Reviews for Japanese Infantryman 1937-45: Sword of the Empire

The average rating for Japanese Infantryman 1937-45: Sword of the Empire based on 2 reviews is 2.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2015-08-22 00:00:00 Mahoma Moheno Maciel This book provides an excellent overview of the equipment of the Japanese infantryman of WWII (so it is a great source for uniform collectors and modelers) but it fails to delve deeply into the mentality and life of the average Japanese infantryman, beyond some paltry facts. The book focuses on a fictitious yet representative example of a Japanese infantryman by the name of Taro, following him from his induction into the army to his death on Saipan. While this does allow the reader to identify with the character, his story is not fleshed out enough for it to be truly compelling. It skips over 3 years of his service, going from China to Saipan with little understanding of what he went through in between. Given the constraints of the book, it is understandable, but the end product is lacking in the expected emotional depth. We learn more about Taro's puttees and rice cooker than we do about the man himself.

Review # 2 was written on 2015-06-24 00:00:00 Gary Bongolan cursory covrage, not enough details or story