October 30, 2021: Mystery at Topaz

This week we share a new story by Emiko Katsumoto.

"Western Sky"--an oil painting of a Topaz inhabitant gazing up at a brilliant red sky.
“Western Sky,” by Hisako Hibi. Oil on canvas. July 1, 1945. Reprinted with kind permission from the Japanese American National Museum (Gift of Ibuki Hibi Lee, 96.601.48).

A number of Topaz residents witness an eerie, recurring phenomenon in the desert sky after sundown following the murder of James Wakasa by a Topaz guard in 1943. In “Mystery at Topaz,” Emiko Katsumoto shares the story of her husband Kiyoshi, who was seven years old at the time and never forgot what he saw.

Special thanks to Ibuki Hibi Lee and the National Japanese American Museum for allowing us to share this stunning oil painting by Hisako Hibi, entitled “Western Sky.”

The Topaz Stories Team

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