We Are Not Free

A Printz Honor Winner

By: Traci Chee

Narrated by: Scott Keiji Takeda, Dan Woren, Ryan Potter, Ali Fumiko, Sophie Oda, Andrew Kishino, Chris Naoki Lee, Grace Rolek, Erika Ishii, Brittany Ishibashi, Kurt Sanchez Kanazawa, Terry Kitagawa

* NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST * PRINTZ HONOR BOOK * WALTER HONOR BOOK * ASIAN/PACIFIC AMERICAN AWARD FOR LITERATURE HONOR BOOK *

From New York Times best-selling and acclaimed author Traci Chee comes We Are Not Free, the collective account of a tight-knit group of young Nisei, second-generation Japanese American citizens, whose lives are irrevocably changed by the mass U.S. incarcerations of World War II.

Fourteen teens who have grown up together in Japantown, San Francisco.

Fourteen teens who form a community and a family, as interconnected as they are conflicted.

Fourteen teens whose lives are turned upside down when over 100,000 people of Japanese ancestry are removed from their homes and forced into desolate incarceration camps.

In a world that seems determined to hate them, these young Nisei must rally together as racism and injustice threaten to pull them apart.

There are few words

I thoroughly enjoyed this book even though it ripped my heart out. Traci Chee does an excellent job bringing the characters off the page and transporting the reader/listener back to the past to experience the sudden upheaval of so many lives. I think this novel really speaks to the strength of the teenager as well as the human spirit. I finished feeling raw and energized at the same time.

wonderful and painful

I was glued to my earbuds the whole time. We Are Not Free gave me a better understanding of what Japanese Americans endured during WWII. The mistreatment,. prejudice and vile thrown at them is shameful. Unfortunately, I see parallels to the current American climate and wish more people would read this and stories like it to gain empathy.

This book was amazing. I highly recommend everyone read/listen.

This book was incredible. First off, the performance was amazing. I loved the multiple cast and I loved all the different narrarators. Second off, the actual book itself was so good. It had so many impressive parts of it, not many people talk about the Japanese Internment Camps and the way they were described was so accurate. On top of that, this book was also able to maturely and, in my opinion, accurately describe what a person in that time would behave as. I highly recommend this story, it was honestly one of the best books I've ever read.

a must read

So I had to sit with this book I even reread chapters. This book is about the Japanese incarceration camps from world War 2. The characters are from Japan town of San Francisco from the month before their forced removal until the camps were shutdown. Each chapter is the experience from another teenagers eyes. This book tell a historical fiction adapted from the authors families experiences. It also has announcements and news reports that actually occurred. This puts you into the violence and dehumanizing treatment that these American citizens faced in these camps. How everything was taken from them and how they had to prove that they belonged here. It speaks to the racism they faced and how our government stole from them and criminalized them. It's a book that sits in your soul different. It reminds me of the racism Muslims in this country have faced since 9/11 and the anti Asian violence most recently done during covid. It's such a well written book and it's probably one of the best books I've read this year I will probably be buying a copy for my shelf someday. I highly recommend this book especially if you know very little about the forced incarceration of Japanese Americans in WW2. This book is a 5 out of 5 stars and a 10 out of 10 all around read. If this at all interests you definitely pick up this book.

Also definitely read the authors notes on this one it was really powerful

We Are Not Free

Beautiful imagery, powerful narration—I love the interwoven storyline of these teenagers whose lives were forever changed. A necessary read for every white American to understand the and unlearn the prejudice of the “American Dream” we’ve been taught.