Tears in the Darkness

The Story of the Bataan Death March and Its Aftermath

By: Michael Norman, Elizabeth Norman

Narrated by: Michael Prichard

Length: 17 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's summary

Audie Award, History, 2010

For the first four months of 1942, U.S., Filipino, and Japanese soldiers fought what was America's first major land battle of World War II, the battle for the tiny Philippine peninsula of Bataan. It ended with the surrender of 76,000 Filipinos and Americans, the single largest defeat in American military history. The defeat, though, was only the beginning, as Michael and Elizabeth M. Norman make dramatically clear in this powerfully original book.

From then until the Japanese surrendered in August 1945, the prisoners of war suffered an ordeal of unparalleled cruelty and savagery: 41 months of captivity, starvation rations, dehydration, hard labor, deadly disease, and torture---far from the machinations of General Douglas MacArthur. The Normans bring to the story remarkable feats of reportage and literary empathy.

Their protagonist, Ben Steele, is a figure out of Hemingway: a young cowboy turned sketch artist from Montana who joined the army to see the world. Juxtaposed against Steele's story and the sobering tale of the Death March and its aftermath is the story of a number of Japanese soldiers. The result is an altogether new and original World War II book: it exposes the myths of military heroism as shallow and inadequate; and it makes clear, with great literary and human power, that war causes suffering for people on all sides.

©2009 Michael and Elizabeth Norman (P)2009 Tantor

Tears in the Darkness

A really good book on a difficult time.

I had no idea

I had always heard of the Bataan Death March but knew none of the details. I am not normally a war type reader, but this was a very wonderful blending of individual stories of the courage and stamina and in some cases, sheer luck these individuals faced. You hear that war is "brutal" and this book brought this to life graphically, but not gratuitously. What these soldiers faced was beyond the limits of human endurance, and yet they prevailed. There is a reason why these folks are part of the "greatest generation". I agree with another reviewer that said this should be required reading before anyone enters a war. I was moved, horrified, informed and enlightened for reading this book.I had no idea of the horrific nature of what the Bataan Death March required and inflicted and what these soldiers continued to face afterwards. I highly recommend the book (and I am a female reader). The only reason that I did not give it a five star rating was the narrator. I felt as if at times I was listening to a 1940's radio announcer. His voice really grated on me. However, the story was so compelling and well done that I was able to stick with it. Thank you to Michael and Elizabeth Norman for an amazing book.

Tragically Wonderful

I find it difficult to use the word "enjoyed" when I speak of this book because it is a narration of the tragic events and treatment of the US POWs in Bataan and Japan. However, I feel enriched by learning of the things these men and women endured or died trying to endure. This is the type of book that anyone wanting to know what American spirit is all about should read and learn from. I think the tone of the narration of this book lends it the gravity that it deserves.

Tears at home, too

Even though I was familiar with the Bataan Death March and have read other books on the subject, I was still deeply affected by this book. The atrocities that were committed, and the sheer scope of these events really puts a new perspective on WW
II. I was glad the authors followed Ben Steel's life after the war; he is an amazing survivor. A great read, although not my favorite narrator.

Incredible suffering, strength, and endurance.

If you could sum up Tears in the Darkness in three words, what would they be?

"Oh, Dear God"

What other book might you compare Tears in the Darkness to and why?

Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand. Both are incredible stories of survival and the will to live in the harshest realities known to mankind.

What does Michael Prichard bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

As I have not read the book I cannot really say, but I do enjoy Mr.Prichard's style of narration. I tend to find it relaxing, or maybe familiar, like the voice of an old friend.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Yes, very much. Near the end when the Doctor found out he had survived the Bataan Death March. I found that very emotional.

Any additional comments?

A good listen. Something to look back on when you think your having a bad day.

Great and tragic history lesson

Which scene was your favorite?

The Bataan Death March explination and visualizations were the depth of the story. It remained intriguing yet not sensationalized. This book is a great history lesson from a generation of people almost gone.

a must read before starting a war

This was a well told, heartbreaking story about what went on in the Phillipines during the second World War. While the American prisoners of war suffered beyond belief, it was a tragedy for all. The Norman's words, coupled with a super narration by Michael Prichard make you feel as if you are there.

See History From Both Sides

I really enjoyed how this book blended stories from both an American and Japanese perspective together to create more of a unified whole of the story. The book includes such vivid detail that it is hard not to feel like you can actually hear the screams, feel the wounds, and smell the smells. This is not a book for those that have weak stomachs. However, for anyone who thinks that war is glorious or a great adventure this book should be required reading. One thing that might be distressing to some is that the book paints a negative picture of Douglas MacArthur as both a coward and as a bad military commander.

Revenge does not taste sweet.

This beautifully-told and well-researched book tells the tale of the Bataan Death march, the events leading up to it, and the events that followed it. Primarily it is the tale of Ben Steele of Montana. But it also tells the stories of many others in varying amounts of detail. Interestingly, the book has a secondary focus on Masaharu Homma, the Japanese general who was in charge of the Japanese troops responsible for the Death March.

Ben Steele's story is terrible for all the reasons you would imagine, plus a few more. General Homma's story is also surprisingly tragic. And while Ben Steele's story is painful because of the physical and mental suffering he experienced at the hands of Japanese soldiers (though, let’s face it, soldiers of all nationalities act inhumanely toward their enemies and nearby civilians with depressing regularity) General Homma's story is no less poignant.

He is made a scapegoat and punished for the sake of expediency, politicking, and possibly even personal revenge. This left me feeling hollow as it capped off the tragedy of the Death March with one more unjust act visited on a man who was far less deserving of punishment than others who were never punished. When confronted with a tragedy, the desire in some for quick retribution leads them to betray the higher principles they are supposed to be fighting in defence of.

On a final note, I was surprised that by the end of this book my opinion of US General Douglas MacArthur had dropped considerably. The book did not cast any aspersions on him. To me, though, the facts suggested a man much more keenly interested in his power and legacy than in anyone or anything else.

PS: The picture on the cover is actually of Ben Steele in captivity

Good but..

Much of this book I found fascinating. I grew up hearing about the death march and reading more details was sobering. I was disappointed that there were several people who figured into the story whose ultimate fates you did not end. Perhaps the authors couldn't get details if they died in the war or even afterwards. But i am sure that even if they couldn't furnish details, they could have at least determined if they survived the captivity itself. I would like to have known.