Product Description: Near the end of World War II, the Japanese are facing defeat in Burma at the hands of the British Army. After Corporal Mizushima's unit surrenders he attempts to persuade other holdouts also to surrender without a struggle, now that the war is coming to an end. They refuse and in the final battle Mizushima is injured and rescued by a Buddhist monk. Thus begins a spiritual journey for Mizushima which ends with him adopting the robes of a monk and travelling the countryside, cremating and burying the war dead. Originally published in Japanese in 1946, Tuttle first published this charming and fluid English translation of Harp of Burma in 1966.
Symbolizing a remorse of the author I saw this 1956 b/w film during my childhood, a more than a half decade ago. However, until recently I have never read the original novel which was written for children by a Japanese scholar in German literature, shortly after the bloody WWII was over. I got a feeling that this book symbolizes a remorse of this author who taught at a famous senior highschool and sent off so many young talented students (teens) of his own to the battle field in China and Burma to perish, without protesting against the invasion by the Japanese military government. My own father was also a school teacher in German literature during this war, and protested actively against such an invasion, and inevitably lost his teaching job. He has never mentioned about this book (and its author), although they were at a similar age (with a few years gap) and in the same academic field.That is how I missed this book in my childhood. Now over 65, I got interested in reading this children book, and compared with a recent non-fiction book "The Bone Man of Kokoda" by Charles Happell (2008). It is about a Japanese soldier who fought in PNG, and lost all fellow soldiers there, and after the war (and his retirement at age 60) returned to the old battle field of PNG, and spent 25 years for digging the bones and remainings of his fellow soldiers who perished in Kokoda Trail, fullfilling his old pledge that he made just before he evacuated PNG during the war. People saw a close resemblance in the bottom of their soul (or heart) between these two remarkable Japanese soldiers (fiction and fact).
Simple and Charming An excellent read and look into life after WWII. Well developed characters and a very quick read.
A masterpiece of WWII literature At the end of WWII, Corporal Mizushima, the pride of his unit, accepts an assignment to convince another Japanese unit to surrender to British forces. Mizushima's unit goes to a POW camp and spends its days tormented by the fate of their missing comrade, who had become something of a symbol of good luck and hope for them. About this time, they also become aware of a travelling Burmese monk who often wanders through the area and bears a striking resemblance to...could it be? I don't want to reveal too much, but what these soldiers learn will affect them deeply and give them a new understanding of what it means to be faithful to one's countrymen--an understanding that is entirely different from the patriotic nationalism that caused them to go to war in the first place.
Michio Takeyama's novel includes sequences of high adventure as well as beautiful, elegiac passages and meditations on spirituality and responsibility. A highly entertaining and rewarding novel.
Uneven, at best The subtlety of the book's first 2/3s is haunting and gives the reader a glimpse into Japanese soldiers beyond the Westernized kamikaze-type warrior. That said, there is a plot twist which is ludicrous and breaks the entire mood and flow of the piece. Then, in the last few pages, the book regains its composure. The plot twist I refer to, without giving anything away, would be more fitting in one of those horrible B-movies you see.
Want true Eastern writing? Go with The Old Capital. Beauty in all that takes place beneath the surface.
A remarkable book Harp of Burma is a tragic and heartbreaking book. The striking originality of the story is a perfect antidote to the overblown and overripe pretentiousness of most of the books as well as films about the causes and effects of the Second World War (Saving Private Ryan, Sophie's Choice, Schindler's List, Diary of Anne Frank, Pearl Harbor, etc. etc.). A very fine work of art to be savored by all. It has been required reading in honors English and History high school classes throughout the United States. One final note: the 1956 film version is excellent.
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