Can sunflowers bloom in the desert?

Mari wonders if anything can bloom at Topaz, where her family is interned along with thousands of other Japanese Americans during World War II. The summer sun is blazingly hot, and Mari’s art class has begun. But it’s hard to think of anything to draw in a place where nothing beautiful grows. Somehow, glimmers of hope begin to surface under the harsh sun—in the eyes of a kindly art teacher, in the tender words of Mari’s parents, and in the smile of a new friend.

Inspired by her family’s experiences, author Amy Lee-Tai has crafted a story rooted in one of America’s most shameful historical episodes—the internment of 120,000 Japanese Americans during the second World War. The art schools which offered internees moments of solace and self-expression are a little known part of this history. Amy Lee-Tai’s gentle prose and Felicia Hoshino’s stunning mixed media images are a testimony to hope and how it can survive alongside even the harshest injustice.

"Hoshino's watercolor-and-mixed-media illustrations are golden, topaz-touched …a richly informative introduction to a subject little-addressed in works for children.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“Lee-Tai's tale, with its emphasis on the internees' dignity and feelings, offers the gentlest introduction to this tragic episode.”
—School Library Journal

“Hoshino's ink-and-watercolor spreads both provide historical information and convey the story's emotional weight-and do both with grace.”
—Publishers Weekly

“Luminous mixed-media illustrations…A beautiful, important book about a long-hidden chapter in American history.”
—Washington Parent

“…of enduring value…Through the sensitive narrative and its finely tuned illustrations, children of a very young age will be able to absorb this one little girl’s personal journey to mental freedom…”
—Papertigers

"...simple but powerful text...an illuminating account of hope and resilience that eventually blossom in the desert."
—Asian Review of Books

“…(a) sensitive portrait of perseverance.”
—Sacramento Bee