The location of a new Japanese internment camp is just outside a small town in Colorado at the time of Pearl Harbor. The citizens of the town of Ellis are in an uproar. Most of the towns’ people, caught up in the tide patriotism that grips communities in the midst of a national crises and are suddenly very prejudiced against the Japanese even though most have never actually seen a Japanese person except for the exaggerated cartoon characters so common in the in the local newspaper. But the farmers of Ellis are hurting, their men and boys going off to war, girls who are old enough are off to work in factories. There is not enough help to plant the fields. There is worry about the harvest, if the fields do get planted. In a desperate and courageous move a few residents reach out to the relocated Japanese American citizens at Tallgrass Interment camp and hire them to help plant and harvest. Since her father is one of the men who has hired the Japanese Rennie can see, first hand, the sudden change of attitude of many of her neighbors and is subjected to harsh treatment that she finds hard to understand. When a local girl is murdered, fear grips the entire community and all eyes are on the camp at Tallgrass.
The author weaves a picture of the state of the union, the condition of a small town and the idiosyncrasies of a family all through the eyes of a little girl. The daily grind of farm life, hardships and family problems, taking place during a time of national unrest, gives Tallgrass a believable backdrop. Set in southwest Colorado, there are many names and places that will be familiar, which always makes a story interesting and fun to read.
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