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crafalsk264 's review for:
Sisters Under the Rising Sun
by Heather Morris
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
In 1942, the Japanese entered WWII and began their relentless efforts to capture and hold captive all the foreigners on the islands in the Pacific Islands Chain. This narrative fiction book tells the story of three remarkable women who not only survived 3 1/2 years of captivity but was responsible for saving an untold number of lives. Norah Chambers sends her daughter and one sister to safety while she remained behind to aid in the evacuation of her husband, John, recovering from typhus, and her aging parents. Among 64 Australian nurses returning home is Nessa James. Margaret Drybaugh, a missionary, is part of another group captured after escaping a shipwreck. For the next 3 years, 7 months, these women create a community among the captives. Using innovative methods such as creating a human orchestra, they forge a solid front to protect themselves and to make survival just a little more bearable.
The book is based on the real prison camps for prisoners of the Japanese. The POWs included the civilians caught up the advance of the country’s efforts to dominate the Pacific Islands. Old and infirm men and boys, women and girls and children left behind find themselves at the mercy of their captors. The book has a lot of characters to keep straight but the author has made them unique enough to make this easy. The adherence to historical facts is excellent. Where the Author deviated from these facts, she provided an Author’s Note to explain The characters are well developed and the bond formed between the women was well developed. The atmosphere of the camp was rich and menacing. The description of the women and their relationship to of the camp was warm and touching. I enjoyed a WWII novel based somewhere other than Europe and featured people other than soldiers. Highly recommend to readers of historical fiction, WWII, war, the Japanese, survival, POWs and adult literature.