Shell Song Based on a True Family Story

Based on the author’s true family history, this picture book about Japanese American incarceration in Hawai'i during World War II is a moving tribute to the importance of finding and collecting pieces of hope, big or small, even in the darkest of times.

Grandfather loved music, seashells, and the sound of the ocean in Hawai'i. But when war came, there was no more music. And in this war, there was no kindness for anyone who looked Japanese.

Taken to an island prison, Grandfather passed many long, lonely days away from his family searching for tiny seashells. He collected the shells, labelled them, and saved them with care. His collection has been passed down to his children and grandchildren, and now, author-illustrator Sharon Fujimoto-Johnson tells the story of her grandfather and his shells.

Sharon Fujimoto-Johnson is a Japanese American author-illustrator who grew up in both America and Japan. She now lives in California in a house filled with three generations of family, two languages, and countless books and art supplies. She’s the author-illustrator of The Mochi Makers and Shell Song. Visit her at SharonFJ.com.