Eleven-year-old Yuki Sakane and her family are Japanese Americans living in Berkeley in 1941. On December 7, 1941, the Japanese Empire attacks Pearl Harbor, drawing the United States into World War II. On the evening of December 7, 1941, Mr. Sakane, along with thousands of other Japanese men, is arrested by the FBI, leaving Yuki and her family confused and frightened. After six days have passed, the family receives a postcard from Mr. Sakane informing them that he is physically well and incarcerated in San Francisco. The family is allowed to visit Mr. Sakane only once before he is deported to a Prisoner of War Camp in Montana.

On May 1, 1942, Yuki and her family, along with thousands of other Japanese families, are evacuated to the Tanforan Camp, where they are housed in horse stables that have been hastily converted to barracks. The camp is surrounded by barbed wire and patrolled by...