"Desert Exile" is a book about the changes a Japanese family had to endure just because of their culture and heritage. They had to move from their beautiful upper class home in California to one bad camp after another. The Uchinda family did not know how to cope with the camp life, but with help from their Japanese and American friends they made the best they could of the situation.
Yoshi, the narrarator of the book did not know exactly where to fit in. She could not fully relate to her Japanese friends or her white American friends. For example, she felt bad when she went to church on Sundays because her friends could not afford the clothes her sister and she wore. Her mother was a loving and caring woman, who tried to help everyone she could. Her father was an assistant manager at one of Japan's major import-export companies that had a branch in San Francisco. Her mother was a dreamer and her father was a devout businessman. Christianity also played a big role in their family life. They always shared a deep faith that kept the family together. Their loyalty was always to God and not the Emperor of Japan. Yoshi and her sister did not want to learn to speak Japanese because it added to their "differentness". Becoming more and more like whites was their only way to overcome rejection. The American society caused the Japanese to feel ashamed of their heritage, which is something that should make them feel proud. .
Because of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Americans wanted to get any and every Japanese person out of their neighborhoods. So the United States government decided instead of shipping every Japanese back to Japan they would just evacuate them and make them move to makeshift camps. Many of the Japanese men, including Yoshi's father, had to leave early and go to an all male camp for people who were highly suspicious. Yoshi and her family had to give many important things away because they were only allowed to bring a minimal number of things.
