Customer Reviews

Bataan Diary

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This is a must read for WWII historians. Chris Schaefer has written a very honest story from his uncle's diaries and letters between his aunt and uncle during the 1941-1945 period.

The story chronicles the trials of those survivors on the Bataan Death March and the families at home. In addition this is a story of men overcoming starvation, disease and lack of cultural knowledge. In the process these men learn not only about themselves, but the benefactors that save their lives in so many ways.

For the historian who has tried to determine who was in charge of the guerrillas on Luzon, Chris Schaefer has done a masterful job explaining the difficulties and frustrations of the men who tried to unify these loosely run units.

If you want to read a well researched and honest story of a group of men who helped to unite the American soldiers and filipinos in their area of responsibility, then you must read this book.

Malcolm Decker, author, On A Mountainside: The 155th Provisional Guerrilla Battalion Against the Japanese on Luzon.

Chris Schaefer's extremely readable Bataan Diary: An American Family in World War II, 1941-1945 is a well-documented story of resistance and survival during the Japanese occupation of the Philippines.

Built around the World War II diaries kept by Major Frank R. Loyd and his wife, Evelyn, the book chronicles the difficult struggle of Frank Loyd, half-starved and seriously ill, sheltering in a series of jungle hideouts. Then, as MacArthur's return approaches, he joins the guerrilla war.

Another dimension is added by an occasional chapter detailing the stateside fears and frustrations of Evelyn, not knowing if her husband was still alive, while she immerses herself in supporting the war effort.

However, the book is more than the combined diaries of the Loyds. It also examines the larger war effort in the Pacific and the involvement of other Americans and Filipinos, many of them Philippine Scouts, in the anti-Japanese guerrilla movement on Luzon. It contains interesting information on commando infiltration teams, both Filipino and American, sent in by submarine to help shore up the resistance movement. It also examines in some detail prison camp conditions and the brutal counter intelligence activities of the dread Japanese Kempei-tai.

I strongly recommend this book to anyone interested in a realistic portrayal of survival and resistance during WWII in the Philippines.

J.Michael Houlahan

Editor, Philippine Scouts Heritage Society newsletter

www.philippine-scouts.org

I have always enjoyed reading about World War two, but most of my reading has been about the war in Europe. That was one of the draws of this book for me. I have read about the Bataan death march, but had never heard of nor read about the American guerilla activities in the Philippines. I also was interested in just what was it like for a military man to be on his own in the jungle fighting the enemy. So it is safe to say that I was excited to dig into the book. Not to give too much away, but I found the book was exactly as billed. Very interesting and entertaining. A well written and easy to read book about a topic that most people do not know much about.

After completing the book the one area that just took my breath away was the story of how the main character and his fellow soldiers lived. What these guys lived through with the near starvation diets and fighting off one horrible disease after another was awe inspiring. Just that fact that they kept after it day after day gives a new meaning to the term persistence. It also made the reader a bit proud at just how much many of these men tried to get back into the war effort. They could have laid low and waited out the war, but many of them kept trying to join one resistance group after another or actively participated in armed conflict.

Anyone that has read about Japanese war crimes will be familiar with the way they treated their prisoners of war, but if you are not familiar with that story then you are in for a shock. How people can be so cold and cruel never ceases to amaze me. It also was sickening to read the way they treated the local population. Overall I really enjoyed the book. It held my interest through the full book. To be honest I was concerned that the parallel story of the main characters wife would be dull to me, but it really added a lot to the story. To read what she was going through back home made the overall story have more meaning. I also liked how the author would give the reader updates as to how the overall war in the Pacific was going. If you are interested in World War Two then this book is well worth the money.

"Bataan Diary" is one of a long line of remarkable stories of courage and survival to come out of World War II. Author Chris Schaefer tells the parallel stories of American officer Frank Loyd, who evaded the enemy for three years in the Japanese occupied Philippines, and his wife Evelyn back in the United States.

Loyd was one of several hundred American and Filipino soldiers who did not surrender to the Japanese in early 1942 when they seized Luzon. Loyd and others held out against all odds, often sabotaging the Japanese occupiers and helping pave the way for America's eventual recapture of the islands.

Loyd not only had to survive the human enemies but diseases as well. Stricken by debilitating illness and without adequate food for long periods, Loyd's perseverance is a stirring testimony to the human spirit.

"Bataan Diary" often reads like a novel (one of those that is difficult to put down) yet the author puts events within context of the war, making his book an important contribution to our understanding of World War II. Lloyd is not the book's only hero. The Filipino's who resisted the Japanese and aided Loyd and others also displayed uncomomn courage.

I would have liked to now more about Loyd and his wife before jumping headlong into the story and there was not enough for me about Evelyn's life on the home front, but those quibbles aside "Bataan Diary" is an excellent book and highly recommended.

Chris Schaefer's book is more than the title implies. It is not really a diary afterall. It is a thoughtful and insightful read about many little known areas of the soldiers lives in the Philippines in WWII. The author uses diaries as a basis to tell stories of soldiers and their families during the 3 years of battle, defeat, imprisonment, and resistance under unthinkable conditions. The facts that are presented, in a very narrative friendly manner, give the reader a larger view of the War in the Philippines than focusing on one man and his diary. Mr Schaefer's depth of reaearch material encompasses a very big stage of activity from 1941 through 1945. A timely read if you are interested in the movie "The Great Raid", based on the books "Ghost Soldiers" and "The Great Raid on Cabanatuan" as they are only part of the tale that is told in "Bataan Diary".

This was a really unusual story. I really enjoyed it. I don't usually read history books, but my family said to read it, and I am glad I did.

Bataan Diary is the true story of Major Frank Loyd and his wife Evelyn. Stationed in Bataan in the Philippines at the beginning of World War II they are separated by the impending Japanese invasion, with Evelyn going home to the United States and Frank staying to fight.

They were separated for almost four years.

Chris Schaefer rebuilt their story from diaries that Frank hid while he was behind enemy lines, Evelyns diaries and letters, interviews and meticulous research. He writes a riveting story of survival, as Frank evades capture, faces malaria, starvation, desperation and dispair, while planning and awaiting General Douglas MacAuthur's eminent return. Evelyn's story is almost as difficult, as she has no news of Frank, not knowing if he is captured, dead or alive.

Schaefer tells their story against the backdrop of the events in the Philippines under Japanese occupation and the larger story of the overall War in the Pacific. Describing the native Filipinos, Japanese atrocities, American bravery and indecision, Schaefer paints neither hero or goat, but lets his research tell the story.

A well put-together, well researched book, who's writing is well paced, Bataan Diary is recommended for those interested in history, war, survival and stories that show what man is capable of.

The Bataan Diary is a sobering remembrance of Filipino-American sacrifice at the entry to World War Two and enduring to the end. No two cultures were ever, more intertwined in dedication to their preservation of Democracy and Freedom.