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alexblackreads 's review for:
Code Talker: A Novel about the Navajo Marines of World War Two
by Joseph Bruchac
In terms of the historical information, I loved it. I learned so much about the Navajo and how their language created the code used in World War II in the Pacific. I also really enjoyed all the information about the war in the Pacific, because so many of the WW2 historical fiction I've found focuses on Europe.
But there was barely any story here. In the author's note at the end, Bruchac said the first draft was basically all historical information and he'd write the character later. I feel like he was still a draft or two away from getting a fully developed character and narrative. Ned Begay basically functioned as a vehicle through which to share all the research. The narrative wasn't anything more than "this is what Navajo experienced during the war." There were a few extra details about Ned, but to be honest, the main character could have been someone else with less editing than it would take to fully develop Ned.
It made for a really dry, dull book. But you can tell Bruchac did tons of research and I enjoyed it for that. I do kind of wish he'd just written a nonfiction book on the subject because that probably would have been more interesting.
But there was barely any story here. In the author's note at the end, Bruchac said the first draft was basically all historical information and he'd write the character later. I feel like he was still a draft or two away from getting a fully developed character and narrative. Ned Begay basically functioned as a vehicle through which to share all the research. The narrative wasn't anything more than "this is what Navajo experienced during the war." There were a few extra details about Ned, but to be honest, the main character could have been someone else with less editing than it would take to fully develop Ned.
It made for a really dry, dull book. But you can tell Bruchac did tons of research and I enjoyed it for that. I do kind of wish he'd just written a nonfiction book on the subject because that probably would have been more interesting.