Like many great people, he lived in obscurity until his death at which point his life became interesting. His book delves into the psyche of a WWII No-No Boy. (Of course, this scaring facet of Asian American life never entered into OUR high school American history). When the U.S. Army opened up a special force comprised solely of Japanese-American men these citizens were not only fighting for their country but also for face. Many wanted to prove to the world that they were really U.S. citizens and deserved it. Of course, these men also knew that going into the armed forces was merely suicide. Those who did not go into service were dubbed No-No Boys and labeled as traitors or worse. The story discusses the aftermath of the war on a No-No Boy and a war veteran and pushes the reader to ponder who suffered the worse fate - the person who risked their lives and lost a leg or the person who lspent the time in jail, having lost much face but who is a whole man. I really enjoy novels that delve into the soul and heart of a person and it was interesting getting the perspective of Ichiro and definitely makes you have compassion for what he suffered through even though he was seen as a coward. Also, it's interesting to see how deranged his mother was in believing that Japan had actually won the war and that the U.S. was merely using propaganda to brainwash the Japanese transplants. Lastly, I liked the conflict that you could see between the different generations - those of the 1st (Mother,Father) , 2nd (Ichiro's younger brother), and those caught in the middle - such as Ichiro.

If you'd like to purchase this book, I've made it easy to get it from Amazon by clicking on the above link.