Setsuko’s Secret Heart Mountain and the Legacy of the Japanese American Incarceration
Setsuko’s Secret Heart Mountain and the Legacy of the Japanese American Incarceration by Shirley Ann Higuchi is published by the University of Wisconsin Press and was released on October 20, 2020. This 363-page book explores the complex history of Japanese American incarceration during World War II through the lens of Higuchi’s family experiences, particularly focusing on her mother, Setsuko. The narrative reveals the emotional weight carried by those who lived through this period, contrasting childhood memories with the painful realities faced by their parents.
In this edition, readers will find a deep exploration of the generational trauma and cultural legacy stemming from the incarceration experience. Higuchi navigates her mother’s hidden contributions to preserving the history of Heart Mountain, where many Japanese Americans were held. The book intertwines personal and communal histories, shedding light on the often-overlooked aspects of camp life and the impact it had on families. Setsuko’s Secret serves as a poignant reminder of the need to confront and understand the painful chapters of American history, particularly within the context of ethnic studies and social science.
Official synopsis Publisher
As children, Shirley Ann Higuchi and her brothers knew Heart Mountain only as the place their parents met, imagining it as a great Stardust Ballroom in rural Wyoming. As they grew older, they would come to recognize the name as a source of great sadness and shame for their older family members, part of the generation of Japanese Americans forced into the hastily built concentration camp in the aftermath of Executive Order 9066.
Only after a serious cancer diagnosis did Shirley’s mother, Setsuko, share her vision for a museum at the site of the former camp, where she had been donating funds and volunteering in secret for many years. After Setsuko’s death, Shirley skeptically accepted an invitation to visit the site, a journey that would forever change her life and introduce her to a part of her mother she never knew.
Navigating the complicated terrain of the Japanese American experience, Shirley patched together Setsuko’s story and came to understand the forces and generational trauma that shaped her own life. Moving seamlessly between family and communal history, Setsuko’s Secret offers a clear window into the “camp life” that was rarely revealed to the children of the incarcerated. This volume powerfully insists that we reckon with the pain in our collective American past.
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