Inspired by how Tokuda-Hall’s maternal grandparents met and fell in love in a Japanese internment camp, Love in the Library follows Tama, who works in the camp library, and George, who visits her each day. Life in Minidoka isn’t at all where Tama expected to be and she has no idea when, if ever, she’ll get to leave. She finds solace in the pages of her books. George shows up every day to check out piles of books and talk to Tama. They soon become friends, and then fall in love. They get married and start a family all while still living in the internment camp.
An afterword from the author and backmatter shed more light on Japanese internment camps and includes a photo of her real-life grandparents.
The illustrations from Yas Imamura are beautiful, and show both the joy (Tama and George smiling at each other) and sorrow (the guard watch tower and barbwire fence looming in the background).
