A story everyone needs to read. It’s not an easy one to read but it’s a history I never really knew, and I hate that. I did struggle a bit with the POV changes and choppy timeline. Still, worth the read.

This book—this BOOK—is a stunning historical fiction about fourteen teens, whose lives become interconnected during World War II, but this is not your normal war story. For one, these teens are Japanese and facing a bleak future as the country they were born and raised in has decided to label them the enemy and forced them into an incarceration camp. Told from multiple perspectives from 1942-1945, this book is absolutely gutwrenching as it explores Japanese identity, familial loyalty, and the harsh reality for Japanese-Americans during WWII.

"We Are Not Free" starts by focusing on three brothers: Minnow is the youngest and an artist while Shig is carefree and then there's Mas, who is hardworking and smart. The story starts with Minnow as he walks home and gets attacked by a group of white guys. It is clear that after Pearl Harbor, the average American became distrustful of the Japanese-Americans, who became further ostracized from society. Eventually, the family receives the Civilian Exclusion Order No. 41 to leave behind their home, sell all their possessions, and travel to Tanforan Assembly Center. As the story progresses, it grows to encompass their brothers and their close friends, who become family as they navigate the incarceration camps.

Earlier this year, I read George Takei's "They Called Us Enemy" and was incredibly moved by how difficult it must be and still is for Japanese-Americans to forge their identity, especially in a time when the country they live in incarcerates them as foreign enemies. The stigma of the perpetual foreigner stereotype is manifested in the incarceration camps and Chee does a wonderful job of exploring how it fractures and affects her characters' identities in different ways; some want to prove themselves as true Americans, others want to accept their new label, and others are indifferent. This is a must-read to understand how America has alienated and segregated its minority citizens in the past and its consequences on the future.

All I can say is thank you, Traci Chee, for preserving and writing this story and for sharing your family's experiences in this wonderful book.

It had everything. A captivating plot the whole way through. A wonderful cast of characters that were well-developed and diverse. A message that is both educating and timely. And own voices. This needs to be on the list.

This book was powerful and carries incredibly important messages regarding racism. Given the state of our country right now, it is definitely a relevant read. But this also makes this a difficult, uncomfortable read. If you are looking for a feel good story, this is not it. But it is clear hat Traci Chee feels passionate about this topic and the book appears to be well researched. I personally found the cast of characters a little too much, but enjoyed how the stories wove together through the different perspectives.

Painful, gorgeous, exquisite. The story of fourteen different teenagers who were incarcerated due to EO 9066 (enacted February 1942, three months after the Pearl Harbor bombing) is a painful, heartbreaking, and exquisite read. Chee’s writing is gorgeous, and each character has a chapter (except Minnow. Minnow opens and closes the book), and you are distinctly in each character’s head. It’s not easy to write a multiple point of view novel, but Chee excels. A must-read for everyone.

wow, what a completely stunning and heartbreaking novel about a history we don’t learn enough about. i absolutely adored every page of this and every character. i felt so completely immersed in this group of friends, and my heart cheered and broke for them. truly, this is a novel that feels like an instant classic of the YA category, and i would love to see it taught in schools one day. it comes out this september, and i highly recommend picking it up!

read via an advance copy from hmh

This is a topic in history that is not covered as often as it should be. I truly believe that many schools would benefit in including this novel as required reading.

I was floored by how much I loved this book as I do not normally read historical novels. I adored the way this was formatted between the multiple perspectives. Each kid had their own unique pov of the circumstances they faced. I loved the inclusion of sibling interaction which I feel are never quite showcased well enough in the YA I have read in the past. I know teens reading this book will definitely be able to identify with one of the characters if not more. Personally for me I loved and identified with Bette.

I also really loved how the novel was book ended. I probably would buy this book for my own personal collection. I loved Traci's writing so much I might check out her other novels.

The only thing that slowed me down was Twitchy's chapter being bogged down by description, but I understood him as a character by that point that it worked as to why it was told that way.

Overall I could tell this topic is deeply important to the author and to be recognized as a part of history told from perspectives that teens will empathize with.

Definitely a must-read for teens. This is. a book I will add to my classroom library and suggest as a literature circle choice in our sophomore curriculum.

This would be a wonderful work of historical fiction to use alongside some non-fiction, such as George Takei's "They Called Us Enemy". I had a difficult time reading this, not because it was poorly done, but because I got so frustrated with the racism and injustice depicted throughout. I think Chee also did an excellent job at showing many different experiences within the same circumstances, allowing readers to see that Japanese-Americans reacted to this in various ways.

This book about Japanese Incarceration during World War 2 is a must read to gain perspective of what those Japanese Americans went through during that time. The book takes the perspective of 14 different teenagers as they lived through this time in history. The way that each teenager responds to their situations varies, but the one thing they all share is their connection to each other.

I recieved a free copy from netgalley in exchange for an honest review. We are not free is a book that will stay with you. The entire story is powerful but the ending really hits you. We are not free tells the story of a part of American history that isn't known. As a history major and now teacher, I know more about this than most Americans but that isn't saying a lot because there isn't enough literature both nonfiction and fiction about the Japanese internment camps or as the author points out in her author's note the Japanese American Citizens League says "incarceration" and "forced removal". I don't what to get into how we as American try to brush under all of the bad in our past, but considering that as I write this review right now, we have children locked in cages it seems really important to state the obvious. Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. The story is told from the perspectives of 14 teens and young adults as they survive the horrifying conditions and treatment by the US government. While I won't be teaching world or us history next year, I will definitely have a copy of this book in my classroom. I think that every student needs to be aware of this part of our history and that it is important that more people of color tell their stories.

We Are Not Free is a wonderful story of friends who experienced being relocated to internment camps during World War II. Each of the characters share their feelings and experiences during their interment. Several of the boys/young men choose to join the service and fight for their country. Even though the country does not think of these young men as Americans these young men still see themselves as american. This is a sad and turbulent journey through each characters personal experience. I really enjoyed this story and I think you will too! I was moved by the commitment of friendship among these young people. They maintained that strong bond even when separated by being sent to different camps. These are rich characters who you will grow to care about as you read.

Very powerful look at life in a Japanese internment camp: the hatred of the locals (early in the book, Chinese were holding signs saying they were Chinese, not Japanese), the deprivation, the sense of bewilderment as to why they were considered a threat. If I were teaching <i>Farewell to Manzanar</i> or <i>They Called Us Enemy</i>, this would be a fiction version for students to see how closely the author followed the real experience.

eARC provided by publisher.

I was intrigued by this book. Fourteen different POVs from people with all different problems except for one: the racism that got them where they were. This book was very good. It provided what I know to be historically accurate outcomes, made me feel for the characters, and more. This book was sad and unfortunate, but it's a very good read. I cried a little bit towards the end of the book. I loved how the stories weaved together to create a bond between every character.
I would recommend this book to people who like historical fiction, but also others. I don't love historical fiction, but this was worth the read and I thought it was really good. This book points out the racism during World War II, the aspect people sometimes forget, and Traci Chee did an amazing job doing so.

This is a powerful look into how the imprisonment of Japanese Americans during World War II affected their lives. Chee has 14 narrators, connected by the neighborhood where they lived before being sent to camps, present different stories of their lives during internment. The stories give a much better, more complete look at how devastating this decision by the United States government was for the Americans living it. For me, I read this closely on the heels of George Takei's graphic novel of his experiences so I had a pretty direct comparison between the two. At first I was going to say that I enjoyed the graphic novel more since they cover nearly all the same topics, but upon more reflection I feel that the two are good companion pieces. There are parts of this novel I might not have understood as well without the introduction from Takei's book. Conversely, there were parts of the other book that were covered too quickly in the graphic novel format that I am better able to understand now thanks to Chee's storytelling. My only real complaint about this book is Twitchy's chapter about the battles in which he fought. Too much wartime description for too long for me.

This is a remarkably well written book. The characters are so bright and vibrant in their joy, anger, and even despair as they face the realities of their country waging a war against them. The author does a great job balancing the brutal reality of this period of history with the hopeful moments that really humanize these characters. This group of friends is so real it’s easy to see how they could be your friends or neighbors. The writing made me laugh out loud, gave me chills, and brought tears to my eyes. It was captivating and thought provoking. The themes of what it means to be an American and what it means to be a family were excellently threaded through all the characters experiences.

I also appreciate how great this book is as both a narrative of these young characters lives and a teaching tool for a period of time that is often glossed over in history classes. The age range of the characters is also very well done and widens the range of appeal to readers. I think this would be a great book for more mature middle grade readers through college level students matching the age range of the main characters and the personal experiences they face during the book.

Well-researched and definitely thought-provoking, this historical fiction novel about the forced relocation of Japanese-Americans is one I will be thinking about for quite some time. The book focuses on the lives of a group of friends just before, and then during, their relocation to an internment camp. While I appreciated hearing from the perspectives of the different teens, there were times when I had to go back and reread to understand their connections with one another.

Overall, this book would definitely work in my classroom as a read aloud (with the cussing edited out) because the varying perspectives and the topic itself are perfect for discussion and reflection.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing access to the ARC.

Incredible story. Chee has an ensemble of characters that each bring their own perspective to a part of history I didn’t know much about. Well researched and informative but not lecture-y. Recommend for teens and adults.

Thank you NetGalley and HMH books for the advanced copy.

This book was an amazing work of historical fiction for young adults. Each section is narrated by a different young person, which was a bit confusing at first but much easier to follow as the story progressed. The work does not shy away from the indignities suffered before or after the internment camps either, showing the scavenging of internees belongings, the difficulty in finding housing and the unfairness of repatriation.

Teachers or librarians interested in adopting this text should know that there is a small smattering of profanity just as there is any contemporary YA title. This would be a great companion piece to accompany Internment by Samira Ahmed or They Called Us Enemy by George Takei, but suitable in history classes too. The vignettes lend themselves to be used in conjunction with other nonfiction pieces, potentially those connected to the Korematsu v. United States.

The language of the text is powerful and reminiscent of other YA texts (such as The Hate U Give) that address injustices: "And I get it, finally. Gaman. The ability to hold your pain and bitterness inside you and not let them destroy you. To make something beautiful through your anger, or with your anger, and neither erase it nor let it define you. To suffer. And to rage. And to persevere." At the conclusion of the text, I found myself wanting to know what happened to the characters long after, a testament to the author's ability to make the reader care for each of the characters in this circle of friends.

It's sooooo close to being a 5-star book! And I'm in love with the message it sends, how the book is organized, and the interlocking stories that pace the book out but also reveal a deeper, emotional layer that can be dissected over multiple readings of the book. Where it feel down was the last third of the book-- I felt somewhat distracted by some of the last characters of the story that took away from my intense connection with the "main characters" introduced toward the beginning of the story.

While I understand the necessity of representing all of these fourteen perspectives, a few could have either been shorter or eliminated but I'm sure Chee had three hundred more pages and needed to focus because it's a story that NEEDS TO BE TOLD. I connected with her comments in the author's note about what she chose to use for terminology and interviewing internment camp survivors as well as her own family.

These are characters that will live on for quite some time and this book can pair nicely with This Time Will Be Different which I found just as raw as this one and the choice in cover and title is PERFECT.