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Tears In The Darkness: The Story Of The Bataan Death March And Its Aftermath (2009)

by Michael Norman(Favorite Author)

4.17 of 5 Votes: 4

ISBN

0374272603 (ISBN13: 9780374272609)

languge

English

genre

History & Biography

publisher

Farrar, Straus and Giroux

review 1: One of those can't put it down books. Very intense reading. Unfortunately it is non-fiction. The author obviously is not very fond of McCarthur. Someday I might try to investigate his accusations. Hindsight is always 20/20. For me the book is very relevant to today in the days of ISIS. The Japanese were enslaved by a pagan religion and a very mistaken sense of honor. It is hard to imagine the brutalities that took place, how human beings can treat other human beings that way. The Japanese hated those who fought them well as the battles leading up to the fall of Corregidor. Even in pagan Rome they respected brave and good opposition. I wish I had read more accounts of Japanese who were opposed to the brutal treatment. Perhaps they were too few. The one mentioned... more who refused I admire a lot. With hindsight being what it is, I am disappointed that more was not done to bring the perpetrators to justice. A few were punished, but the majority escaped the clutches of justice.While the Japanese general at the end didn't seem too bad, he should have inquired and verified that pow's were treated well, knowing the kind of brutes who surrounded him.The sad part, and perhaps this was deliberate on the author's part, was that there was nothing but desperation and despair, no signs of faith. It is hard to imagine that there wasn't an increase in faith. People at that time generally accepted God's will even when things didn't go so well. Regardless, a very interesting and riveting book. A good lesson for us all to be prepared for the enemy at all times. This is what ISIS has in store for all Americans.
review 2: This book was a hard one to listen to. Though I've read several books of POW's, this one said a lot of the gritty details. It is hard to fathom, imagine or understand such atrocities and inhumane conditions. What I liked about this particular book, was how both sides were told at times. Though definitely more heavy on the telling of the American side, I loved having a bit of Japanese history and perspective of those involved with this particular part of the war as well. It made me more aware of Japanese culture and tradition which played a big part of how the japanese treated the American prisoners. The book also followed the fate of several of the generals who were involved in the Philippine side of the war, the American general MacArthur and Japanese general Homma. MacArthur was not talked about in the best light, while the Japanese general was depicted more favorably. The language at times was intense, as war would bring out intense emotions. Definitely not a book to listen to in the car with little ones! I did feel like the writing was not as smooth as it could have been, being choppy and jumping back and forth between different accounts. The book used a man named Ben Steele as the main current through the novel, with accounts of others present at the time as well for filler. I'm glad I read the book and feel like I learned a lot, but it's not on the top of my war books that I've read. less

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