Late Summer of 1941 and My War with Japan [Paperback]

Weldon Hamilton (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 27, 2001

Viewed through a prism of wonder and enlightenment, Weldon Hamilton's telling of his story gives new meaning to the word, unique. His refusal to damn his captors for the horrors they inflicted; to travel as an observer of himself and the fallen to the end of their together journey; to remain the boy from Kansas destined to experience the ultimate adventure thrust upon him for unknown reasons by unknown forces, is truly UNIQUE. Sometimes naive, sometimes joyful, often in despair, and most times disappointed in his fellow man, Weldon Hamilton remained skeptical and perplexed, yet hopeful and expectant of one fine day being delivered from a real time, real life Dante's Inferno. Oren Hays - A Friend

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Weldon C. Hamilton fought in the battle of Bataan, was taken prisoner on April 9, 1942 and made the infamous Death March where over 10,000 men died. He was held in the Philippines for over two years, first in Camp O'Donnell, where over 25,000 men died in less than two months. Two years later he was taken to Japan on one of the notorious "Hell Ships", and was 30 miles from Nagasaki where he witnessed the Atomic Bomb. He retired from the Air Force as a Chief Warrant Officer CWO-4 in 1969. His decorations include The Presidential Unit Citation with two oak leaf clusters and the Bronze Star.

Product Details

• Paperback: 164 pages
• Publisher: Xlibris (September 27, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0738868264
• ISBN-13: 978-0738868264
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,554,789 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars An impressive account, January 17, 2004

By 

Lee the reader (Port Richey, FL United States) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Late Summer of 1941 and My War with Japan (Hardcover)

All the more impressive because the author is not a polished writer. He merely recounts the most astounding events as if he just happened to be taking a walk.

Make no mistake, the events the author saw were truly astounding. He saw the Battle of Bataan, the Surrender of the Phillipines, the Death March - even the H-Bomb on Nagasaki, which in the midst of such momentous events gets only a couple of lines. Just click on the "Surprise Me" and you'll see what I mean. He was truly an eyewitness to history, to use a cliche.

I just now reread the part when he talks about being sacrificed to the war, to the future while they sit in the dark waiting for the Japanese fleet to attack their position, while they eat an iguana the hungry men scrounged. It sent chills up me. He talks about beatings and bombings and life in Japanese POW camps, and it sounds like you are there. Somehow all the documentaries I've seen and all the books I read never made me understand what it was REALLY like.

I highly recommend this book as a first person account for anyone who wants to know the truth about being a POW in Japan, and the Bataan Death March.

Since I first wrote this review, the author has passed, as have many of our heroes of the time. I'm so grateful he wrote the book to secure his memories for coming generations.

5.0 out of 5 stars Personal view of the war, August 25, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Late Summer of 1941 and My War with Japan (Paperback)

I started this book with the thought that it needed an editor. I ended the book with the thought that this book was one of the best books I have read in years. It is a very personal view of a young man from a small rural world dumped into big time history as it happend. He is thrilled and scared and constantly in the present of the war itself. You feel for the teen age kid as he reels through the events like a pinball in a pinball machine. He jumps in sometimes and other times just rolls with the punches. His discriptions are weak (not a writer) but real and griping.

5.0 out of 5 stars Personal view of the war, August 25, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Late Summer of 1941 and My War with Japan (Paperback)

I started this book with the thought that it needed an editor. I ended the book with the thought that this book was one of the best books I have read in years. It is a very personal view of a young man from a small rural world dumped into big time history as it happend. He is thrilled and scared and constantly in the present of the war itself. You feel for the teen age kid as he reels through the events like a pinball in a pinball machine. He jumps in sometimes and other times just rolls with the punches. His discriptions are weak (not a writer) but real and griping.