To reserve a signing spot at any of
our fair booths, click here.
To learn about our value-added,
cross-promotional efforts click here.
In The Shadow Of Suribachi
Reviewed by Regis Schilken
Educator: Pittsburgh Public School System
Author: The Oculi Incident, The Island Off Stony Point, "The Stars,"
published in Dan River Anthology 2005
Six young marines, who have trained together as part of a unit, await the
lowering of the heavy metal door of their Higgins landing craft. They stand
aghast in terror at the horror taking place on the very beach they must
secure. Some retch, all tremble, some pray, but their confidence comes from
the brotherhood established among them as a group. They will take care of
one another. They will remain safe as long as they follow their commanding
officer, Sergeant Kroner.
But within a few seconds as the unit stumbles ashore onto the black sands at
the base of Mount Suribachi, Kroner is obliterated; exploded into a mass of
eviscerated, bloody pulp that must be wiped from the hands, faces, and
glasses of the brave men he promised to protect. Detached from his body,
Kroner's head slams so hard against the chest of private Bill Zimmer, that
he falls to the ground, dazed and badly bruised by the impact.
In spite of the unimaginable atrocities of this uphill combat, Suribachi is
eventually taken but at what price--a catastrophic fee paid by uncountable
dead and injured. Yet, as a direct result of securing Iwo Jima, Allied
Forces could now land heavy bombers for refueling and supplying, in order to
carry the malignancy of war deep into the tissue of Japan itself.
Although Joyce Faulkner claims that what took place in those terrible days
of February and March of 1945 is "indescribable," In The Shadow of Suribachi
she reveals scenes so repulsively vivid, that one wonders if Faulkner is not
somehow haunted by the ghosts of the men who fought there. Her book is a
page turner--but thankfully, one can turn the pages and then leave them
behind.
The book begins with brief clips, snipped from the lives of six marines
before their paths intersect.
There is Kroner, a lad searching with his father, for any sign of life among
the garbage and bodies that litter Islamorada, Florida, after the deadly
hurricane of 1935.
Bill Zimmer from Arkansas, carries a terrible psychological gash into
battle. In 1937, he accidentally drops a rifle from a hayloft, which fires
on impact with the floor, killing his younger brother.
There is Arty Lieberman. A Jewish boy in Pittsburgh whose German relatives
in Mannheim are tormented by the Nazis. They bribe their way with a few
precious stones.
In 1942 in Ohio, Danny Kline with his young sister narrowly escape being
burned and trampled, when a fire breaks out at a Wringling Brothers & Barnum
and Baily circus tent.
Tommy Haines loves chocolate. He hides in Texas in 1943 as a small-time
crook, AWOL for two years. Yet, Tommy with his stolen stash is accosted by
another bandit until a bizarre series of events leads to his capture by
military police.
Lastly, there is Kendall Smith, who in 1944 lives in California. He is
fascinated by the appearance of Faith Weddington, a woman much older than
himself. His infatuation leads to a shocking discovery. Faith, who had
allowed her infant son to be adopted, could easily be his own mother. Kendal
bears a scar of surgery under his nose and on his lip--Faith's son was born
with a harelip.
In The Shadow of Suribachi is a highly readable book. Its characters are
developed just enough that you can claw your way with them, across the
beaches below Suribachi into the clutches of agonizing death. The journey is
Satanic. Lucifer lingers there. Only the most fortunate reach survive.
I would highly recommend In The Shadow of Suribachi to all readers, female
and male. It is necessary to experience the appalling throes of combat, to
appreciate our freedom, won by these heroes. The book is a must for anyone
attempting to understand what troops are enduring in Iraq. It is my sincere
hope that The Shadow of hard-won Suribachi will fall over our military
forces to protect them, and give them courage in their uphill battles.
Publications: Clever Magazine, By-Line, Scribe & Quill, Inscriptions,
Afterimage, GoodGoshAlmighty, Ag Pilot International, Writer's Weekly,
Curled Up with a Good Book, The Writer, American Oil & Gas Journal, One
Thousand Whispers, Women's
Independent Press,
TheCelebrityCafe.com, In Posse Review, Bike Midwest, The Stump, Inkwell
Newswatch, Foreword Magazine, Amazon Shorts, The Branson Bugle, MD News
Education:
MBA -- Cleveland State
Bachelor Science Chemical Engineering -- University of Pittsburgh
Sponsorships are open for participation from any
publishing-related entity--presses, artists, speakers, conferences,
tradeshows, individual authors. Please
click here for details.).
