Customer Reviews

Warriors in the Crossfire

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Having researched and written four books about World War II in the Pacific, I tend to be a bit harsh on any fictional attempt to recreate what happened during those terrible times. However, I have to say that I like this book, simply because it is so real. The characters in this book reminded me of people I knew during my years in the islands; people who lived before and during the fighting, and who had rebuilt their islands and their lives afterwards. The events that Nancy Flood creates in her novel could have happened. I would go so far as to say they did happen even if the names are fictional. Hollywood should make a movie out this."
-Bruce M. Petty, author of Saipan: Oral Histories of the Pacific War.

During World War II, the island of Saipan was occupied by the Japanese military until US warships and jet fighters arrived in the spring of 1944. Bombing raids erupted and a ferocious battle ensued which nearly wiped out the entire country. This is the tale of two best friends and cousins, Joseph and Kento. The 13-year old boys hunted turtles and pretended they were Samurai warriors until the war came to their tiny island. From then on their warrior mission grew up because they had to rescue their land and its gentle people from extinction.

In Joseph and Kento, Nancy Bo Flood has created two highly likeable characters to be our guides into a flourishing island paradise and eventually through one of the most horrific battles in the Pacific during World War II. To view war's destruction through the eyes of an indigenous people caught in the crossfire is haunting. However the remarkable story of Joseph and Kento's leadership and bravery shines through the darkness of their plight. Flood has done an admirable job of portraying a difficult event in history. "Warriors in the Crossfire" is both a gripping saga and a touching memorial to the native people of Saipan.

This book is marketed as a "young adult" book, but it's a great read for all ages. Anyone who enjoys a gripping story, wonderful characters, and an entirely new (and invaluable) perspective on World War II should grab this book. Be prepared to purchase a couple of copies- you'll want to give this to your friends (young and old), but you'll also want to keep a copy for yourself.

This is an interesting and great read even for adults. This book does a wonderful job of taking the reader to a little known island in the Pacific on the eve of one of the bloodiest battles of World War II. I was drawn in right away. The character Joseph represents a perspective of war that is not often told - a young island native caught up in Japan's final efforts against the US towards the end of WWII. As another reviewer mentions, the characters are real, caught up in events that feel authentic - both the inner journey of growing up and the outward experiences of war. Enjoy!

The book begins with Joseph and Kento sneaking out at night on a forbidden ocean outing that should delight adventurous readers. Then, as WWII looms over their Pacific island home, the boys' lives descend into danger, its drama and burden artfully enhanced by the author's voice. This book is a great addition to WWII literature for youth. Offering choices of fiction as well as non-fiction is the best way to tempt and satisfy the most readers. What makes this book special is that it highlights a lesser-known island, Saipan, its cultures, and a lesser-known, but not any less awful aspect of the war.

In the South Pacific, the tiny island of Saipan was home to a native population long before Japanese and American soldiers brought the war to its shores. The characters Joseph and Kento are fictional, but their story is based on real events. The boys are cousins; their mothers are sisters, although Kento's father is Japanese and Joseph's father is a village chief. The boys grow up together until Japanese military forces occupy the island. Then the school and stores are closed, a strict curfew is imposed, and the cousins are no longer allowed to be friends. Hotheaded Joseph chafes at the restrictions, despite his father's advice that "Courage sometimes means to wait, even hide." The cousins continue to meet secretly, although neither is certain he can trust the other. When fighting reaches the island, native men, women, and children are killed indiscriminately. It is Joseph who must save his family, and in doing so, he comes to a new understanding of what it means to be a warrior.

Joseph is a young man living on the island of Saipan during World War II. The names and religious practices tell us this Pacific Island has been visited by Christian missionaries ant it is now under Japanese control. Saipan has a strategic location in the Pacific and is about to become a battleground between the Japanese and the Americans. The people who live on the island were treated like pawns and are told little about the coming war and were left defenseless. Joseph knows he cannot passively let his family get caught up in this manipulation. He and his father know that by relying on traditional practices, they have a chance to survive and they will know who to trust. One of the most difficult decisions Joseph has in knowing who to trust is deciding how much to rely upon his cousin, Kento. Although their mothers are sisters, Kento's father is Japanese and Kento is raised as if he were Japanese.

Warriors in the crossfire brings the reader into the midst of a little know battle from the perspective of those considered to be bystanders. We see not only the consequences of a military battle, but a subtle cultural battle as well. We see the Christians and Japanese changing the Rafalawash culture especially the changing role of women but we also see how traditional practices are important for survival. Flood details the brutality of war while holding back descriptions of what occurred under the Japanese. Historical notes provide authenticity to the story.

Nancy Bo Flood ans lived and worked in Malawi., Hawaii, Japan, Saipan and most recently on the Navajo Nation Reservation in Arizona. She works as a counselor, teacher and author. In addition to this story, Flood has also written collections of folklore from Micronesia, the Pacific Islands and the Polynesian islands which would be important multicultural additions to libraries.

As a Chamorro born and raised on Saipan, whose grandparents experienced many of the same tragic and poignant moments retold in this book, I could not put it down. As mentioned by another reviewer, this book should be turned into a Hollywood movie. Should I ever teach English again, I will definitely assign this book.

Thank you Nancy Bo Flood for investing your soul yet again into fully understanding, appreciating, and articulating the spirit of the Marianas and broader Micronesia. Your book is undoubtedly one bright candle in the darkness, illuminating our past, present, and future.

I sat down thinking I would read just a few chapters and was taken by the characters and imagery of the story. I ended up putting it down only after I read the last chapter. It's a fascinating window into the South Pacific island culture during a turning point of WWII. The descriptions of native life and their ordeal during the battle for their island are vivid and compelling.

Warriors in the Crossfire is a haunting depiction of the invasion of Saipan during World War II. The author, Nancy Bo Flood, spent time living in Saipan, and this comes through in her writing. It is clear from the vivid descriptions, "Dawn was spilling light across the waves. Blood-red streaks cut along the wide straight horizon, separating ocean and sky.", that she has been there, seen it with her own eyes, and found it beautiful.

This tale of Joseph and his cousin Kento is one that doesn't end with a Disney flourish of miracles and magic. It includes heroism of the everyday kind, with a boy doing his best to protect his family, even when he doesn't know how. In one scene, Joseph carries his father's body, while shells explode in the distance. "My arms grew numb. I no longer felt fear or grief or even the rain." The invasion is told with all the terror of war, although depicted appropriately for a younger audience.

When it became clear that the Americans would win the war, Japanese soldiers and citizens were marched to one end of the island and forced to leap into the sea. American soldiers dropped leaflets urging people not to jump. This true event, as depicted in Warriors, and witnessed by the character Joseph, had me holding my breath even as I turned pages. "People stepped through the swirling papers as if they were falling leaves."

I highly recommend this book for teachers with WWII in their curriculums as well as for readers age 10 and up with an interest in history or war.

Shannon Wiersbitzky
Author
The Summer of Hammers and Angels