LanguageTeach

San Jose City College

Ka-Ke, Near Hiroshima, April: 1946
Click the image to see the
aftermath of the atomic
bomb on Hiroshima

1. Why was Woody in Japan? What was he assigned to do?

2. Why did he postpone his trip south to Ka-ke several times?

3. Where does Aunt Toyo take Woody and why does this confuse him?

4. How does Aunt Toyo explain the fact that Ko has a gravestone in Japan?

5. Describe the reception Woody receives from his father's family. List all the things Woody comes to realize about his family and about himself.

Background Information for Chapter 19: Re-Entry

Okies (so-called because many were from Oklahoma) fled the dust bowl. Click the picture for an explanation.

Click the picture for information about Burma Shave signs and examples of the silly rhymes that once dotted the highways .

1. The author writes, "In our isolated world we had overprepared for shows of abuse." (152)
In fact, how were the returnees received by American society?

2. How had California changed in the intervening years of their internment and how did this affect the returning Japanese?

3. Where did the family settle? Were they able to recover their possessions? Explain your answer.

4. Who began to support the family? How and with what attitude?

5. Interpret Jeanne's line, "But those premonitions proved correct, in a way I hadn't been at all prepared for..." (156)