Clark and Division by Naomi Hirahara

CLARK AND DIVISION by Edgar Award winner Naomi Hirahara is a mystery contained within a work of historical fiction. The timing is during WWII and while the story begins on the West Coast near Los Angeles, the characters are mainly Japanese Americans so the action moves first to one of the camps, Manzanar, and then on to Chicago where many are encouraged to relocate. The female protagonists are two sisters, Rose and Aki Ito, who are young and naïve, but also very determined. Rose heads to Chicago before the rest of the family and sadly dies just before they arrive. Aki wants to find out more details and gradually (the pace is slow at times) unravels the mystery while also re-acclimating to life outside the camps. Several other young people help her, but these other characters, especially male friends, did not seem as well-developed or distinguishable as they could have been. There are some twists in this amateur sleuth story and its real strength is being such an informative read – especially about life in Chicago for transplants in the 1940s. Seemingly casual references make clear the many instances of hostility and discrimination that existed widely at that time for both women and people of color.