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melgold9's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
5.0
summermc13's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
jmpulver14's review against another edition
5.0
This book was absolutely phenomenal. It is beautifully written, facts were shared, emotions were left out and it showed how beautifully the Navajos handled situations. I am amazed at how they considered America their country with the mistreatment they endured. Chester Nez is a hero in many aspects. He left his home life and everything he knew to serve and fight for our country, he never asked for awards or being seen more than he could have been seen as. Some of the events were heartbreaking and hard to read, however every bit of the book was worth the read.
I highly recommend.
I highly recommend.
daniber's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.75
cat_book_lady's review against another edition
5.0
Wow...an absolute must read, and I highly recommend the audiobook so you can hear the beautifully spoken Navajo language. There have been many history books and documentaries written about the 29 Navajo Codebreakers of WWII that were instrumental in America's war in the Pacific theater. But this is the FIRST and ONLY actual memoir, an absolute one-of-a-kind. Here's what is so mesmerizing:
1) The fact that Chester Nez - a Navajo boy that was forced into American schools by our government in order to decimate the Native American way of life - CHOSE to fight for our country is beyond astounding. He volunteered. He had his land taken away by the U.S. His family's herds were slaughtered by the government. He was put into horrible boarding schools away from his family. His culture was slowly being obliterated. Nez recounts all this and more, and yet he is not bitter or resentful. He wore a Marine uniform but wasn't given the right to vote or drink. He wasn't even allowed in bars, but he was one of the finest soldiers our military had.
2) Nez recounts his training as a Marine, and with great detail, how the 29 Navajo from different tribes developed the Code that was never broken by the Japanese - so simple yet completely unbreakable - that saves countless thousands of American lives. The process is fascinating, the coding was painstaking, the Codebreakers were an incredibly close-knit group, and yet being only spoken, any written messages were nonexistent.
3) Nez tells the horrors of war, from alligators and crabs to brothers in arms being blown to bits all around them. He stresses the immense pressure of his job, knowing that one mistake would cost people their lives. He relives the Japanese bonzai attackers and of the ruthless soldiers who would brutally torture and have no compassion. The grinding exhaustion, lack of water, endless rains, and fear of waking in a foxhole every night with a samurai sword at their throat truly difficult to read. You will also get more history than you will ever find in a textbook.
4) Nez tells of his journey back home, of reliving the nightmares, of being unable to share with anyone the top-secret mission he was involved in, so he had no way of relieving the pressure. He speaks of his family's ceremonies to purge the evil spirits surrounding him, of the difficulties of adjusting to the quiet nature, and weirdly enough, having to go back to boarding school to finish high school where he took up wrestling and boxing. High school - after creating a world-class code and fought for 4 years in WWII. You'd think they would just give him the diploma already.
5) Nez eventually finishes college, gets married (which doesn't end well), has children, and finally gets honored and rewarded for his service decades after the war ended. And finally, he gets a promotional rank that didn't exist in WWII because his job had never any precedent or rules.
6) Most importantly, he looks fondly and proudly of his service to his country - a country that once hated him, tried to take away his way of life, was prejudiced against him, and paid him no respect. Yet if it wasn't for this small band of unlikely heroes, we easily could have lost the war.
7) As an American, you should read this book and fall in love with a culture that is found in the beauty of nature and begin to understand what true reslience and forgiveness truly looks like from the people who have every right to hate us.
This is one of the most important books you will read in your lifetime. Read this book.
1) The fact that Chester Nez - a Navajo boy that was forced into American schools by our government in order to decimate the Native American way of life - CHOSE to fight for our country is beyond astounding. He volunteered. He had his land taken away by the U.S. His family's herds were slaughtered by the government. He was put into horrible boarding schools away from his family. His culture was slowly being obliterated. Nez recounts all this and more, and yet he is not bitter or resentful. He wore a Marine uniform but wasn't given the right to vote or drink. He wasn't even allowed in bars, but he was one of the finest soldiers our military had.
2) Nez recounts his training as a Marine, and with great detail, how the 29 Navajo from different tribes developed the Code that was never broken by the Japanese - so simple yet completely unbreakable - that saves countless thousands of American lives. The process is fascinating, the coding was painstaking, the Codebreakers were an incredibly close-knit group, and yet being only spoken, any written messages were nonexistent.
3) Nez tells the horrors of war, from alligators and crabs to brothers in arms being blown to bits all around them. He stresses the immense pressure of his job, knowing that one mistake would cost people their lives. He relives the Japanese bonzai attackers and of the ruthless soldiers who would brutally torture and have no compassion. The grinding exhaustion, lack of water, endless rains, and fear of waking in a foxhole every night with a samurai sword at their throat truly difficult to read. You will also get more history than you will ever find in a textbook.
4) Nez tells of his journey back home, of reliving the nightmares, of being unable to share with anyone the top-secret mission he was involved in, so he had no way of relieving the pressure. He speaks of his family's ceremonies to purge the evil spirits surrounding him, of the difficulties of adjusting to the quiet nature, and weirdly enough, having to go back to boarding school to finish high school where he took up wrestling and boxing. High school - after creating a world-class code and fought for 4 years in WWII. You'd think they would just give him the diploma already.
5) Nez eventually finishes college, gets married (which doesn't end well), has children, and finally gets honored and rewarded for his service decades after the war ended. And finally, he gets a promotional rank that didn't exist in WWII because his job had never any precedent or rules.
6) Most importantly, he looks fondly and proudly of his service to his country - a country that once hated him, tried to take away his way of life, was prejudiced against him, and paid him no respect. Yet if it wasn't for this small band of unlikely heroes, we easily could have lost the war.
7) As an American, you should read this book and fall in love with a culture that is found in the beauty of nature and begin to understand what true reslience and forgiveness truly looks like from the people who have every right to hate us.
This is one of the most important books you will read in your lifetime. Read this book.
suebrownreads's review against another edition
4.0
Chester Nez was am impressive person. Not only was he a Navajo code talker responsible for saving thousands of lives in the Pacific during WWII, but he did so with a positive and patriotic sense of mission, and with humility. His memories he relays on tape recordings from which the book is taken are amazingly detailed for a man his age. I am grateful to the tens of thousands of Native Americans who have fought for our country, and helped to protect and preserve our rights as American citizens even at a time when they were not afforded those same rights, and who often could not not even purchase a beer in a bar when on leave (or any other time.) Thank you to all of the code talkers of WWII who created what may have been the single most important device that saved American lives, pinpointed targets, and relayed critical information that led to our triumph over the Japanese at Guadalcanal, Iwo Jima, Saipan, Okinawa, and many, many other Pacific stages. Thank goodness they were finally recognized in 2001-2002. Unfortunately the majority of them had already passed away.
trudyd's review against another edition
4.0
Total Respect. That is what the code talkers have earned. Thanks to this book I have a much better understanding of what the Navajo code talkers had to deal with as they helped the United States.
I really enjoyed the audiobook. It was easy to listen to as I went about my day. The narrator was wonderful, easy to understand with just enough emotion to make the story believable.
I really enjoyed the audiobook. It was easy to listen to as I went about my day. The narrator was wonderful, easy to understand with just enough emotion to make the story believable.
smiles11's review against another edition
emotional
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
5.0
An amazing piece of history within the pages of this book. It's wonderful that Chester was able to share his story before he passed.