items. Kaiko asks Henry to keep all of her family photos for her. When his parents find them, Mr. Lee rips the books in half and throws them out the window. Henry manages to collect and clean most of them. Nihonmachi is also being boarded over and people are vandalizing the Japanese neighborhood.

Sheldon

Sheldon is like an older brother to Henry. He plays the saxophone and gets tips in his case. To me, Sheldon is always very happy and optimistic, despite his poor circumstances and the racial prejudices he endures. He cares for Henry and is a concerned friend to him when he is feeling sad or down. Henry could always go to Sheldon for anything.

Kaiko

Kaiko is American but her background is Japanese. She is an artist. Kaiko almost always has a sketch pad and pencil with her. She lives in Nihonmachi. Her parents are very well aware that she is friends with Henry and are very supportive and encouraging about it, unlike Henry's father. Kaiko and Henry both like jazz music. One night Kaiko meets Henry outside of the jazz club. It is too late for children to come in so they just sit outside and listen. But Oscar Holden comes out and invites them in and plays for them. Kaiko is also almost mysterious. It is a sad time when she has to say goodbye to Henry and leave for Camp Harmony.

Henry and Father

Henry is very brave, in my opinion. He does not have a strong or good relationship with his father, but not because he does not want to. Henry's father, Mr. Lee, is very unlike Henry. Mr. Lee is adamently loyal to his culture, which is a good quality. However, he is also very closed-mided, as a result. Mr. Lee talks very rudely about how the Japanese have terrorized China, so he would not appreciate that Henry is going off making friends with a little Japanese-American girl. Mr. Lee makes Henry where a pin that says: I am Chinese, but Henry resists because for him, his culture is not just Chinese, but everything around him. His life changes so much when he meets Kaiko.

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet

This book, I think, shows the true meaning of friendship. It takes place in Seattle. The times are, as Henry calls them, the war years. Although this took place during World War II, Henry's "war years" refers to the long history of opposition between China and Japan. While Henry is scholarshipping, as Henry's dad calls it, at school, he meets Kaiko. Unfortunately, Henry is Chinese and Kaiko is Japanese. If his dad knew that they had become friends, Henry would be in very, very, very, very big trouble. Kaiko lives in Nihonmachi, and Henry isn't really supposed to go there. When Camp Harmony comes up, that spells uh-oh for Kaiko. Curious to find out more? Just read Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet to find out what happens.