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Saburō Sakai
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Samurai! Paperback – July 27, 2011

by Saburo Sakai (Author), Martin Caiden (Author), Martin With Caidin (Author)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 344 ratings
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Editorial Reviews Product Description This text documents the chivalry and valour of the combat aviator, Saburo Sakai, who fought American fighter pilots and, with 64 kills, would survive World War II as Japan's greatest living ace. This book traces his experiences from fighter-pilot school to the early Japanese victories; from his 600 mile fight for life from Guadalcanal to his base in Rabaul, to the story of the now handicapped veteran's return to the air during the final months of World War II. This book has been written by Martin Caidin from Saburo Sakai's own memoirs and journalist Fred Saito's interviews with the fighter pilot. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
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  1. Print length
    368 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    iBooks
  4. Publication date
    July 27, 2011
  5. Dimensions
    6 x 0.82 x 9 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0743412834
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0743412834
  8. See all details
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ iBooks (July 27, 2011)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 368 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0743412834
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0743412834
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.24 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.82 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 344 ratings

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Saburō Sakai

Saburō Sakai

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Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
344 global ratings
Incredible story, well told
5 Stars
Incredible story, well told
Saburo Sakai’s incredible story has been quoted and referenced in many Pacific war books. I was very glad to get a chance to read about his exploits in his own words.This account was originally published in 1957 and was written a short time before that. The memories from the war and context of the stories were obviously still fresh in Sakai’s mind.I recommend this book to anyone with aviation or military history interests. It allows for a clear look at the war from the side of the Japanese.
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Top reviews from the United States

Robert
5.0 out of 5 stars An early post war memoir by one of Japan's leading aces
Reviewed in the United States on June 10, 2023
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This is more than just a description of what it was like to fly and fight. It is also a look at what life for such a fighter pilot in the Japan of the early part of the 20th century was like. It's a look out how the very social structure of Imperial Japan under a dynastic monarchy with it's roots in a military and highly stratified society.

It is not a highly data intensive description of the war in the Pacific but a much more personal story of one man's part in the war and how it affected his life before, during, and afterwards., and while a reader might take issue with some of it they should understand it's written by a man who was there and in the very same period in which he fought it as opposed to years or decades later with an eye towards historical accuracy that would be the style of a historian with access to information from both sides that would take years of serious study and cross checking along with intervirews of everyone you could find.
2 people found this helpful
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Mark Stesney
5.0 out of 5 stars Know your adcersary
Reviewed in the United States on August 1, 2023
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War movies? Books about war? It's not all about the gore and brutality. There is a human element Saburo, even though he was our enemy he fought as a compassionate warrior. First objective was to down his enemy's plane. He explains how devastating it was. Losing his comrades, watching pilots from both sides sacrifice so much for there countries. And in his case the lies and frustration knowing the powers that be were fanatics and did not really support him and his comrades. A hopeless endeavor against the "sleeping giant". Saburo gives a look from the human side as he and his comrades wage a war that they can't win.
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Stone Dog
4.0 out of 5 stars Top Gun of the rising sun.
Reviewed in the United States on May 10, 2014
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With Martin Caidin and Fred Saito, Saburo Sakai tells his story as a naval aviator in the Japanese imperial Navy during WWII. The book itself has an authentic feel to it and the reader will be able to immediately recognize the difference in culture and outlook as one reads through this account.

The account begins with Sakai's early life as the child of a poor samurai family and leads to his volunteering as a naval recruit. His training is brutally harsh and, as he is able to train for more technical skills, is surprised that even as he advances the treatment is never less brutal and cruel. Finally, he is able to gain pilot training and that is the start of his career.

In this book, Sakai comments on his experiences in China where the war has been going on for years before Pearl Harbor drew in the US. China gives him his first aerial victory and his first notoriety in Japan. Even at this time, the reader will note that the Japanese lie to their own people regarding defeats and disasters. I also found it interesting that Sakai claims Soviet pilots flew in China at that time.

He guides the reader through his own feelings as he takes part in the early heady victories against western powers. During that time, the highly trained Japanese pilots and their superior Zero fighter ran wild, easily defeating the pilots and aircraft of the allies. The reader should be cautioned that during this time, Sakai was part of an elite unit of the best-of-the-best pilots and their combat record was not representative of Japanese performance at large though certainly Imperial Japanese Navy fliers and their aircraft were markedly superior.

Sakai fights in New Guinea first, acquiring a fearsome reputation with his many air-to-air kills. As time goes on, the weight of material coming from the US in the form of numbers of aircraft bodes ill for the Japanese. With the successful invasion by the US of Guadalcanal, the air war takes on a very different tone, with US forces gaining in experience and dealing the IJN defeats. In one operation, Sakai is severely wounded and manages to nurse his crippled fighter back to his base at Rabaul, despite falling in and out of consciousness.

The final part of the book deals with his surgeries and recovery in Japan and his relegation as a flight instructor of the new pilots being run through training as fast as possible as well as being a test pilot for new aircraft that came too late to help Japan. The book ends with Japan's surrender in 1945.

In many ways, this is a war memoir like those of western pilots. He exults in the thrill of flight and the excitement of aerial combat. He jokes with his friends and comments on his attachment to his fellows. He grieves for his friends that die in combat. On the other hand, his attitude is very different on other matters. The reader will note that he defends the Kamikaze, despite the fact that they did nothing to prevent Japan's defeat despite the waste of human life. The reader will also note that the author and all his comrades fear nothing as much as shame or dishonor. They don't use parachutes for the fear they might bail out over enemy-held territory and be captured. Often they do things that are foolhardy rather than retreat to "live to fight another day".

It's an interesting account as much for Sakai's flying prowess and skill as for the window into the mind of the Pacific enemy during WWII. This is a solid four star book.
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stkevin
5.0 out of 5 stars One of the Great WW2 books.
Reviewed in the United States on March 14, 2015
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This is a review of the Kindle edition, which states that the book was originally published in 1957. I give this book a solid five stars.

First, it is hard to put down. It's just a darn good read. It contains blow by blow descriptions of Sakai's many aerial duels in such a manner that you feel as if you were there. I found Sakai's accounts of his aerial encounters to be straightforward and without embellishment. He gives credit where credit is due, even to the enemy. I had always heard of the Zero's unparalleled aerial performance versus American planes early in the war, but I never understood the 'why' of it very well until I read Sakai's book. If you want to know why the Zero was so deadly, Sakai's book explains it better than any dry historical research.

Sakai's description of the performance abilities of American aircraft, and his discussion of their tactics, is also interesting. Sakai expresses his admiration for the constant aggressive tactics shown by outclassed American aircraft, including bombers, against the Zeros. Most of these stories were never told by the American pilots involved because they did not survive the encounters. Sakai further expresses his admiration for the American "teamwork" tactics used against the Zero. The Japanese pilots, trained in the Samurai tradition, saw themselves as solo aerial warriors (with wingman) to whom a greater teamwork was unknown. The Japanese eventually learned teamwork at the squadron level, but they learned it the hard way, from watching the Americans use it against them.

There is also a human and personal side to Sakai's story that gives the book much more than the simple "I was there" story.

Finally, in the "Foreword" section of the book, Sakai tells of being invited, many years after the war ended, as a guest of honor aboard several American warships, and states "This to me is truly the most impressive fact of all; these same people who, for all I know, came under my guns so long ago, sincerely offered friendship."

This book is eminently readable on its own. I recommend it to anyone, not just WW 2 or aviation fans.
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schapo
5.0 out of 5 stars very interesting
Reviewed in the United States on January 4, 2024
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interesting
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Hector Flores
5.0 out of 5 stars I got it...finally!!!
Reviewed in Mexico on January 14, 2024
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I had been on the hunt for this book since a long time ago.
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Paulo Roberto Orofino da Silva
5.0 out of 5 stars Um Livro Excepcional
Reviewed in Brazil on September 1, 2023
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O livro está em excelente estado de conservação. É umas das melhores biografias de pilotos da Segunda Guerra Mundial..
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Paulo Roberto Orofino da Silva
5.0 out of 5 stars Um Livro Excepcional
Reviewed in Brazil on September 1, 2023
O livro está em excelente estado de conservação. É umas das melhores biografias de pilotos da Segunda Guerra Mundial..
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James Roney
5.0 out of 5 stars incredible story
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 11, 2020
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Facinating reading for anyone interested in the air war campaign this book is a real eye opener to the japanese side of the conflict.
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Bücherboje
5.0 out of 5 stars Das beste englische Buch, das ich je gelesen habe ...
Reviewed in Germany on August 13, 2020
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... und das sind nicht wenige. Was die Autoren hier über Sakais Luftkämpfe und Leben schreiben, ist schlicht und ergreifend meisterhaft. Der Mann, der eines der japanischen Asse im Zweiten Weltkrieg war, war nicht nur ein Meister in der Luft, sondern auch eine herausragende Persönlichkeit, obwohl er am Anfang nur im Rang eines einfachen Fliegers war. Seine Schlichtheit in allen Dingen ist so überragend, dass es wohltuend ist, seinen Werdegang mit zu erleben. Schließlich fand er auch privat sein Glück mit einer Frau, die er über alles liebte. Wenn es möglich wäre, würde ich diesem Buch zehn Sterne geben, und das wäre noch zu wenig. I rove you, Saburo!
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Empe
5.0 out of 5 stars Edizione elettronica
Reviewed in Italy on June 28, 2020
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in inglese, come si capisce bene dal sottotitolo, di un classico sulla II Guerra Mondiale, tradotto in Italia da Longanesi negli anni '70 e ormai introvabile (l'originale Caccia Zero è del 1960, l'ultima ristampa del 2001) . Gli appassionati hanno l'occasione di (ri)leggerlo apprezzandone lo stile semplice e diretto con cui vengono raccontate le gesta del maggior asso dell'aviazione nipponica nella Seconda Guerra Mondiale.
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