Code Talker by Chester Nez with Judith Schiess Avila

I never did watch the movie, Windtalkers but the story of the Navajo Marines who developed the unbreakable code based off the Navajo language is legendary. I'm not sure if I know anyone who doesn't know the story but if you don't, you need to quickly google it, and then buy this book. I'm not sure if Audible has their sale, but if it's full price, it's so worth the money.

This is Chester Nez's memoir, one of the original 29 code developers, who took his Navajo language  with help from Judith Schiess Avila. She writes the forward, and confirms that this is his story, and his book.

I previewed some of the reviews on goodreads, and I understand why some of them didn't like the book. Some didn't like revisiting the horrors of "White Man," or thought that Judith didn't do a good job of putting together the book, wavering from a journal feel to a history lesson. I do understand the second critic and throughout the book, wavered back and forth on how I felt about Judith keeping a lot of his repetitive phrases, I ultimate appreciated it, especially towards the last quarter of the book, where he recounts his life after the war.

However, I have great issue with the first one critic. The reviewers who stated that they didn't want to feel "personally responsible" for what his ancestors did missed the point of the entire book. In spite of all he and his people had to endure, he still answered the call, and took pride for what he did and what he did to protect his family, his tribe and his country.

When I hear of what atrocities that white people in power inflicted on those who are not white and powerless, I don't feel white guilt. I look at that history as my history too, and our generation and future generations need to work together to fight against those atrocities. We need to learn and understand our past to avoid repeating the future.

ANYWAY, off my soap box.

Chester Nez 

Look at that handsome man.  It's not a spoiler, but Chester Nez lived until he was 93 and kept touring and speaking until like... 2012, or something like that. He passed away in 2014.

There were so many good pictures, but I particularly like this one because of the look, that I think his son, Mike, gives him.

Nez chronicles his life starting from the time he was born, growing up in Four Corners, New Mexico, which I appreciated because it allowed me to see who he was as a person, and all that he experienced before, during and after the war. I also appreciated the deep insight he provided about his religion and culture, which he leaned on heavily throughout the war, and when he came home to fight PTSD.

What made me a weepy mess for most of the book is the tone he takes. He could, like many others are, be really angry for the way the U.S government treats him and his people. He should be angry about the way the U.S government treated his tribe, his culture and his history... but he takes a step back, and actually reflects that the hardship he went through as preparation for what he want to do in the Marines.

Damn. We should all be ashamed.

And not that "White Guilt" either. It puts your own life into perspective in using terrible events that happened and using them for good. Chester Nez didn't have to enlist in the Marines. He did it because he wanted to serve his country, and he wanted to make his his suffering worth something.

He also is a BAMF. Because the Code Talkers were so valuable, they were not given R&R for most of the time he was in the Pacific. They worked under brutal conditions, and most Marines and Army personnel had no idea what kind work they were doing.

Now, my grandfather never fought in the Pacific. He was wounded in the Battle of the Bulge, and was to be sent home. However, I remember my grandmother talking about the war when I was younger, and stating that surely my grandfather would have died, because he couldn't take the heat.

The horrors of war.

What also made me a weepy mess was what he endured after the war. He came home, unable to vote, and struggled to find his way in life. He couldn't tell anyone what he did because there may be a time that it needed to be used again. He was lucky, able to find love and a job, but he reminds the readers gently that not all those who fought were as lucky. He also reminds us that though he was honored, there were many Navajo Code Talkers that were not honored, due to the lack of legal paperwork and his memoir is for all those who served.

I quickly previewed what the Windtalkers movie was about, and now I understand a part of the book where he discusses his Marine's bodyguards. Like the rest of the book, he's so matter of fact and he simply states that he had no idea they were his bodyguards, he thought they were really good buddies, and they just liked going to the bathroom with him! He also states that he didn't know if they were given orders to kill them if they were captured by the Japanese... but thankfully, it never had to come to that.

The book itself has pictures of his life, which is probably why there were so many online. However, I think the best part of the audiobook was the interview at the end, with Judith and Chester. Hearing him speak the code gave me chills. He said he never forgot the first code he transmitted, because as soon as he sent the message, it actually happened. Hearing his voice turned him into a real person for me and that despite being forbidden to speak his own language, he went on to use that language to save many soldiers, and inevitably, turned the war.

I wanted to finish this review with pictures of the ceremony that acknowledged what the Code Talkers did. I liked the picture on the left because it shows the other Code Talkers, waiting in line. Recognizing that there were others, not just him, is what Chester would have wanted.

Finally, he mentions the picture on the right in the book. He retrieves his award and salutes President W. Bush. His son asks him why he saluted him. Chester Nez states, quite simply, that if you served, you always salute your Commander-in-Chief. It's what you do.

Which is Better? The Man in the High Castle Part 2

Since there was a lot to say about this show, I broke the post down into two weekly segments. Huzzah! Let's get into it.

Ed McCarthy - what a thankless role even up until the very end. However, DJ Quall just sells it, and he's turning into a good supporting actor in his age. However, if Frank was my friend, I would tell him to turn Juliana loose and just get on the bus to get out of the Pacific states. I mean, really.... I wouldn't even mess with him anymore after he locked me in the bathroom when he went to go kill the Crown Prince. Maybe I'm just not that good of a friend to take the gun from the guy and attempt to melt it down in the very place the Japanese are looking for it? Frank had some redeeming qualities at the end, but surely it didn't have to take the entire series to figure out that Ed meant more to him that Juliana did.

Mr. Tagomi - I really liked what they did with his character in the show. In the books, he did have a moment of clarity where he sees into "our" world, the world where the Axis didn't win the war, but couldn't handle it, and retreats back into his own world. It is literally interpreted in the show but the exciting scene in the book where the SD/Nazis try to kill Baynes and company is not there, so we don't get to see Mr. Tagomi fire off a replica gun from the American Old West. The actor that plays him is also just brilliant; he's able to take the Japanese stoicism and put a kind sheen to it, making him sympathetic but also still a mystery. What is his motivation? I hope we find out in season 2.

Mr. Childan - Here is a character that I really didn't care too much about in the book until he is invited into the home of Paul and Betty Kasoura. I thought his groveling and his desire to be Japanese (or really, just to be part of the powerful class) a bit boring, but as other characters do, they sneak up on you and all of the sudden you care about what happens to them. I guess it's the mark of a good writer. So, in the book, he stands up to the Japanese when they suggest that the jewelry that Ed and Frank make could be reproduced for the poorer countries because it has "Wu." Childan, enraged that he was used and then insulted, broke free of his desire to be accepted and refused to sell the jewelry that Ed and Frank made. Now, in the show, I think they used him just enough. He's the embodiment of a person who turned his back on his country and culture in order to make a life among his conquerors. You see his hopes dashed when he's invited to dinner with the Kasouras and it's revealed that they only viewed him as a novelty. They are disappointed and Childan realizes that no matter what, he will never be one of them. He aids Frank and Frank helps him with pulling one over the Japanese. His character was used just enough in the show.

The Marshall - Completely a show creation, I thought the Marshall was tacky and a bit cheesy. The actor that played him, is a notable British actor, and he takes the idea of The Marshall, an outlaw bounty hunter, and makes him AN OUTLAW AMERICAN HUNTER WHO WEARS A COWBOY HAT AND LEATHER DUSTER AND HAS A RIFLE. He even has a toothpick? He's supposed to be terrifying, but he comes off as a cartoon character. I thought he propelled the story and got Juliana and Joe out of Cannon City, but... meh.

Lem Washington - Another character they added into the story, and much needed as well. My husband and I were worried that they would kill him off, because usually that's what happens to the Noble Black Man troupe, but thankfully they didn't. He's one of the leaders of the resistance, but his characters get muddied over the course of the show. To be honest, I remember what Juliana and Joe did, but not quite sure about Lem. He even had a family at Cannon City and there he was in San Francisco? Or was it New York? I don't even remember!

Paul and Betty Kasoura - The notable Japanese couple that treat American history and culture as novelty and kitsch, but do not really want to have American friends. They use Childan and are not interested in anything other than superficial American ideas.

If someone is in the mood for something that dove into an alternative timeline and wanted to be simply entertained, than the show is for you. The book deals with the philosophy of what it means to be an American, and what would happened to America if it never won the war. However, the show is designed to do a few seasons, and I'm really looking forward to how they deal with Russia, Africa and other parts of the world. I liked the book, but the show is much more my speed. I found myself not quite caring whether Ed and Frank got their jewelry business off the ground, and more interested in the drainage of the Mediterranean Sea by the Nazis. I read interviews by PKD who mentioned he wanted to do a sequel to The Man in the High Castle, but never managed to get it off the ground. The show has a chance to do this.

My husband commented that the show slowed down after the 3rd episode, but after reading the book, I felt the pacing was good. I'm also relieved that Juliana figured out who Joe was and that Frank and Juliana were separated by the end of the first season. Here's to hoping there is a season 2!