After the Japanese bomb Pearl Harbor Tetsu’s father is taken away by the FBI. Not long after that he, his mother, and his sister, Kimi, are taken to an internment camp. They have to leave their home and dog in California, taking only a few belongings with them to the barracks in Arizona. The hot desert climate is only one of the many difficult things to adjust to about their new life. Tetsu worries about his father and is concerned that there isn’t a way to get in touch with him because his father cannot read or write English. Their living conditions involve a lot of sweeping, bad bathroom conditions, and lots of new people. School couldn't be more different from the way it was before coming to the camp, but luckily there's a volunteer who helps to teach the children. Tetsu misses baseball and wants to play again. When the opportunity arises to help build and create a baseball field on the land outside the barracks, Tetsu jumps at the chance. He can't wait for everything to be cleared out and ready so he can play, but when that day comes his sister needs him, and he becomes frustrated. He leaves her and goes to play some baseball for the first time in ages. What should have been a great day, changes when he learns that his sister is missing. When she can't be found anywhere later that day or night, Tetsu becomes frantic. Will they be able to find Kimi? Will Tetsu and his father ever be reunited? How long will they have to stay at the internment camp? Take this trip through history to find out what life was like for some of the Japanese who were relocated to internment camps.


A Diamond in the Desert by Kathryn Fitzmaurice appealed to me because I enjoy historical fiction. It's one of my favorite ways to learn more about what's happened in the past; the characters help the setting and situation come alive for me. Each chapter was very short, which made this a fast read. I could relate to Tetsu and felt so sorry for him and all the other people who were at the camp. It makes the reader realize that it's not fair to treat people badly simply because other people who look like them or come from the same place they came from are bad. I especially enjoyed reading the author’s note at the end and finding out about the research she did to write this book. It was interesting to know that she interviewed people who really were at the camp and who played baseball there. I had no idea baseball was such a big part of the camps, but I can see how it gave people hope and something else to think about. I recommend this book to kids in third grade and up. Adults will also enjoy learning more about this time in history. I look forward to reading more books by this author. ( )

Twelve-year-old Tetsu eats, sleeps, and breathes baseball. It's all he ever thinks about. But after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Tetsu and his family are forced from their home into an internment camp in the Arizona desert with other Japanese Americans, and baseball becomes the last thing on his mind. The camp isn't technically a prison, but it sure feels like one when there's nothing to do and no place to go. So when a man starts up a boys' baseball team, Tetsu is only too eager to play again. But with his sister suddenly falling ill and his father taken away for questioning, Tetsu is forced to choose between his family and his love of the game.

A young boy, Tetsu, loves the game of baseball. When Pearl Harbor was attacked, he and his family were forced to move to an internment camp in Arizona. In the camp, they convince the guards to make a baseball field and let them play ball. His father is not there and his sister is sick, so he must decide what is important to him. This is a great story about deciding what is important. An activity would be to draw and design your own baseball field. Another activity would be to draw what they think the camp looks like. ( )

Twelve-year-old Tetsu eats, sleeps, and breathes baseball. It's all he ever thinks about. But after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Tetsu and his family are forced from their home into an internment camp in the Arizona desert with other Japanese Americans, and baseball becomes the last thing on his mind. The camp isn't technically a prison, but it sure feels like one when there's nothing to do and no place to go. So when a man starts up a boys' baseball team, Tetsu is only too eager to play again. But with his sister suddenly falling ill and his father taken away for questioning, Tetsu is forced to choose between his family and his love of the game. ( )

Recommended Ages: Gr. 5-8

Plot Summary: Tetsu dreams of baseball and isn't happy to leave his home, his dog, and his baseball team behind when his family is relocated to an internment camp in the desert of Arizona. He misses his father terribly and hopes he is able to join them soon. In the meantime, he is keeping busy with school, taking care of his mom and sister, and playing catch with the boys in a block nearby. He is thrilled to hear Kyo and Ben's father is asking the guards if they can make a baseball field just outside the camp. Tetsu is so excited he works on clearing the field of plants and rocks, sometimes even missing meals. Right before their first practice, Kimi asks Tetsu to walk her to the bathroom. They argue because Tetsu forgot the pillowcase and Kimi threatens to sneak under the gate like Tetsu does. Tetsu is frustrated and tells her to do it, but she isn't home when Tetsu returns home after practice. Where is she? Can she survive the desert heat? Will Tetsu ever forgive himself? Will Papa eer come join them? Will they ever get out?

Setting: Gila River, AZ, August 1942 to Spring 1945

Characters:
Tetsu Kiski - 12 y/o when moved to Gila River, 8th grade,
Kimi - 8 y/o, 3rd grade, loves animals and keeps pet lizards, spiders, and fish, doesn't like to go to the bathroom when there is no privacy and so she wears a pillowcase over her head when she goes, must be walked to the bathroom
Lefty - their beloved dog, who they dropped off at a strawberry farm when they left but heard ran away within 24 hours, ran to their old house but was beaten up along the way
Mama - sweeps the floor constantly, gets a job as a cook in the mess hall for about $16/month, used to bake treats for their church in their hometown, was good at gardening
Papa - was the president of a Japanese organization and was taken to South Dakota for questioning, was a farmer who rented his land and seemed to know what he was doing in the fields
George - convinced Tetsu to sneak out of the camp with other boys to try to get pomegranates and ends up falling into the canal, is rescued by Tetsu and they become friends after, feels horribly guilty and gives up on the pomegranates after hearing a 7 y/o girl almost drowned in the canal getting the fruit he told her about, digs out Saguaro cacti for the girl, gets Tetsu fish
Zuke - played center field, friends with George
Horse - doesn't talk, friends with George, no one knows where he lives in the camp, doesn't seem to have any family, communicates with non-verbal interactions because something happened but doesn't share with anyone
Kyo Tanaka - boy who asks Tetsu to play catch
Ben Tanaka - Kyo's brother
Coach Tanaka - Kyo and Ben's father, used to be a coach, works to make a baseball field outside the camp, puts coffee cans out during games to get the fans to contribute a dime to watch, uses the money to improve the "stadium" including getting seats for the spectators, sneaks a bit of building materials to use in addition to purchasing some
Teacher - volunteered to come to the camp, Caucasian, warm, requests books and paper, both of which take a very long time to get there but makes do with what she has

Recurring Themes: baseball, World War II, internment camp, friendship, family, fatherless, Japanese, school, rations

Controversial Issues:
pg 6 "we couldn't help but hear when newly married couple next to us argued about their belongings...or when, much later, they went to bed having forgiven each other their harsh words and. . .you know."
pg 155 "damn"

Personal Thoughts: Overall I really liked it. It was a good mix of action, character development, and prose. It read like a novel in verse, partly because of the short chapters but also because of the writing. I liked that many things are based on fact.

Genre: Historical Fiction (some sports description, especially in the last third of the book)

Pacing: fast, the chapters are all less than two pages, usually less than one page, reads like a novel in verse but it isn't
Characters: well developed
Frame: internment camps not well described but there is an interesting author's note at the end that says many of the things in the book are true
Storyline:

Activity: ( )

A fine work of historical fiction, moving and often poignant. ( )