While I Was Away
While I Was Away by Waka T. Brown is a middle grade memoir published by HarperCollins Publishers in 2021. This 310-page book presents the author’s journey to 1980s Japan, where she is sent as a child to reconnect with her family’s roots after her parents express concern about her understanding of Japanese. The narrative explores her experiences as she navigates the challenges of culture shock, language barriers, and familial expectations while living with her strict grandmother in Tokyo.
Readers will find a detailed account of Waka’s struggles with reading and writing in kanji, her interactions with her grandmother, and the difficulties she faces in Japanese public school. The memoir delves into themes of identity and belonging, as Waka grapples with feeling like an outsider in a country that is supposed to be her heritage. This edition offers insights into cultural and familial dynamics, making it a thoughtful exploration of what it means to find one’s place in the world.
Official synopsis Publisher
Named one of New York Public Library’s & Bank Street’s Best Books of the Year!
The Farewell meets Erin Entrada Kelly’s Blackbird Fly in this empowering middle grade memoir from debut author Waka T. Brown, who takes readers on a journey to 1980s Japan, where she was sent as a child to reconnect to her family’s roots.
When twelve-year-old Waka’s parents suspect she can’t understand the basic Japanese they speak to her, they make a drastic decision to send her to Tokyo to live for several months with her strict grandmother. Forced to say goodbye to her friends and what would have been her summer vacation, Waka is plucked from her straight-A-student life in rural Kansas and flown across the globe, where she faces the culture shock of a lifetime.
In Japan, Waka struggles with reading and writing in kanji, doesn’t quite mesh with her complicated and distant Obaasama, and gets made fun of by the students in her Japanese public-school classes. Even though this is the country her parents came from, Waka has never felt more like an outsider.
If she’s always been the “smart Japanese girl” in America but is now the “dumb foreigner” in Japan, where is home…and who will Waka be when she finds it
Author
Publisher
Topics
FAQ
What is “While I Was Away” about?
Who is the author of “While I Was Away”?
When was “While I Was Away” published?
What is the ISBN for “While I Was Away”?
What are the book details (language, pages, edition)?
