Somehow my recollection of Dr. Sledge as my cheerful, quiet-mannered, humble (but tough!) zoology professor is stood on its head after reading his book. How did this gentleman live through such stark and utter hell? How could anyone? But he tells you -- his fine scientific mind observant and sparing no detail to clouded memory or gentrified constraints -- so Peleliu and Okinawa are beyond my words (but no longer beyond my imagination). No one who has not endured the horror of entrenched infantry warfare could adequately describe it; but this book helps any reader who hasn't -- like me -- begin to fathom its terror. And as we begin to take it in, we realize what an enormous legacy of sacrifice that generation left us, that "with privilege comes responsibility," as Dr. Sledge says. How can we ever repay these numbed, reluctant heroes? I suspect we never can. But we can listen to some who were lucky enough to survive, and never forget those countless boys and men who came out maimed, or just didn't come out at all. We owe them all a tremendous debt of gratitude for the lives we lead today, and this book tells you, in graphic and heart-gripping detail, exactly why.

If your war history reading list is rich with books that take a bird's eye view of combat, try taking a beach assault into hell with E.B. "Sledgehammer" Sledge. I read this book after reading "Wartime" by Paul Fussell who recommends it as the best singular account of the realities of combat. It is a very detailed, gritty account of the war through the eyes of a man who survived two extremely brutal battles. The descriptions of the battlefields he fought in and the wreckage of the aftermath are priceless and hard to find in other history books. This is a great read for someone who has never been in battle or the Marines and wants to know what it's REALLY like. It's also a great warning to those who might want to start a war that will involve someone else's sons and daughters....

With the Old Breed, by E.B. Sledge is the best personal account of combat that I have ever read. It is brutally honest, as Sledge does not gloss over the horrific nightmare that is war.After reading Slede's book, it is no small wonder that 26,000 Americans lost their sanity in the Okinawa battle alone. He spares us none of the gory details, yet he delivers this true account in an eloquent style that gives the story even more impact. Sledge does not only desribe the fight against the Japanese,but also the mental battle raging within men on the front line, as he himself fights to remain sane amid the filth, fear and misery that were the battles of Peleliu and Okinawa.It is at times moving, and at other times stomach turning. At all times though it is extremely riveting, and I found that this book was very hard to put down. One can also not put down this book without a profound appreciation for the young men who went through the worst kind of hell for their country.

This was a great book, even though I am 12, I understood it. Just as good as So Far From The Bamboo Grove. I read the whole book in just one day! It makes you cry, laugh, and hope. Touching, and gives you any view of the homeless and World War II Suggested to people who can deal with tough stiuations.

My Bother, my Sister, and I is a powerful tale of a courageous family! What Yoko and her siblings go through is amazing, and while reading I felt as if I had been with her and gone through everything she had. I couldn't put the book down. My Brother, My Sister, and I is as moving a tale as it's prequal. I strongly recommend it if you have read So Far from the Bamboo Grove.

This book is a wonderful book. I have read it over 3 times now and I still want to read it again. Before I read the book I had some sibling problems, and after reading it I am now closer to my sisters. It teaches you how much you need your family and what they can do for you. I think it is more than a 5 star book. It should be a 100 star book. I think if most people in the world read it our world would be changed. It would be peaceful and people would not get into big arguments. That is how much this book can change us. If you don't beleive me you should read this wonderful, fantastic, brilliant book by Yoko Kawashima Watkins. It is one novel you'll never forget!

It is an ausome book which features the life of a young, innocent Japanese girl during World War 2. She was expelled from her first school when she was in Grade 1, for disrupting the class by making lots of noise in many ways. The girl left for another school (Tomoe) thinking that her very understanding mother had chosen to leave the school on her on will. Her new school was very unique as its classrooms were actually discarded railroad cars. The headmaster himself was very different from other headmasters. He had looked at education from a different angle altogether. He understood children very well and was a father-figure to Totto-Chan and all the children of the school. The book is divided into many chapters and nearly every chapter teaches a lesson. The book can be read by anybody as it has a mixture of elation,sorrow and adventure.

Totto-chan is really the childhood Tetsuko Kuroyanagi, who is experiencing an unconventional but undeniably wonderful education in a tiny elementary school. The story is told as a series of anecdotes which blend beautifully together to create a picture of Totto-chan's life: her school, her family, and Tokyo leading up to WWII. This book is highly recommended for parents and educators, as a reminder of exactly what it is like to be a child, and should definitely be taken to heart.

A heart-warming, and delightful collection of true stories of young Tetsuko Kuroyanagi, a famous television personality in Japan. It begins when Totto-chan ( Tetsuko's nick name) was expelled from the first grade because of her disruptive behaviour. She was then transferred to a very unique school ran by a headmaster who had his own teaching philosophy. The school itself was not in a building but in discarded railroad cars. The book also includes other adventures Totto-chan had been involved in, and also previews what life had been like as a small child in Japan during the outbreak of World War II. I recomend this book to parents, and teachers because of Mr. Kobayashi- the headmaster's philosophy of education. It also makes fun reading for children, as I myself have had this book since I was twelve years old.

Written in the early twentieth century, this indigenous Japanese novel recounts the life & times of old Japan's greatest swordsman, Miyamoto Musashi -- a man who began life as an over-eager and rather brutish young lout but who, through the discipline of Japan's "way of the sword," turned himself into a master of his chosen weapon. But this tale is not only one of a life spent in training to perfect the art of killing with a sharpened piece of steel. In the venerable Japanese tradition, it is also about a man's search to conquer himself, to become a better man. The Buddhist view cultivated by the Japanese warrior class allowed for a spiritual dimension to their very bloody (in western eyes) enterprise of warfare and killing. And it is this aspect of his training that consumes Musashi, to the detriment of the people he encounters and who seek to attach themselves to him. Unable to settle down in the ordinary way, or to simply join a particular clan as a retainer to some noble lord, Musashi embarks on the life of a ronin (masterless samurai) as he wends his way through the feudal world of medieval Japan in his seemingly endless search for perfection. In the process he finds a young woman who loves him and many enemies who seek his destruction, at least in part in repayment for the damage he does them while on his quest. He also crosses swords with many other experts in Japan's martial arts, but it is his encounter with a Buddhist priest that ultimately puts him on the right path. In the end Musashi finds his grail in a duel to the death with his greatest opponent, the sword master famous for his "swallow cut" -- a stroke so fast and deadly that it can slice a swooping, looping bird out of the air in mid-flight. This alone is a challenge worthy of the master which Musashi has become -- and a match which even he may not be up to, for this opponent is surely the finest technician in his art in all Japan. But there is more to swordsmanship than technical skill, as Musashi has learned, and there is more to living one's life than mere technical proficiency. Musashi attains a sort of peace in preparation for his climactic bout, for he is willing to risk all and even die in order to win against the master of the swallow cut, while applying all the strategy he has learned throughout his tumultuous career to unsettle the man who will oppose him. In the end Musashi lived to a fairly ripe old age and, unlike many of his contemporaries, died in his bed after composing the famous Book of Five Rings -- his own contribution to the art of strategy. (And, by the way, The Art of War, another famous book of military strategy was written by the Chinese general Sun T'zu -- not "Lao T'zu.") -- Stuart W. Mirsky (mirsky@ix.netcom.com

Written in the early twentieth century, this indigenous Japanese novel recounts the life & times of old Japan's greatest swordsman, Miyamoto Musashi -- a man who began life as an over-eager and rather brutish young lout but who, through the discipline of Japan's "way of the sword," turned himself into a master of his chosen weapon. But this tale is not only one of a life spent in training to perfect the art of killing with a sharpened piece of steel. In the venerable Japanese tradition, it is also about a man's search to conquer himself, to become a better man. The Buddhist view cultivated by the Japanese warrior class allowed for a spiritual dimension to their very bloody enterprise of warfare and killing. And it is this aspect of his training that consumes Musashi, to the detriment of the people he encounters and who seek to attach themselves to him. Unable to settle down in the ordinary way, or to simply join a particular clan as a retainer to some noble lord, Musashi embarks on the life of a ronin (masterless samurai) as he wends his way through the feudal world of medieval Japan in his seemingly endless search for perfection. In the process he finds a young woman who loves him and many enemies who seek his destruction, at least in part in repayment for the damage he does them while on his quest. He also crosses swords with many other experts in Japan's martial arts, but it is his encounter with a Buddhist priest, early on,that ultimately puts him on the right path. In the end Musashi finds his grail in a duel to the death with his greatest opponent, the sword master, Kojiro, famous for his "swallow cut" -- a stroke so fast and deadly that it can slice a swooping, looping bird out of the air in mid-flight. This alone is a challenge worthy of the master which Musashi has become -- and a match which even he may not be up to, for this opponent is surely the finest technician in his art in all Japan. But there is more to swordsmanship than technical skill, as Musashi has learned, and more to living one's life than merely following rules. Musashi attains a sort of peace in preparation for his climactic bout, for he is willing to risk all and even die in order to win against the master of the swallow cut, while applying all the strategy he has learned throughout his tumultuous career to unsettle the man who will oppose him. In the end Musashi lived to a fairly ripe old age and, unlike many of his contemporaries, died in his bed after composing the famous Book of Five Rings -- his own contribution to the art of strategy. I had originally rated this book at four stars only but on re-thinking it I find it continues to live vividly in my mind so that, alone, suggests it had a more powerful resonance than I originally gave it credit for. Certainly there are many levels in any continuum of ranking and many ways of placing anything ranked on that continuum. But in one very serious way, this book deserves a five star ranking, not a four so I am correcting for this now.

Books numbering to nearly 1000 pages daunt me-- as you can tell, I don't read very much, even though I should. Of course, knowing vaguely of the legend of Musashi prompted me to pick up this book-- and I haven't regretted it. I am only 60% done with it, but just for that first 60% I'd still give it a five-star rating. Not only was it true to Japanese culture, it was entertaining. (Shogun, the film, was true to form but not very entertaining for me.) What is very fun about the book is the way that Yoshikawa uses characters who existed at that time, and events that took place at that time (mostly the duels), and swirled them into a semi-fiction novel. The character personalities are simply intriguing. For vernacular purposes, "cool" describes many of the ronin portrayed in the book. I enjoy the mixture of arrogance, honor and skill that characterize the samurai-- especially Sasaki Kojiro Ganryu's references to his thirsty Drying Pole.

As a last note, the translation was exemplary. Not only was it technically correct, but Terry managed to transfer Yoshikawa's humor into English so that it was understood, and generally captured Yoshikawa's intentions throughout the book-- it seemed that things which are easy to describe in Japanese, yet having no literal translation in English, were recognized by Terry and converted into understandable English.

After I finish the book, chances are that Amazon.com had better establish a 6 star rating.

"Silence" is perhaps one of the finest novels written that addresses the meaning of Christian faithfulness in the midst of intense persecution and suffering. The protagonist, a Jesuit missionary named Rodrigues, arrives in hostile Japan with a sense of pride and confidence in his faith. But his witness of the martyrdoms taking place and the intense psychological torture the authorities inflict upon him and others force a reexamination of who he thinks Jesus is and where God might be in the midst of all the tribulation.

Endo's deeply compassionate portrait of all the characters involved--even the apostastes and the persecutors--made the novel quite controversial upon its release in the Japanese Christian community. But I admire his courage for not feeding the reader easy answers. The book is unflinchingly realistic in the dilemmas faced and Rodrigues's crisis of faith, though occasionally the symbolism is blunt and unnuanced (a problem somewhat corrected in Endo's later novel, "The Samurai"). Ferreira, the apostate missionary, is particularly a complex and intelligent character who speaks eloquently about why the Japanese are so resistant to Christianity. If he is right, then all missionaries and others trying to spread the Gospel to foreign nations ought to rethink their methods and approaches to sharing their faith. ("The Samurai" also addresses these issues in an even more direct way.)

I recommend that all Christians who care about their persecuted brethren, are thinking about foreign missions work, or in general wonder what it's like to be put in a truly hard spot for one's faith, to read this novel carefully and prayerfully. The book shouldn't make you comfortable, but I think the discomfort is salutary, and will hopefully help those of us who have faith to come to a deeper understanding of "the cost of discipleship" (Bonhoeffer).

"Silence" is an excellent novel. Comparisons between Shusaku Endo and British novelist Graham Greene are apt, as both deal with the relationships that develop between individuals, Catholicism, and the world. "Silence" is an extremely intense historical novel. While knowledge of Catholicism may be helpful for some of the situations and terminology, the issues of doubt and faith, in God and in people, are readily available to any reader.

"Silence" is set in sixteenth century Japan, where Portuguese missionaries must contend with traders from rival European nations and the persecution of Christians by Japanese feudal lords. The feudal lords want to drive Christianity out of Japan, and try to do so by torturing priests into apostasy, denying their faith. This is done symbolically by stepping on a "fumie," a Christian image, like a picture of Mary or a crucifix. Two Portuguese priests, Sebastian Rodrigues and Francis Garrpe, make a dangerous journey to Japan, both to locate and comfort Japanese converts, and to discover the truth about a supposed apostate priest, Ferreira.

"Silence" makes use of several narrative approaches, third person omniscient at the beginning and ending, while the middle portion of the novel is written in the style of a diary and letters from Rodrigues' point of view. The main protagonist, Rodrigues must deal with the validity of his faith, the propriety of the Christian mission in Japan, the suffering of Japanese converts, and the silence of God in the midst of so much hardship.

Rodrigues' trials are exacerbated by his physical and cultural isolation, as he and Garrpe are forced to conceal themselves in a small hut dug out of the side of a mountain near Nagasaki. Culturally, he must confront being in a nation whose language and customs are mostly alien and threatening to him. The most perplexing external difficulty Rodrigues faces is from an ambiguously motivated local named Kichijiro. Rodrigues' relationship with Kichijiro forces the priest into his deepest and most troubling reflections on faith and the Bible.

"Silence" was an absolutely fascinating read. The historical and cultural milieus of the novel are complicated by Endo's own background. Endo's perspective on Christianity and Catholicism in particular, as a Japanese writer, and writing about Japanese history forced me, at least, as a Westerner, to look at issues of faith and international relations from a radically different perspective than even the foreign-based novels of Graham Greene that I have read, like "The Heart of the Matter" or "The Power and the Glory," the latter of which is thematically very similar to Endo's "Silence". Overall, a tremendous and powerful novel.

Endo's novel is a fascinating look at the Christian faith in the midst of brutal, cruel persecution. The novel is set in the 17th century. Two Portuguese Catholic priests journey into Japan with two goals in mind: To minister to the Japanese, and to find their former mentor, a priest named Ferreira, who may or may not have apostatized.

Silence is a well-balanced work. The story is deeply moving without becoming heavy-handed. The characters are very well thought out and developed. Endo uses a very interesting technique in this novel: The first several chapters are narrated by one of the priests. We see the events that develop through his eyes and how they affect him. About halfway through the book, the priest is no longer narrator, but perhaps we can see inside his soul better from another's vantage point. This is a book that I will think about for a long, long time.

I agree with the positive reviews of the previous posters. This book is incisive, penatrating, well written and Prof. Hayes has a solid grasp on his topic and has made it accessible to non-bankers and non-finance experts. But it should be pointed out that this book is NOT about the Big Bang. All you'll get about that in this book are phrases like "The Big bang will..." or "The Big Bang should..." or "The Big Bang ought to..." and mostly just in passing . Despite the fact that this book was published in 2000 its information seems to be current as of the third quarter of 1998. What this book does do and does very well is explain just how the Japanese economy got into the mess it is in and he answers the question of just how the world's largest banks and insurance companies managed to lose $700 billion by investing in real estate. And he lays the blame clearly at the feet of the Ministry of Finance's largely incompetant mandarins and the directors of Japan's banks who thought they could dominate global finance using the same tactics Toyota and Sony used to dominate the automobile and consumer electronics industries.

This is a very good book. Prof. Hayes explains everything about Japan's business very well. Sometimes his English is hard to follow for me (I am Japanese) but his argument is not. It starts at the beginning about the marriages and mergers between Japanese and non Japanese companies. It tells that there are too many Japanese working in stupid jobs - like construction (10% of all Japanese workers, shops sales (another 10%)) and so on. It explains why this is silly, what Japan is doing to change it and the other problems. Prof Hayes is a gaijin but he understands Japan very well. I like this book very much.

Declan Hayes should be proud of this tome. He throws light where, all too often, the professional Japanologists - "it's the unique 5,000 year old culture, stupid" - shed their self serving darkness. Dr Hayes cuts through their cliches - about the unique Japanese snow, intestines and financial system. He firmly positions Japan in hte neomercantilist school - that's what economists do,they correctly categorise - and he shows how and why that catch up policy can no longer work. As a result of mismanagement, Japan is now poorer but far wiser and Dr Hayes has painted this process quite well. He is on slightly weaker ground when he paths the road ahead - perhaps because he is an economist, not a clairvoyant. Because this book wil bring you bang up to dfate on Japan's economy, it is worth buying.

I read "Rain Fall" when it first came out and was immediately hooked. "Hard Rain" is a suspenseful sequel that grips you from the very beginning. Once you start reading "Hard Rain" you'll have trouble putting the book down. Barry Eisler is a master story teller, and John Rain remains an interesting, complex character. This book is great reading.

Hard Rain is one of the best sequels I've read. In this gripping installment, author Barry Eisler has stepped into a league with the great action-story authors of our time. Assassin-protagonist John Rain is a character study in multiculturalism, psychology, and ideology who provides a rich structure from which to tell this story of corruption and redemption.

But Hard Rain is much more than an action-suspense story. Through John Rain's eyes, Eisler gives us a look at modern Japanese society, with a harsh commentary on the systemic maladies that have crippled the country for over a decade. Eisler's literary prowess weaves an obvious love for Japan's culture, society, and history, with a bitter rebuke of a bureaucracy more interested in self-aggrandizement than in serving the people who support it.

Hard Rain has something for just about everyone to love. Action, intrigue, mystery, passion, introspection, and political commentary are woven masterfully into a story that just keeps getting better. I highly recommend Hard Rain, and anxiously await Rain's next move! Read it and I know you'll agree!!!

Both Hard Rain and Rain Fall are excellent martial arts, espionage silent but deadly thrillers. Eislers description of Japan, as if it is another character in the book, is near perfection. I have been there seven times and his perspective illuminates my memory of this beautiful nation.
What is also incredible is the explanations of martial art techniques that John Rain uses to subdue his opponents. Eisler, being a martial artist himself, describes the blow by blow action of some of the best fight scenes Ive ever read. Being a black belt in Judo as well as Brazilian Jiu Jitsu I am constantly reminded of the skill and effectiveness that comes from those arts by reading these books.

A must have!

I'm not a Zen practitioner; I read this book because I'm interested in Japanese culture and in contemplative forms of spirituality. Having already read the author's account of his own adventures in Japanese Zen temples, "Thank You and OK!", I was prepared for a bit of a romp.

But this account of the life of S. Suzuki, founder of the San Francisco Zen Center and spiritual father to two generations of American meditators, is more than a series of amusing incidents as Japanese culture confronted America in the 1960s. It contains a very convincing portrayal of Japanese culture during the first 60 years of this century as well as an exhaustively researched, nuanced portrait of the father of American Zen. The book manages to keep a light tone without seeming silly, and it doesn't shy away from the pain and the stumbling blocks in Suzuki's life.

The most pleasant surprise was the depiction of 1960s San Francisco as alternative culture made the transition from the Beats to the hippies.

This is one of the most engaging books I've read in a long time. I found myself itching to get back to it, and I was sorry to see it end.

David Chadwick was able to interview a lot of the original students of Suzuki, letting each of them speak in their own voice. The book is not a sweet and reverential tale of the life of prominent Zen teacher, but the honest exposition of successes and failures of the man Suzuki-roshi was. Particularly interesting to me were accounts of Suzuki's complex position on the issues of Japanese militarism during the WWII; and account of his first year in America, and how the Zen center just naturally happened. Chadwick's style is clear, concise and compact; occasional quotations from Suzuki are well positioned and illustrated by real-life examples. Well Done!!!

Shunryu Suzuki in not a saint in this book, or at least he does not become one until late in his life after a lot of effort. He was, by his own admission, a so-so father and husband. He had a terrible temper and it is astonishing that someone could combine such mindfulness with such absentmindedness. The latter trait caused Suzuki's wife such a "dark night of the soul" that it brought her to enlightenment. (And no, he wasn't planning it that way--he just forgot a funeral.)

This book is a labor of love by David Chadwick, but love never gets in the way of truth.

One will also learn much of Suzuki's zen from Suzuki's own comments on things as they happen around him. Anyone interested in zen, Japanese culture, or fine biography should appreciate this book.

Having only the cursory knowledge of Iwo Jima from the immortalized "photograph" and monument near Arlington National Cemetary, reading "Flags of Our Fathers" was an eye-opening experience. Born in the late 60's, I grew up in with war and its after-effects having little impact on my own personal life (somehow my immediate family escaped any time in the military). In this deeply personal account of the events surrounding Iwo Jima, James Bradley gives the reader a detailed account of the famous battle that no high school history class lesson could do justice to. From the "underground city" of Iwo to the facts surrounding the quite accidental photographic capture of the incidental second flagraising, the book is both educational and fairly quick read.

I was a little put-off early in the early stages of the book. In leading up to the actual battle, Bradley seemed to have already elevated the six flagraisers to godlike status. But having finished "Flags," one can easily forgive the author for the high reverence he holds for these individuals now knowing how each of their stories ended. Having recently visited Washington, I stopped at the US Marine Corps Memorial near the end of my trip. I did not know the names or stories of the men behind the impressive statues. Reading "Flags" made me initially regret what, at the time, had been a fairly unemotional visit to yet another DC monument. While that changed as I read "Flags" (I pulled out the photos I had taken several times while reading), I ultimately believe that the surviving flag raisers (particularly the author's father, John Bradley) would be quite happy that I did not associate them with the celluloid or bronze images that dogged them for the remainder of their lives.

It is heartening to see the success of this book. While not a scholarly historical work, Bradley has done a great service in recording these men's stories and the brave efforts of all who have ever fought for their country.

Seriously, five stars are just too few for a monumental book like this one. This book is an instant classic that should live for all time! If you are like me, you have a whole story built up in your mind around one of the most famous photographs in American history -- the raising of the flag on Iwo Jima. If you are also like me, there is little reality behind that story in your mind.

Written by the son of one flag-raising Marine, this amazing story should be read by everyone. It tells a tale of heroism, horrible circumstances, and the lasting consequences of an unexpected event in a compelling, unforgettable way. This book rivals All Quiet on the Western Front for its revealing insights into the nature of war, comradeship, and courage.

To set the stage, Iwo Jima was the first Japanese soil the Marines invaded. The Emperor had issued orders that the ground was to be defended to the last man. Iwo Jima was filled with tunnels that harbored over 20,000 Japanese troops who could shoot from relative safety while Americans were out in the open. The tunnel system was so extensive that Marines would literally be kidnapped while standing next to their buddies, and no one would know where they had gone. Rocks would suddenly open up to reveal mortars.

Tough fighting went on for days. The Marines lost 7,000 dead and had another 15,000 or more wounded out of 70,000 men. Ironically, the worst of the fighting came after the flag photograph, and three of the six Marines in the photograph died in this later action.

As tough as Iwo Jima was, living with the aftermath of the photograph was even harder in many ways. Two of the three survivors had their lives deeply affected in negative ways. The story of all three riveted me more than anything I have read in years.

I read fairly few books about war, but I cannot recommend this book enough to you. As Americans we owe it to those who fought in this battle to remember what actually happened and what the repercussions are. You will be moved at a deeper level than you can possibly imagine by this outstanding book.

Remember Iwo Jima!

I was only 5 when the attack on Iwo Jima took place. My own father, by virtue of age, good luck and a naval officer's commission escaped conscription into this particular hell. My personal wartime experience is a vague one of watching free movie musicals at the Ottumwa Iowa Naval Air Station, squashing and saving tin cans for the war effort and finally weaving red white and blue crepe paper into the spokes of my junior bike in celebration of VJ day. Thanks to a new book about World War II, I am discovering what it was really like back then to feel true patriotism. It is a bittersweet revelation, but a very valid one.

"Flags of Our Fathers" is a book which appeals not only to the die-hard WWII buff but to any person, male or female, with an interest in a teeth clenching, powerful and poignant story. It describes a horrible battle, the incredible selfless sacrifices of young men and the angst of their families.

James Bradley & Ron Powers have brought to vivid life the real people behind the famous flag-raising mythos, the surreal war in which they so valiantly fought and the survivors' eventual reentry into civilian life. This is an adventure story of true horrific experiences. On the surface it is a "good guy-bad guy" saga in which our good guys finally triumph. The good guys lucky enough to come home are quiet, self effacing and seemingly forever linked to the ghosts of those who did not survive. In an age before psychologists had discovered and mined "survivor's guilt" and Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome, the luckiest of these largely teenaged boys trained, fought, were wounded, came back and resumed living to the best of their ability. I defy any woman not to bleed for the mothers and fathers who waited and any man not to cry for the "uncommon valor" of these very young sons. Bradley's personal experiences with his own hero father, his intimate interviews with families of these sons and his own quiet faith are melded with the poetic prose of Ron Powers into a seamless whole.

This is a meticulously researched, lovingly crafted and stunning battle book, written by exceptional men about exceptional men. It is sure to become a classic.

Bernie Root's dad, former fighter jock, is currently riding a desk at Kadena AFB, Okinawa. Bernie, the dependant daughter comes home for the summer from college to find a family in decline. Sarah Bird takes us on a journey to find out why.

Sarah Bird has done more with this story than just reflecting the Military Brat experience. She's captured the poignancy of the moment when a child sheds rose colored glasses and really sees his or her family, warts and all. The understanding that Bernie gains after completing the journey that Bird has created for her is painful but real. She may not like her family, but she can love them. Bird reflects the essence of a family forged in that bizarre environment of military service during one of this country's most painful moments. This is a really well crafted novel that will appeal to a broad audience, but anyone who has ever woken up half way across the world because of yet another move mandated by Uncle Sam will read this book and see themselves and their life reflected on every other page. Bird has written a winner.

I have read every one of Sarah Bird's novels, and I treasure them all. Yokota Officer's Club is truly a masterpiece! I found the story to be brilliantly funny and beautifully poignant at the same time. I was completely drawn in from the very first page and didn't put the book down until I had read from cover to cover. The author portrays relationships between family members as they truly are - delicately flawed and fragile, yet also powerfully loyal. Thank you Sarah for yet another work of art!

Thank you Sarah Bird, thank you Bernie-
Yokota Officers' Club brought back sights, smells and feelings of life overseas for this VietNam era, Cold War Air Force Brat -we were at Tachikawa AFB from '60 through the '64 Tokyo Olympics, very near Bernie's Yokota.
Bernie, her family travels and issues, base regulations, class politics of rank and squadron stature and living in a small American town built around a military airstrip in a foreign country far, far away- it's good to remember. Sweet, and bittersweet.
Not just for Brats, though:
I've given this book to several friends to fill in the 'mystique' of all the Brats they knew but whose past they couldn't really connect with. (some cousins, too) ---They enjoyed the book, and see us (Brats) more completely as the shade of a discrete sub-culture most of us feel like, something we connected with when Pat Conroy wrote Santini. ---Mary Edwards Wertsch's book fills in a lot of understanding and insight, too.

So, thanks, Sarah Bird. For us Brats to remember, and for 'normal' people just to enjoy.