What if a novel claimed that the daughter of a Nazi officer had been raped by a Jewish person—and this book became an Amazon bestseller?
A story where the perpetrator becomes the victim, and the rapist is portrayed as the one assaulted—Amazon must stop selling So Far from the Bamboo Grove.
Cyber Diplomacy Organization VANK has launched a global petition on the world’s largest petition platform, calling for Amazon to cease sales of So Far from the Bamboo Grove. VANK is also distributing digital posters to raise awareness.
🔗 Global Petition
maywespeak.com/fiction
On July 25, 2020, Amazon announced a ban on the sale of racist products. Under this revised policy, the company prohibits sales of Nazi flags, white supremacist symbols, neo-Nazi literature, and Ku Klux Klan-related items. It has also updated its sales algorithm to block racist products from appearing on the platform.
VANK is calling on Amazon to enforce this policy by halting sales of So Far from the Bamboo Grove.
This novel has long been regarded as a powerful anti-war story and has been widely used in American schools as recommended reading for students in grades 6–8. It is also featured in teaching guides for educators.
In 2007, following protests led by the Korean American community, the California state government removed the book from school curricula. However, it continues to be used in schools across other U.S. states.
Teachers in American elementary, middle, and high schools still actively incorporate the book into their lessons. The educational materials marketplace Teachers Pay Teachers sells various lesson plans related to So Far from the Bamboo Grove, with numerous positive reviews from educators.
🔗 Teachers Pay Teachers – So Far from the Bamboo Grove
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Browse/Search:so%20far%20from%20the%20bamboo%20grove
Additionally, the major American textbook publisher Glencoe provides an online study guide to help students engage with the novel in class.
🔗 Glencoe Study Guide
http://www.glencoe.com/sec/literature/litlibrary/pdf/so_far_from_bamboo_grove.pdf
Currently, So Far from the Bamboo Grove ranks among the top-selling children’s books on Amazon:
📌 #124 in Children’s Books on Violence
📌 #447 in Children’s Books on Asia
📌 #372 in Children’s Military Fiction
🔗 Amazon Sales Page – So Far from the Bamboo Grove
https://www.amazon.com/Bamboo-Grove-Yoko-Kawashima-Watkins/dp/0688131158
Amazon’s book description is directly taken from the novel’s back cover, promoting So Far from the Bamboo Grove as a “true story.”
Could a story about a young German girl suffering at the hands of Jewish people after World War II be widely accepted as fact?
So Far from the Bamboo Grove is an autobiographical novel by Japanese-American author Yoko Kawashima Watkins. The book claims that during Japan’s retreat from Korea at the end of World War II, Japanese civilians were subjected to rape and violence by Koreans.
The novel portrays Koreans as the aggressors—violent and cruel—while depicting the Japanese as innocent war refugees and victims. American students, unfamiliar with East Asian history and Japan’s colonial rule over Korea, may read this book and develop a false perception that Koreans were the perpetrators and Japanese were the victims.
Amazon promotes the book as “the Japanese Anne Frank’s Diary,” reinforcing the idea that it is a true account. However, in reality, the novel whitewashes Japan’s war crimes and reverses the roles of victim and perpetrator, falsely positioning Koreans as the villains.
Amazon must stop selling So Far from the Bamboo Grove, a book that distorts history and misleads global readers. Support the movement by signing the petition and sharing digital awareness posters.
🔗 Global Petition
maywespeak.com/fiction