John J.A. Michel

Written shortly after the Second World War, Mr. Michele's War is the memoir of a US Navy officer who fought in America's first battles against the Imperial Japanese Navy during the war. Hopelessly out gunned and out classed by superior Japanese forces a scratch fleet of American, British Dutch and Australian naval ships sought to slow Japan's war machine down in the critical early days of 1942. However valiant, the allied forces were defeated by the Japanese and the last two-thirds of Michel's book details his time as a prisoner of His Imperial Majesty, the Emperor of Japan.

Michel's 3 1/2 years as a POW ranged from the absurdly comical to the painfully brutal. Perhaps atypically, Michel details not only the brutal and criminal treatment he and other POWs received but also some of the more humane treatment that he was fortunate enough to receive (or witness). His book doesn't vilify every Japanese soldier and/or citizen which, given the fact that he wrote the original manuscript in 1948, says quite a bit about his character to this reviewer. However, where war crimes were committed, he doesn't pull any punches. There were many Japanese soldiers and officers whom he encountered who were later tried for war crimes (several of whom committed suicide rather than face the gallows).

Overall, Michel's text is engaging and well written making this book an easy to read memoir. Certainly, as the members of this "Greatest Generation" pass away, it will be these narratives that live on and serve as testament to their sacrifice and dedication. Michel's is a worthy addition to this collection and certainly worth the time of anyone interested in the Pacific Theater of Operations during WWII.… (mere)