Secret Harvests: A Hidden Story of Separation and the Resilience of a Family Farm

"The author David Mas Masumoto discovers that he has a secret aunt, who had been made a ward of the state of California at age 12 in 1942 when the rest of her family was sent to incarceration camps. By the time he realizes she exists, the aunt is in hospice care and has been hidden away in a care facility for more than 70 years. Her disability is tied to the racist policies of the era—she was denied proper medical care as a Japanese American child after contracting meningitis, and as a result is mentally disabled and can no longer speak or communicate verbally. This story reveals the racism of the state, its consequences on a family and a little girl, but it also reveals the shame that the family felt about disability. Masumoto wrestles with this complex history on the page, as he works to reunite the lost aunt with surviving family members and to track down information about what her life was like for all these years. This book also raises important questions about who is erased from historical texts in general and about the erasure of disabled people in particular. The author stated in the book why he asked Patricia Wakida to create original woodblock prints: it’s a traditional Japanese art form, and he wanted an artist who understood the story that he was telling and who could create culturally appropriate images. The art adds another layer of storytelling. We saw many autobiographies this year that combine text and image in some way. The nuanced way that the Wakida’s woodblock prints are in conversation with Masumoto’s narrative was very interesting. They’re like a visual soundtrack, something that enhances the reader’s experience of the world that Masumoto is describing, and another way of engaging the reader’s senses. And they are in and of themselves aesthetically and artistically sophisticated and interesting as works of art. I’d love to see more books like this."