Why a Booktrail?
WW2: The World War II Japanese-Canadian experience through the eyes of a young boy
Heart of a Champion
What you need to know before your trail
Ten-year-old Kenny (Kenji in Japanese) worships his older brother, Mickey (Mitsuo), a baseball hero whose outstanding performance on the Asahi baseball team has given him fame and popularity. Despite Kenny’s suspected heart condition, he is determined to practice secretly with Mickey so he, too, can one day try out for the Asahi.
But world events soon overtake life in this quiet community. When Japan attacks Pearl Harbor in 1941, everything for Kenny and his family spirals out of control: schools are closed, businesses are confiscated, fathers are arrested and sent to work camps in the BC interior and mothers and children are relocated to internment camps. When Mickey is arrested for a small act of violence, Kenny manages to keep his family’s spirits up, despite the deplorable conditions in camp.
Coming across a “vacant” field covered with scrap wood, broken shakes and torn tar paper, Kenny gets permission to clear it and convert it into a baseball field. One by one, the boys in the camp pitch in, and the work gives purpose to their long days. Kenny’s persistence, hard work and big dreams shape the teen he is to become in this story of happiness found despite all odds.
Travel Guide
Asahi Baseballl Team
The Asahi were a Japanese-Canadian baseball team established in 1914. They were based in Vancouver’s Oppenheimer Park, in the city’s Japantown
They were particularly successful and popular in the 1930s but the team was disbanded when its members were dispersed across Canada due to the Japanese-Canadian internment during World War II.
They were however inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2003 and the BC Sports Hall of Fame in 2005. There is also a plaque unveiled in Oppenheimer Park on September 18, 2011.
Streetview Maps
A) Vancouver - Oppenheimer Park
A) Vancouver - Oppenheimer Park
Booktrail Boarding Pass Information: Heart of a Champion
Author/Guide Ellen Schwartz Destination: Vancouver Departure Time:WW2
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