
eBook - ePub
Most Honorable Son
A Forgotten Hero's Fight Against Fascism and Hate During World War II
- 432 pages
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub
About this book
Foreword by Naomi Ostwald Kawamura of Densho
Introduction by William Fujioka of JANM
Afterword by Jonathan Eig
The first comprehensive biography of unjustly forgotten Japanese American war hero Ben Kuroki, who fought the Axis powers during World War II and battled racism, injustice, and prejudice on the home front.
WINNER OF THE NEBRASKA BOOK AWARD
Ben Kuroki was a twenty-four-year-old Japanese American farm boy whose heritage was never a problem in remote Nebraska—until Pearl Harbor. Among the millions of Americans who flocked to military stations to enlist, Ben wanted to avenge the attack, reclaim his family honor, and prove his patriotism. But as anti-Japanese sentiment soared, Ben had to fight to be allowed to fight for America. And fight he did.
As a gunner on Army Air Forces bombers, Ben flew fifty-eight missions spanning three combat theaters: Europe, North Africa, and the Pacific, including the climactic B-29 firebombing campaign against Japan that culminated with the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. He flew some of the war’s boldest and bloodiest air missions and lived to tell about it. In between his tours in Europe and the Pacific, he challenged FDR’s shameful incarceration of more than one hundred thousand people of Japanese ancestry in America, and he would be credited by some with setting in motion the debate that reversed a grave national dishonor. In the euphoric wake of America’s victory, the decorated war hero used his national platform to carry out what he called his “fifty-ninth mission,” urging his fellow Americans to do more to eliminate bigotry and racism at home.
Told in full for the first time, and long overdue, Ben’s extraordinary story is a quintessentially American one of patriotism, principle, perseverance, and courage. It’s about being in the vanguard of history, the bonding of a band of brothers united in a just cause, a timeless and unflinching account of racial bigotry, and one man’s transcendent sense of belonging—in war, in peace, abroad, and at home.
Introduction by William Fujioka of JANM
Afterword by Jonathan Eig
The first comprehensive biography of unjustly forgotten Japanese American war hero Ben Kuroki, who fought the Axis powers during World War II and battled racism, injustice, and prejudice on the home front.
WINNER OF THE NEBRASKA BOOK AWARD
Ben Kuroki was a twenty-four-year-old Japanese American farm boy whose heritage was never a problem in remote Nebraska—until Pearl Harbor. Among the millions of Americans who flocked to military stations to enlist, Ben wanted to avenge the attack, reclaim his family honor, and prove his patriotism. But as anti-Japanese sentiment soared, Ben had to fight to be allowed to fight for America. And fight he did.
As a gunner on Army Air Forces bombers, Ben flew fifty-eight missions spanning three combat theaters: Europe, North Africa, and the Pacific, including the climactic B-29 firebombing campaign against Japan that culminated with the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. He flew some of the war’s boldest and bloodiest air missions and lived to tell about it. In between his tours in Europe and the Pacific, he challenged FDR’s shameful incarceration of more than one hundred thousand people of Japanese ancestry in America, and he would be credited by some with setting in motion the debate that reversed a grave national dishonor. In the euphoric wake of America’s victory, the decorated war hero used his national platform to carry out what he called his “fifty-ninth mission,” urging his fellow Americans to do more to eliminate bigotry and racism at home.
Told in full for the first time, and long overdue, Ben’s extraordinary story is a quintessentially American one of patriotism, principle, perseverance, and courage. It’s about being in the vanguard of history, the bonding of a band of brothers united in a just cause, a timeless and unflinching account of racial bigotry, and one man’s transcendent sense of belonging—in war, in peace, abroad, and at home.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, you can cancel anytime from the Subscription tab in your account settings on the Perlego website. Your subscription will stay active until the end of your current billing period. Learn how to cancel your subscription.
At the moment all of our mobile-responsive ePub books are available to download via the app. Most of our PDFs are also available to download and we're working on making the final remaining ones downloadable now. Learn more here.
Perlego offers two plans: Essential and Complete
- Essential is ideal for learners and professionals who enjoy exploring a wide range of subjects. Access the Essential Library with 800,000+ trusted titles and best-sellers across business, personal growth, and the humanities. Includes unlimited reading time and Standard Read Aloud voice.
- Complete: Perfect for advanced learners and researchers needing full, unrestricted access. Unlock 1.4M+ books across hundreds of subjects, including academic and specialized titles. The Complete Plan also includes advanced features like Premium Read Aloud and Research Assistant.
We are an online textbook subscription service, where you can get access to an entire online library for less than the price of a single book per month. With over 1 million books across 1000+ topics, we’ve got you covered! Learn more here.
Look out for the read-aloud symbol on your next book to see if you can listen to it. The read-aloud tool reads text aloud for you, highlighting the text as it is being read. You can pause it, speed it up and slow it down. Learn more here.
Yes! You can use the Perlego app on both iOS or Android devices to read anytime, anywhere — even offline. Perfect for commutes or when you’re on the go.
Please note we cannot support devices running on iOS 13 and Android 7 or earlier. Learn more about using the app.
Please note we cannot support devices running on iOS 13 and Android 7 or earlier. Learn more about using the app.
Yes, you can access Most Honorable Son by Gregg Jones in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in History & Social Science Biographies. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.
Information
Table of contents
- Praise
- Title Page
- Copyright Page
- Dedication
- Table of Contents
- FOREWORD
- INTRODUCTION
- PROLOGUE
- Chapter 1 - FIT FOR SERVICE
- Chapter 2 - “THIS IS URGENT”
- Chapter 3 - “THIS IS YOUR COUNTRY”
- Chapter 4 - ALONE
- Chapter 5 - “ARE YOU AN AMERICAN CITIZEN?”
- Chapter 6 - “IN NO SENSE READY FOR COMBAT”
- Chapter 7 - QUEEN OF THE SEAS
- Chapter 8 - “CHINAMAN BOY”
- Chapter 9 - “HEY, THEY’RE SHOOTING AT US!”
- Chapter 10 - “LOOK AT ME NOW”
- Chapter 11 - “ARE YOU SURE YOU KNOW WHAT YOU’RE DOING?”
- Chapter 12 - A BIG CHANCE
- Chapter 13 - “NOW, I BELONG”
- Chapter 14 - GAMBUT
- Chapter 15 - BROTHERS IN ARMS
- Chapter 16 - ON TO ITALY
- Chapter 17 - BIG DEALER
- Chapter 18 - DOUBLE TROUBLE
- Chapter 19 - NO END IN SIGHT
- Chapter 20 - RETURN TO ENGLAND
- Chapter 21 - MISSING IN ACTION
- Chapter 22 - PRISONERS IN A GILDED CAGE
- Chapter 23 - TUPELO LASS
- Chapter 24 - SPECIAL ORDERS NUMBER 174
- Chapter 25 - THE BIG ONE
- Chapter 26 - TIDAL WAVE
- Chapter 27 - A HELLHOLE OF FIRE, FLAME, AND SMOKE
- Chapter 28 - THE LONGEST NIGHT
- Chapter 29 - LIMBO
- Chapter 30 - MORAN CREW
- Chapter 31 - A DISAPPOINTING FINALE
- Chapter 32 - AN ENEMY AT PEAK STRENGTH
- Chapter 33 - THE KILLING MONTH
- Chapter 34 - DEATH DENIED
- Chapter 35 - HOMECOMING
- Chapter 36 - MOST HONORABLE SON
- Chapter 37 - RESIST THE DRAFT
- Chapter 38 - COMMONWEALTH CLUB
- Chapter 39 - “NO TURNING BACK”
- Chapter 40 - HEART MOUNTAIN
- Chapter 41 - A TURNING POINT
- Chapter 42 - HONORABLE SAD SAKI
- Chapter 43 - TINIAN
- Chapter 44 - DÉJÀ VU
- Chapter 45 - FIREBOMBING TOKYO
- Chapter 46 - WOUNDED ENEMY
- Chapter 47 - A WAR WITHOUT MERCY
- Chapter 48 - OUT OF LUCK
- Chapter 49 - UNSCRIPTED ENDING
- Chapter 50 - A GREATER CAUSE
- Chapter 51 - FIFTY-NINTH MISSION
- Chapter 52 - A PATH IN PEACE
- Chapter 53 - PUBLISHER, REPORTER, EDITOR
- Chapter 54 - HIDDEN HEROES
- Chapter 55 - RECKONING, REMEMBRANCE, AND REWARD
- EPILOGUE
- AFTERWORD
- ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
- NOTE ON SOURCES
- ENDNOTES
- SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY
- ABOUT THE AUTHOR