Who Were the Navajo Code Talkers?

Who Was . . . ? Series

by James Buckley Jr., Gregory Copeland (Illustrations)

Learn how this heroic group of American Indian men created a secret, unbreakable code and helped the US win major battles during World War II in this new addition to the #1 New York Times bestselling series.

By the time the United States joined the Second World War in 1941, the fight against Nazi and Axis powers had already been under way for two years. In order to win the war and protect its soldiers, the US Marines recruited twenty-nine Navajo men to create a secret code that could be used to send military messages quickly and safely across battlefields. In this new book within the #1 New York Times bestelling series, author James Buckley Jr. explains how these brave and intelligent men developed their amazing code, recounts some of their riskiest missions, and discusses how the country treated them before, during, and after the war.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Childrens, Native American, War, Biography, Middle Grade

112 pages, Paperback

First published October 26, 2021

About the author

In addition to his work as a professional editor, James Buckley, Jr., is also the author of many books on American sports that are geared toward young fans and budding athletes.

Buckley, who has founded a company called Shoreline Publishing Group to produce books for reluctant readers, maintains that sports are far more than simple hobbies or ways to burn off excess energy.

Reviews

[Angela Juline · Rating 5 out of 5]

I knew of the Navajo Code Talkers, but nothing as to what it entailed or even how the idea orignated...seems like something we should have been taught in school. I hope I can get my students to read it.

[Megan Martin]

Read to Libby on a sick day, she loved it. We read it all in one sitting. Found out Utah was the LAST state to give Native Americans the right to vote. Libby was not pleased with that.

[Kirsten · Rating 4 out of 5]

Concise, clearly presented, great back story context provided—fine non-fiction for 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade readers.

[Kristi Clemow · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting book - did not know much about this at all.

[Katie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I borrowed this audiobook from my library as it was under the section of indigenous voices for highlighted reading materials. So I had hopes that this was going to be a short and introductory children's level perspective on the Navajo code talkers, a subject that intrigued me.

While this short children's book did include many facts and a general overview of who the code talkers were, the glaring missing aspect of this book is the side of the Navajo people. This book really only discusses the usefulness of the Navajo people skills from the military perspective and reduces their language and culture to a clever novelty that was useful for the US government during wartime.

While it can be uncomfortable and difficult to show the perspective of the cultural erasure and attempted removal of Navajo culture and their language by US government, it's very important to discuss and lament that historical perspective, especially to children. There are only a couple of sentences in this entire book that discuss the discrimination that they faced, how they were not allowed to speak their native language in US schools growing up, and that they weren't even allowed to vote upon their return from their services. The majority of this book reads like propaganda for saying how wonderful the US military was as an opportunity for these men. There are also parts of this story that seem to play into stereotypes, such as how they were meant to be great warriors which is why they did so well in the military. This book is clearly written from the perspective of a non-native person.

The only aspect of this book that I appreciate is that a native female woman was chosen to be the audiobook narrator and there are a selection of Navajo words read aloud to the reader in her voice, documenting the language in digital form. That is really beautiful and important.

This book just really inspired me to seek other, better books about the Navajo code talkers and the Navajo people written by Navajo authors. I will definitely be seeking a different, more representative book to share with my children.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

This nonfiction title is a 3.5 for me. Sometimes the entries in the WHOHQ series are skimpy, but that isn't the case with this important topic. The story of the Navajo Code Talkers is fascinating in every respect. Not only were their stories and particular roles in WWII kept a secret until 1968, but the 29 original men who were asked to use their Navajo language to help fight the war actually created the code, using a Navajo word to stand for each English alphabet letter. Interestingly, even though many Native Americans only received the right to vote in 1962, these men wanted to defend their land and country. This book describes how the men were recruited, their training, their development of the code, their connections with the folks back home, and how they used it in various areas and islands of the Pacific Front during the war--Okinawa, Guam, Iwo Jima, among others. The men often operated under challenging conditions as they were the target of much gunfire from the enemy. Although I would have loved to have known more of their stories, the book does offer anecdotes from some of their peacetime and wartime experiences, even detailing how they received gold or silver Congressional Medals. The aftermath of war is hard for anyone, and the book also recounts how challenging life was for some of those Marines when they returned home. A timeline of world events and one relevant to the Navajo Code Talkers is included in the back matter, and readers also learn about how their stories and example inspired others and fostered a sense of pride in young Navajos. The black-and-white drawings add life to this already-engaging story, and including the code allows young readers to try their hands at sending messages or writing their names in the code. This is certainly a story of heroism that should not be forgotten. It's hard to read about these men and consider the unjust ways their ancestors and some of them themselves were treated by fellow citizens.

[Thompson McLeod · Rating 5 out of 5]

When the U.S. become involved the World War II, the Axis powers were already taken huge parts of Europe. The marines recruited twenty-nine men who could speak the Navajo language. Their code saved missions, men and countries. Their "code" was never broken, and no one knew about their secret mission until twenty-five years later.

The Navajo have lived in the southwest over one thousand years and called themselves Diné (dee-nay). The history of the Navajo Nation is addressed including their horrendous treatment even after serving in World War I. The Navajo now reside in the four corners area: where New Mexico, Utah, Arizona and Colorado meet. Over 14,000 Navajo served in WWI and 540 served as Marines in World War II, twenty-nine of them in the Navajo Code Program.
Their job was to choose Navajo words which would represent letters of the alphabet; for example: N is nesh-chee, or nut. The men had to memorize each letter quickly and translate messages back and forth to demonstrate how it could be used to pass along secret information.

The Navajo code talkers are considered instrumental in the battle for Iwo Jima. They were crucial for the entire outcome of fighting in the Pacific. It wasn't until 1968 the government allowed the code talkers to tell their story. Now revered for their bravery, spirit and heroism, the Navajo code talkers are truly great Native American heroes.

Highly recommended for every school and classroom library. Great read for reluctant readers and fans of World War II. A powerful book celebrating heroes of this country.

[Reed W · Rating 5 out of 5]

This May I did my review on Who Were The Navajo Code Talkers It was good book because I like War books too so. So in this book the Navajo was a tribe near a military base and they were a pretty big tribe so the Marines said that we so code talkers that other could never figure out the code ever. so they saw that the Navajo had a language that nobody knows but the Navajo themselves. So the Marines asked if some of them would like to serve and a lot of them said yes. So then they were going on a mission to takeover Islands from the Japanese, so they took boats and planes and attacked the islands. So the code talkers got to work calling air strikes and where to Shoot the artillery guns. And then finally they took the last island and the Japanese surrendered and the Marines and the Navajo code talkers won the war. Mays theme for our books is What ever you want. I rated this book five stars is because I like war books a lot. I recommend this book for people who like short and war books and that is the end of my review for May.

[Marissa Morrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

This short book is packed with facts. The Navajo code talkers were all trained as marines before they started working on the code. They used words like turtle in their language for tank, and also used words that start with certain letters in English for spelling (e.g. the Navajo words for ant, apple and axe all meant A). They served on Guadalcanal and Iwo Jima. They kept their code work a secret until 1968, when the government said the codes were no longer needed in war.

The Navajo were not U.S. citizens, and native Americans didn't have the right to vote in all states until the 1960s. The author notes that it is surprising that a people so mistreated by the U.S. government would volunteer to serve in both world wars but doesn't try to explain why. Also unexplained is why the government decided never to use the code again.

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was another group of historic figures that was never spoken of when I was going to grade school. The Navajo Code Talkers helped win World War Two by sending coded messages to the marines out in the field who were fighting the war. This aided them in surprising the enemy because the messages were coded in the Navajo language. When the code talkers returned from duty they were not allowed to speak of their mission for twenty years. It was not until the late 1980s that they were recognized for their role in helping win the war. This is a very good book to start learning about their achievements.

[Brittany · Rating 4 out of 5]

What does the US army do when the Japanese figure out their cyphers and codes? Insist help from the Navajo!

What an interesting look at how these Navajo marines were instrumental in the US success at Iwo Jima. They were able to keep communication between American troops indecipherable to the enemy by creating their own code using their native language. The book was very informative and did a great job of stating facts without placing blame on any sides. I also felt that it had some accurate information that shows the US in a negative light at times which is sometimes avoided in some historical literature. It was still done very factually however and not “brow beating.”

[Dawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this for background for a program about codes and ciphers, and now I kind of want to do a whole program just on the Navajo Code Talkers.

Very interesting, and this book does a good job of following the Navajo men from their reservations to boot camp to war, then back home. Their amazing code (which they developed from scratch) and bravery (they were on battlefields) are the main takeaways, but I hope kids also see the continual mistreatment of Native Americans and why their service is even more exceptional.

[Ivy R. · Rating 4 out of 5]

For February’s autobiography I chose, “Who Were the Navajo Code Talkers”. This book talks about how the Navajo speakers were useful to creating a code that the Japanese couldn’t break in World War 2. It talks about how they helped in the war, their culture, how they were honored, and much more. I rate this book 4 stars because it was quite interesting with decent detailing, but it wasn’t quite long enough for me. I recommend this book to anyone looking for a short, yet detailed novel, of which you would find in this book.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I learned so much. I’m so glad that they didn’t white wash the history of the Navajo and their part in the Marines during WWII. They also spoke about how difficult it was for some who returned after war. How even after their heroic bravery they were not seen as citizens here in the US for the country they were fighting for.

Highly recommend!

Read aloud to kids 5-12 and this captured all of their attention.

[Lindsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

What we love about the who was series is it gives a age appropriate overview of events and people without being too in-depth for younger readers. I find these are a great series for elementary aged kids to provide a foundation. This one eluded to some of the injustices the Navajo people faced but my older kids definitely wanted more detail of the code talkers story. But I think a good jumping off nonfiction book does leave someone wanting to know more so it worked for us.

[Abigail Rowe]

Who were the Navajo code talkers by James Buckley Jr. the code talkers are native American. they had a specal code that only native Americans know it was very complex. It was used to communicate secretly during war. US Marines who use their specialized skill at battle of Iwo Jima. It was unbreakable No one know it but the native Americans. I would rate this a 5/5 it is a good book because it talk about history and how the native had a secret way of talking using code. I would recommend this to anyone who like history or wants to learn a new language.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

My heart was filled with gratefulness and sadness at the same time after finishing this book. I am awed by the bravery and patriotism of these Native American men in using their language to play a crucial part of World War II.
My sadness is over how these brave Americans were treated. Every American should read this book.

[David Rough · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very good historical study of these incredible World War Two heroes. The book, aimed at young readers was well-written and gave the reader personal insights into the lives of some of the Navajo Code Talkers as well as the contribution that the entire group of communicators provided for the Allies during the war.

[Seeker of Truth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. I didn’t like the way it talks about how people didn’t think it was good, but then when they were astonished it was pretty funny!😂 I also liked the fact that it talks about the Navajo Code Talkers’ own perspective. Great book.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

We learn so much from the Who Was/Were series. Reading about the Navajo Code Talkers reminded me of Lovelea and some things I learned about the Navajo over the years. Their role was important in WWII and kept a secret until the late 60s.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

i learned a tremendous amount in such a short book about the background and story of the Brave Navajo code Talkers of WWIII. I'm glad they, as a group, finally got the honors and recognition they richly deserved.

[Steven Marshall · Rating 5 out of 5]

I never realized the Navajo did so much for the United States during World War II. I did not even know about the code breakers. Why is this history not taught in schools? This book has me interested in the rest of the series.

[Tina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this to my children. They loved it. It was very informative on a subject that is really not well known. I learned several things from this book.

[Harvey DeFries · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy to read and very informative

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good introduction to Navajo Code Talkers

[Janet · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent story, I need to check into more stories about these heroes.

[Jude · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is an exciting book, a lot of facts about war and speech, I liked the part about the nuke that Harry Truman dropped on Japan.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good basic overview.

[Laurel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought it was very interesting because I didn’t know that they made a unbreakable code.

[David Monroe · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great story and truly amazing/ the Native American people are a forgiving and caring people. Even while being treated as foreigners, they assisted the US in WWII.