They braved the rough voyage across the ocean to attain the American dream, but the ancestors of America's rich and diverse social landscape first struggled to make a life in their new homeland. Through the immigrants' own words and contemporary photographs and illustrations, these inspiring volumes not only tell the story of each immigrant group, but also provide insight on what it means to be an American today. Despite being major contributors to California's agricultural economy, the hardworking Japanese became victims of discrimination that peaked when thousands of Japanese Americans were interned during World War II.