Kamikazes

by Earle Rice Jr.

Examines the events and personalities that were instrumental in Japan's adoption of kamikazi, or suicide, missions in the later stages of World War II.

128 pages, Library Binding

First published September 1, 1999

About the author

Earle Rice Jr. has written more than fifty books for young adults. Mr. Rice served honorably in the U.S. Marine Corps for nine years, including a tour of combat duty as a machine-gun squad leader during the Korean War. He is a member of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, the League of World War I Aviation Historians, the United States Naval Institute, the Air Force Association, and the Disabled American Veterans.

Reviews

[Peter Busch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peter Busch (Period 1 English)
What is War? 9/26/17
Kamikazes by Earle Rice Jr. 128 pages, History genre.
The year is 1944, and the Second World War is raging. Across the Pacific, the technologically, industrially, and numerically superior American forces are driving back the Japanese. Japan needs to turn the tide, or all is lost. As a last resort, young men across the nation step up to make the ultimate sacrifice. They become kamikazes, or "divine winds"- suicide pilots who deliberately crash their bomb-laden aircraft into American ships in the hope of destroying their enemy. Although even these tactics failed to stop the sun from setting on Imperial Japan, the shock of the kamikazes' dedication still reverberates across history. Who were the kamikazes? What tactics did they use? And what could have driven them into such acts? Those questions are answered in former Marine Earle Rice Jr.'s chilling book Kamikazes, where he weaves Japanese history, culture and religion and the viewpoints of Japanese and American historical figures together to dissect the Kamikaze phenomenon.
I loved this book because I am interested in history, and because it is very well-written and engaging. The book makes good use of pictures, formatting, and subsections to expand on the writing, so you aren't just staring at a massive wall of eye-watering text the whole time. And the author's tone is very intellectual and professional without sounding too dry or detached from the subject matter-the perfect balance. 5/5- would read again. Highly recommended to those interested in history, war, culture, and especially Japan.

[Jake · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has a lot of good information about kamikazes. It tells you about how people who did kamikazes were very honored in Japan. If you like world war two this book should be high on your list. I think that this book has some hard words such as Japanese names and complicated names. Kamikazes fliers were cheaply paid and they only needed to learn how to dive bomb and basic maneuvers with a plane. Also, This book tells a lot about the Japans strategies. I would recommend this to other people.

[Richard · Rating 3 out of 5]

A compelling look into the mind and strategy of the suicide pilots. A must read for WW 2 historians.