Alan Brennert will discuss his new book, “Daughter of Moloka’i,” a Los Angeles Times bestseller and the much-anticipated sequel to “Moloka’i,” on Saturday, July 13, at the Manzanar National Historic Site’s Visitor Center.
This event is free and open to the public. Brennert answer questions and sign his books, which will be available for purchase in the bookstore. The event will be held from 11 a.m. to 12 noon in the West Theater.
“Daughter of Moloka’i” is the richly emotional story of Ruth Utagawa, the daughter of parents who have Hansen’s disease (frequently known as leprosy). She is adopted by a Japanese family, the Watanabes, in Honolulu. The family soon moves to California to seek new opportunities.
They struggle through the physically demanding labor of working on a farm, the Great Depression, and racism from their neighbors and local communities. But nothing quite prepares them for Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, or the ensuing backlash that they and other West Coast Japanese Americans receive.
Ruth, now married with two children of her own, is incarcerated along with her family at Manzanar in 1942. After the war ends, the family works to rebuild their lives. Ruth receives a letter from her birth mother, Rachel, that forces her to reckon with her past.
Brennert has won an Emmy Award and People’s Choice Award for his work on the TV series “L.A. Law.” He has been nominated for a Golden Globe Award and for the Writers Guild of America Award for Outstanding Teleplay of the Year. He lives in Southern California, but his heart is in Hawaii.
Manzanar National Historic Site is located at 5001 Hwy. 395 in Independence. For more information, contact Community Volunteer Ambassador Fatima Khan at (760) 878-2194, ext. 3313 or fatima.khan@ou.edu.