History & children... when is a good time to mention war?

Chances are, if you have elementary school-age children, you're familiar with the AR book system. Each school designs their own "system" of developing book levels and requirements necessary to receive certification for those levels. Mika's reading Classic Reader books, which means she has to read three books (for each level) that are at least a 6.0 reading level and worth at least 7 points. To give you a point of comparison, Harry Potter & the Chamber of Secrets is a 6.7 book level worth 14 points (you can view AR books here).

Since we are avid readers, we push our girls to read a lot. However, with a young reader, it's very difficult to find age-appropriate books. She's been reading a lot of "old" books (right now, she's reading My Friend Flicka, written in 1941) but she's not willing to read longer books like Anne of Green Gables, despite my best efforts (well, the font is pretty small and apparently, that's a big deterrent). It's getting harder and harder to find her books to read, that will capture her interest.

At the library's used bookstore a couple of weeks ago, I stumbled upon a copy of Farewell to Manzanar (6.7 reading level, 7 points), an autobiography of a woman who entered the Japanese American internment camps at the age of 7. This is a very well-known book and despite taking several Asian American classes at Berkeley, I never got around to reading it. Since a school teacher friend of mine and I often discuss the Freedom Writer's Diary (and corresponding books like Zlata's Diary and other relating to the Holocaust), I thought this might be a good introduction to civil rights issues for Mika. I chatted with the bookstore's volunteer, a retired high school teacher, about when he thought a good time to introduce the impact of war to children was - and he recommended that I read the book Night (by Elie Wiesel) - a survivor's account of the Holocaust (I read it and it was an excellent read - and unbelievably heart-wrenching). As a high school teacher, he definitely thought middle school was a safe time but my father always spoke about the Japanese-Americans being relocated from the time I was little - the latest he could possibly have introduced the topic was when I was in 4th grade (back when the concept of "the model minority" flourished).

I just finished Farewell to Manzanar this morning and I think Mika should be able to read and grasp the concepts - to a certain point. As one of the few Asians growing up in my midwestern city, I knew from a very young age (3?) that I looked different and hence, people would treat me differently (though racial slurs flung at me, have significantly decreased since I left my midwestern hometown at age 18). My girls, however, don't seem to see people in colors, which I find very interesting. They laughingly told me that some of their friends had told them they "look Chinese" - they thought it was totally funny and... untrue! When I told them that they were half-Japanese and half-Taiwanese/Chinese, they were actually speechless for a few seconds.

And suddenly, I knew my kids were going to have a cultural identify crisis later in life. My best friend in college (a third-generation Chinese-American) once told me that she didn't realize she was Asian until she was 13, since she grew up in a predominantly Caucasian area. Based on my own experiences, I found that impossible to believe - until now. Oh, well... I'm glad that they're enjoying a childhood relatively free of racial discrimination, at least!

So, I wonder what kind of thoughts and realizations Mika will come away with, after reading this book.... but at the same time, some of the important issues still remain. Look at the effects of September 11th - lest you think American society is able to look beyond skin color, you might want to read this blog post of a housewife that was arrested on September 11, 2011... and the dismaying thought that 50 other similar incidents occurred throughout the country...