Flags Of Our Fathers
By : Athena Qiu
This book is by James Bradley and has 353 pages.
Behind one of the world's greatest battles was a mystery until now.
Summary
The true stories behind the flag raisers on Iwo Jima was very different from what most would expect. These six flag raisers were John Henry Bradley, Franklin Sousley, Harlon Block, Ira Hayes, Rene Gagnon, Mike Strank. They were all typical kids that were pumped up for war until they finally discovered what war really was on the "Sulfur Island", Iwo Jima. After their one year training, they were ready for the challenge. Many brave souls sacrificed their lives here fighting the "invisible" underground Japanese. Now it was only a matter of time before they get blown into tiny particles. Even corpsmen suffered this dreadful nightmare, but some still managed to survive.
Famous Photograph Taken on Iwo Jima
This almost immortal photo taken on the peak of a mountain on Iwo Jima now presents it's true story. The small group of marines and a corpsman climbed to the top to rise the first American flag on Japanese soil. The long but easy trip up was terrific until they put up the flag. It was already too late when they realized they were exposed to the enemy. Soon a wave of Japanese fire wiped out most of the flag raisers. Now they finally knew why it was so peaceful during the time they traveled to the top. All the Japanese were waiting for the moment when the Americans thought they were completely safe.
Theme
"Nothing is what it looks like from the outside." The book made it very clear that war is seen as a great, fun thing to do for your country but once you've fought it, you'll never think that way again.
I love this book because it shows that not everything is as easy as it seems. In my life, I always love to do small projects. For example, a few months ago I built a putt-putt steam boat engine. It looked surprisingly straight forward but after half way, I found it to be extraordinarily challenging. The steps look very simple but for some reason it just wouldn't work out right. I always have to find an alternative to continue the project. Almost all of the things i build are like how the book describes war. It may look like a great, brilliant idea but it's way more than you'd expect.