The Last Year of the War by Susan Meissner

There are many books about the experiences of Americans, Japanese and Germans during WWII but this story expands on this to include the story of a friendship between two very different girls who found themselves in an internment camp in Crystal City, Texas. Elise is German-American and Mariko is Japanese-American but because both sets of parents weren't native Americans they were sent to internment camps and then back to their native lands torn apart in war. Each does what they have to do to survive and then find their way back to each other through letters. Susan Meissner gives voice to a group of people who were tossed out of a country they had grown to love to a country they didn't belong to any longer. A timely story of immigration that is rich in historical facts and made real by incredible characters.