Obaasan's Boots

"They had everything taken from them because they were Japanese."

Cousins Lou and Charlotte don't know a lot about their grandmother's life. When their obaasan invites them to spend the day in her garden, she also invites them into their family's secrets. Grandma shares her experience as a Japanese Canadian during World War II, revealing the painful story of Japanese internment. Her family was forced apart. Whole communities were uprooted and moved into camps, their belongings stolen.

Lou, who's ten, and twelve-year-old Charlotte struggle with the injustice, even as they marvel at their grandmother's strength. They begin to understand how their identities have been shaped by racism, and that history is not only about the past.