A gripping story of heroism, fortitude, and the ability to survive against all odds.
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Shortly after the war in the Pacific broke out in December 1941, the author and her husband stashed supplies to last them six months into three suitcases, and headed into the choking bamboo jungles outside Luzon.
For a year and a half, they lived from day to day, hiding among the little-known mountain people who sheltered and helped them in their grim struggle for existence. Always just a step ahead of the Japanese army, they were forced to move constantly—a week here, a month there. The refugees faced monsoon rains and the fear of malaria; they lived on dwindling stores of food; traded even their most precious possessions with loyal Filipino villagers who wouldn’t betray their hideout—and a few who were not so trustworthy—and assisted the bands of young guerrillas whenever possible.
Macauley’s narrative is rich in characterization: Spalding, the American weakling who shared a part of the journey before surrendering to the Japanese; Placido, the always-opportunistic head of his tribe, who nonetheless protected the refugees and provided them with a home; and especially Fabian, the simple and courageous tao, who time and again risked his own life to help the Americans, until finally they were faced with the choice to surrender to the Japanese or see all of Fabian’s family killed. What followed were the horrifying weeks in primitive Japanese prisons until finally they were taken to the internment camp at Santo Tomas, and, later, Los Banos.
Bread and Rice is a young woman’s stirring memoir, written with profound depth and immediacy, of those grueling, terrifying days on the run.
Doris Macauley was a reporter in China and later a university teacher and radio commentator in Manila. She received the War Department award for bravery in the face of the enemy while in the Philippines.
For a year and a half, they lived from day to day, hiding among the little-known mountain people who sheltered and helped them in their grim struggle for existence. Always just a step ahead of the Japanese army, they were forced to move constantly—a week here, a month there. The refugees faced monsoon rains and the fear of malaria; they lived on dwindling stores of food; traded even their most precious possessions with loyal Filipino villagers who wouldn’t betray their hideout—and a few who were not so trustworthy—and assisted the bands of young guerrillas whenever possible.
Macauley’s narrative is rich in characterization: Spalding, the American weakling who shared a part of the journey before surrendering to the Japanese; Placido, the always-opportunistic head of his tribe, who nonetheless protected the refugees and provided them with a home; and especially Fabian, the simple and courageous tao, who time and again risked his own life to help the Americans, until finally they were faced with the choice to surrender to the Japanese or see all of Fabian’s family killed. What followed were the horrifying weeks in primitive Japanese prisons until finally they were taken to the internment camp at Santo Tomas, and, later, Los Banos.
Bread and Rice is a young woman’s stirring memoir, written with profound depth and immediacy, of those grueling, terrifying days on the run.
Doris Macauley was a reporter in China and later a university teacher and radio commentator in Manila. She received the War Department award for bravery in the face of the enemy while in the Philippines.
About the Author
DORIS MACAULEY was a reporter in China and later a university teacher and radio commentator in Manila. She received the War Department Award for bravery in the face of the enemy while in the Philippines.
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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
a mesmerizing story of the humanity and inhumanity of man,
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This review is from: Bread and Rice: An American Woman's Fight to Survive in the Jungles and Prison Camps of the WWII Philippines (Paperback)
This story focuses on the personal experience of 2 Americans and the people who befriended them and sometimes betrayed them. Most of the book deals with the 2 years they were in hiding and then follows them through their surrender to the Japanese, prison life and life in internment camps.The author was a journalist in China when Japan invaded it and wrote bluntly of the Japanese activities there. When she and her husband were later in the Philippines and Japan invaded, they feared her past actions would cause the Japanese to treat her especially harshly and so they fled to the jungle. The first chapter and part of the second are written in a stream of consciousness manner, but don't let that deter you. Part way in the second chapter she begins writing in a narrative style that continues throughout the book. From then on, it's hard to put down.
5.0 out of 5 stars
As interesting as the author herself,
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This review is from: Bread and Rice: An American Woman's Fight to Survive in the Jungles and Prison Camps of the WWII Philippines (Paperback)
I knew the author of Bread and Rice years ago. She was a wonderful elderly lady, and I had long looked for her book. I can say I found the book as interesting as I found Ms Macauley herself. She was a remarkable person.
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