Burma
The Forgotten War
by
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On Pagoda Hill, February 1942 Sergeant Tomomi Hirata settled himself as comfortably as he could in the slit trench he and his men had recently captured from the British. He did not know it was called Pagoda Hill – his rough map of the district showed it only as objective Two. Around him were more than two dozen war veterans he knew intimately because, like himself, they had been bloodied in the Chinese campaign learning the art of killing, especially so in the slaughter house of Shanghai in 1938. Tomomi, like all his countrymen, had a built in basic contempt for the Chinese especially the Chinese Army with its ridiculous orange-coloured uniforms. They were so easily killed. Tomomi and his wife, Nui, lived with his parents on the outskirts of Hiroshima where they had a small plot of land and a family run cottage garden type business manufacturing small parts of ammunition for Japan''s war effort. Tomomi had patriotically volunteered to join the Army in 1935 to fight and, if necessary, die for the Emperor against the barbaric Chinese. Nui had already given him three children, two sons and a daughter. Tomomi''s eyes softened as he recalled when bidding her farewell on his last leave how she, in her soft musical voice, had said: "When you next come home, dear husband, there will be another mouth to feed". That had been more than two years ago and he hadn''t as yet received any letters from her, so, consequently, he did not know if he had another son or daughter. Rangoon, 1942 Harry Parfit was awakened by the harsh voice of Sergeant Cooper bellowing: "Wakey wakey, rise an'' shine -- up you get it''s time to dine". Sergeant Cooper was rather fond of rhyming his sentences. For a moment Harry thought he was back in England. Confused, he blinked his sleep-laden eyes before sitting up and looking around. He cursed under his breath at the stark reality.
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About the Book
Two soldiers one British (Harry) the other Japanese (Tomomi) and, although bitter enemies, share another enemy, the Burmese jungles. We follow them from early 1942 where they first come into contact at Sittang Bridge. Tomomi is captured by Harry, but, Nay Mynt, a Burman who hates the British rescues him. Tomomi vows to kill Harry and, eventually, they meet face to face at Kohima. On March 1945 Harry''s wife, Joan, perishes at Smithfield Meat Market by the last Rocket to be launched from Holland. On August 6, 1945, Tomomi''s wife, Nui, goes to Hiroshima to collect Tomomi''s posthumously awarded medals. At 8pm an airplane appears overhead. Nui notices an object leaving its belly. It''s the last thing she will ever see.
About the Author
E. W. Elliot''s book, Burma The Forgotten War, is a timely reminder of the titanic battles fought by the 14th Army in
At the age of 20 he volunteered for the R.A.F. seeing active service in Biggin Hill, the
In the Forward Areas he mingled with the "walking skeletons" of the 14th Army learning first hand of their 1,000 miles retreat from
In 1944 the Japanese surrendered in their thousands. They were half starved and scared stiff of what the "Devil Westerners" would do to them.
Reading this book one can feel and taste the bitter-sweet comradeship of the men who called