Book Pairing for Educators and Writers

As a teacher I often looked for books that worked well together so that my lessons would be richer and allow my students to see things from different author’s points of view. I love the opportunity to compare and contrast literature to expand my own understanding and create higher order thinking possibilities for my learners. Today I am sharing two books that have significant overlaps in terms of subject matter but their styles are actually quite different.

BARBED WIRE BETWEEN US written by Mia Wenjen and illustrated by Violeta Encarnación is written as a reverso poem telling the story of two girls 80 years apart at an internment camp in Oklahoma. The two stories, each told in sparse text are a powerful balance of how a Japanese American girl was treated in World War II with the second story sharing the journey of a Latina girl detained in the very same camp present day. The parallels between the girls is haunting and begs the reader to consider essential questions of justice and can we learn from history? The poetic text is truly a work of art. Mia has elevated this to a new level, but if you want to learn more about reverso poetry Marilyn Singer is a good place to start. Mia’s website

You can read my review here

UNBREAKABLE: A JAPANESE AMERICAN FAMILY IN AN AMERICAN INCARCERATION CAMP, written by Minoru Tonai and Jolene Gutiérrez and illustrated by Chris Sasaki is narrative nonfiction. Told in third person we see the story through young Min’s eyes beginning in 1941. There are many incredible details about this book but one thing that I found especially engaging as an educator was the use of dates along the top of some of pages to help readers understand the timeline. Feeling Min’s emotions as he clutches the stone his father gave him while he witnesses his father being taken away creates an opportunity for adult readers to discuss with students or children at home the power of a physical object to remember someone in a variety of circumstances. There are so many approaches to take with this book, the possibilities feel endless. Jolene’s website

You can read my review here

Mia and Jolene shared some of their struggles in writing these books and what it took to finally land on the books that released earlier this spring. (recommended for age 6 and up) In Conversation Publishers Weekly Interview

The emotions created through the text and illustrations are powerful making both these books excellent resources to inspire classroom writing projects in addition to generating meaningful discussions. The authors have excellent resources on their websites for these books and if you’re in the Los Angeles, CA area, they will both be at the 2026 Nikkei Children’s Book Festival on Saturday, May 9, 2026. Japanese American National Museum