A visit this week from Michelle Lee, illustrator of George Takei’s* new children’s book about his childhood experience of being detained in a Northern California prison camp (as well as in Arkansas and at the nearby Santa Anita racetrack) demonstrated the power of visual story telling in keeping history alive.

Lee spoke to the 8th graders, who this spring have studied the deportation and internment of American citizens of Japanese ancestry including a visit to the Manzanar camp during Discovery Week. She outlined her layered research approach—which spanned historical photos, architectural plans, art from prisoners at the camps, camp and U.S. newspapers, and more—to ensure the picture book was historically accurate and to supplement the information of the written story.

“This presentation was a great experience for the class. Anytime we can help students make  a real-world connection with what is taught in class solidifies the learning and makes history more meaningful,” said Dr. Kelly.

Lee was invited to speak in honor of Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander Heritage Month by Middle School Art Teacher Jenny Yurshansky—thank you Ms. Yurshansky!

*Takei played Sulu in the original Star Trek series.

If you would like to hear from Takei and Lee directly, check out this interview from NPR's Weekend Edition.