My order was processed quickly, and I received my book in no time. Great condition too.

Tears In the Darkness is a well written and easy to read historical account of the Bataan Death March. This is a must read for those who like historical non-fiction and those who just like a good read. I am amazed at the authors ability draw you into the novel and keep you trapped there until the last page.

It has been 65 years since the events depicted in "Tears of Darkness" took place. Yet they still tug at our heartstrings and make us ponder man's inherent inhumanity in war. The story of the abject cruelty of the Japanese military during World War II is still a very important one to tell, especially in an era when our national leaders are apologizing to our former enemies for defeating them in war and subordinating themselves to them (the Japanese Emperor) in public. I'm sure those images resonate negatively in the hearts and minds of the survivors of the Bataan Death March - men like Ben Steele.

It seems to be politically correct to laud "Tears in the Darkness" due mainly to it's subject matter and the human emotion it evokes from the depiction of the horrors perpetuated by the Japanese during the Battle of Bataan, the Bataan Death march, the Hell Ships and the Japanese Prisoner of War Camps. However, that is precisely the reason I'm criticizing it. All those subjects are covered but it is touted as the story of the Bataan Death March when that is only one of many things covered. In fact the Death March is almost an afterthought in the narrative. It is covered in only 56 pages out of the 430+ page book. Therefore the title is very misleading. The book was thoroughly researched and many of the participants, both victims and oppressors, were interviewed over a period of some ten years. However, there are a multitude of errors in detail which makes me suspect that they put aside accuracy in an intent to evoke emotion and advance an agenda. Most readers, who are not historians of the events, won't notice the errors so I'll focus on other aspects of the book.

I saw three main themes in the book. The first theme was very heart rendering. It was the biography of Ben Steele, a young man from Montana who found himself on Bataan and was thus was on the Death March and subsequently a Hell Ship and a prison camp in Japan. Apparently Mr. Steele was interviewed over a period of ten years. It was Mr. Steele's experiences that the story of Japanese atrocities was framed around. Again, the Death March was only a part of the story.

The second theme seemed to be a condemnation of MacArthur. The authors referenced the "Dugout Doug" mantra of his detractors and spoke of his escaping to safety in Australia leaving Generals Wainwright and King to suffer the ignobility of surrender and imprisonment. You can say what you want about his errors in judgment and his ego but he was NOT a coward. He received multiple awards for bravery during World War I and repeatedly exposed himself to enemy fire during World War II. While on Corregidor he lived in a house on the island not in the tunnel complex. Generals are not supposed to be killed in action - like it or not, they are more valuable than the common soldier. He has plenty to be criticized for but cowardice is NOT one of them.

The third theme seemed to be a veiled attempt to exonerate Homma for the actions of his troops. The book spent way too many pages on him and his trial. The background of his legal team has no place in a story of "the Death March" so the author's motives seem very suspect. Irrespective of what he saw and how much he saw, the principal of "Command Responsibility" holds true. It defeats logic to say he had absolutely no knowledge of or responsibility for the actions of his subordinates. True, Macarthur let the Japanese Emperor and others go free for political expediency but the way they portray Homma makes it seem like they're trying to set him up for a pardon. The whole emphasis on Homma seemed out of place in a biography of Mr. Steele and might have been better served in an appendix.

I rate the book a "3" for being well written and well researched. I am not an expert but do know something about the incidents described. My mother's family is from the Philippines and I have many friends and relatives who were on Corregidor and the Death March and on the Hell Ships and subsequent prison camps. My Grandfather smuggled sulfa drugs to the prison camps and testified in the Yamashita trial on the atrocities he witnessed. There have been discussions on "Command Responsibility" in the family since then. All the Japanese my family encountered during the War knew what was going on. I found it incredulous that Homma allegedly didn't. I bought the book thinking it would be on the Bataan Death March. It was basically a biography of Mr. Steele with the Battle of Bataan and subsequent Death March being mere props. I didn't like the flowery metaphors and poetic language. They padded the narrative, which sometimes made it difficult to follow the main story. There were some continuity problems and stories that didn't have closure, especially with other characters mentioned in the story but also including Mr. Steele. The story of Dr. Ashton and Bilibid was fascinating in that one of my Filipino relatives was tortured there and also treated by Dr. Ashton (and mentioned by name in his book). My mother and her cousins did volunteer work at the Japanese hospital that was in Malate school and also helped treat some of the Corregidor and Bataan POW's. However, nothing was mentioned about that facility. It made me feel that something was left out.

Overall, I recommend the book for people want to know about those events. But I also want to get away from the incessant plaudits and point out that there are issues with the book

Tears in the Darkness is the story of the Bataan Death March and the POW camps of the Japanese in the Philippines and Japan with the center line of this journey revolving around Ben Steele.

It tells the stroy of Ben and the men that he came in contact with during this trip through hell. Interspersed are illustrations by Mr.Steele.

The story also touches on other men on both sides of the conflict and provides complete view of the ordeal. Their description of the training of ordinary Japanese soldier your will find enlightening.

I knew about the Death March but from the 10,000 ft level. This book will bring you down to where the rubber meets the road.

The authors also cover the aftermath which is interesting and provides a fitting end to such a dramatic story.

I still haven't recovered from experiencing through words and voice the best story related to war I have ever listened to and read. I usually don't get emotional from a book. TEARS IN THE DARKNESS made me cry like a baby. In my opinion every history teacher should make this book required reading when studying the evils of war.

The emotions I felt were as close to the real thing humanly possible without experiencing the trials and evil of what Ben Steele experienced in real life. You will never get over the emotional impact of "Tears in the Darkness".

Thank God for real heroes like Ben Steele. "Thank you Ben Steele, and all of those heroes who endured this travisty". Thank you, again.
Great read through the tears.

The cruelty and a will to survive are the two things that stand out in this excellent book. The detailed accounts of the inhumane treatment made it, sometimes, difficult to read. I don't expect many of the survivors ever considered buying a Toyota.

You're reading this to figure out if you should get this book--go for it. I know the story of the Death March and have read other accounts of it, so I thought why bother with yet another one?

But everyone elses' reviews made me take a chance. I've read many a book that was a great story, but it just wasn't told quite right, in the way that some people can't tell a joke or a story very well.

But the authors have done a great job. Have you ever read a book that you hated for it to end, it was that good? This is one of them.

This is a great historical book concerning the Bataan Death March and the hardships endured by US POW in the Phillipines during WWII.

I have read all of the reviews of this book contained at Amazon (62 as of now) and find almost all of them quite descriptive of the book. My father made this march and wrote his own book on it and his captivity. This book describes better than any other I have read the brutality visited upon these victims of atrocity. It is factual about the blundered gerneralship of MacArthur's command spun into his own false heroism. Like other reviewers I could not hold back tears when I read of Ben Steele's reunion with his family. As I read this book I am reminded that some men are not of good will and are unreasonable. When these men get in control of countries they are dangerous beyond description. We forget the lessons paid for by men like Ben Steele and the war they fought in when we are unwilling to label evil for what it is and to confront it rather than to negotiate with it. The atrocities visited upon these men were evil and after reading this book it is impossible to believe otherwise.

The "Bataan Death March" during WWII in the Philippines was one of the most deadly and brutal excursions mandated by any enemy. The Japanese captured this area shortly after the beginning of WWII, which started when Japan destroyed Pearl Harbor in the Pacific. This scenario is captured through the eyes of those that lived it and the records they had kept. The writings or diaries that these men, mostly from the United States and the Philippines, wrote and managed to hide somewhere or wrote after their rescue after a harrowing ordeal that killed so many. The map included in the beginning of the book shows the Luzon Island, Manila, Bataan, and surrounding areas. All of this area was where most of this story occurred.

The attack on Pearl Harbor is described through both the American and the Japanese eyes and minds. Ben Steele was a young cowboy from Montana who rushed to join the Air Force once the war had begun. Being a country boy he wasn't used to war or people that acted much different than his wild western style. The story tells a bit of training then moves rapidly to the Philippines where Ben and his units were sent to defend an area that had many Philippine and American soldiers, along with some other nations. The military leaders felt there was plenty of military in the area to repel any Japanese attack attempting to take the entire area. They were dead wrong. Some of the natives took off for the hills of the island but most stayed and fought the oncoming enemy that sent unending lines of men to attack and capture all they could. Many on both sides were killed, but eventually the Japanese did overtake the entire island, making the forces fighting surrender to the Japanese.

Eventually the men were herded in lines as the victors moved inland and north and forced to march regardless of physical condition, without food and water for the most part. If they fell or faltered for any reason, they were bayoneted or shot with their bodies thrown off the dirty, bumpy road. The description of what they endured as seen through Ben Steele's eyes and many others, officers and enlisted men alike, was in most cases beyond human comprehension. When they did get something thrown at them to eat it was usually leftovers from the Japanese meals, bits and pieces of rice, moldy, maggot filled, flies included along with any foreign substances that would come from the dirt. Water was almost non-existent even though there were areas along the way that contained wells or cisterns but the prisoners were not allowed to drink. A few managed to secretly obtain some water but all it did was give dysentery even worse than the food did.

You have to read this story to understand what our military endured, if they lived through it, which many didn't. The Japanese would stop the march, separate lines of men, march them in small groups to the edge of a ravine, then bayonet them until they fell into the ravine dead or mostly dead. Very few did survive this method of killing. When the few that did survive arrived at Camp O'Donnell, they again were kept in very primitive enclosures and given very little to eat or drink.

Eventually over the many months as prisoners, the Japanese knew they were losing the war and they pulled back or were killed or taken prisoner, allowing the ravaged men to roam the camp until friendly forces rescued them. For most of the men that did survive this tortuous trek their physical and mental lives were forever changed. Ben Steele did survive by luck, prayers, and his outdoor knowledge of survival. I highly recommend this book for anyone that is a war buff but I warn you that you will be reading some things that are very disturbing. I knew from history that the Bataan Death March was a terrible event in the world's history but nothing could have prepared me for the actual story in detail as laid out by the authors.

Tears in the Darkness is a model of literary joinery, every sentence planed plumb-line straight and seamlessly dovetailed into the next. Full disclosure: I know the authors. That said, the swelling chorus of almost unanimous approval, here, argues my point that the Normans' fastidious craftsmanship and exhaustive, almost superhuman research propel what might have been one more tour of duty through the stoic sufferings of the Greatest Generation into an epic of narrative nonfiction, well-deserving of shelf space alongside John Hersey's Hiroshima.
Following Hersey's lead, the authors refract this grisly, gripping horror story through the prism of individual lives, juxtaposing soldiers' stories with the overarching narrative of the Bataan Death March. Readers with a litcrit cast of mind might recognize this multi-threaded approach to storytelling from the movie Crash or the TV series Survivor.

Of course, the Normans are using this technique in the service of something far more profound, though no less spellbinding. Tears is briskly paced, careening from one cliffhanger to another. American and Japanese soldiers speak from the pages of their diaries, letters home, or interviews with the Normans, walking us through the circles of this surreal inferno, where it's every man for himself and God against all, as Werner Herzog put it (in another context). Careful not to jerk our tears, wave the flag, or grind an ideological axe, the Normans let the facts speak for themselves, detailing the catastrophic complacency of the American commanders in the Philippines, drinking and whoring away the sultry days in paradise and dismissing the Japanese as too slanty eyed to shoot straight, if things should ever come to a shooting war.

And then, out of sun, comes the Imperial air force, reducing American airfields to so much smoking rubble. The so-called Death March follows, in which American POWs are starved into human skeletons, marched until they die standing at roll call, and bayoneted if they speak or bayoneted if they don't speak or bayoneted for no reason at all, in this absurdist hell. It's a dizzy, gut-clenching descent into a moral abyss, and the spare, unsentimental prose of the Normans communicates its pathos and its horror as well as the flashes of humanity and, incredibly, humor that keep some of these men alive.

The authors are studiously apolitical, treading lightly on explosive questions such as whether Truman's decision to drop the bomb spared countless U.S. troops at the expense of apocalyptic devastation on the ground, in Japan. Even so, there's an implicit populism---and, I'd like to believe, an inherent proletarian politics---in the authors' decision to give us history from the bottom up, telling the story from a grunt's eye-view, rather than a commander's. Significantly, MacArthur emerges as creepily Karl Rove-ian and nakedly careerist, burnishing his public image and line-editing his own press releases with one eye on the Pentagon and the other on history's verdict. Now, the Normans undo the General's deft opinion management, revealing military blunders that may well have played a key role in bringing on the American nightmare in the Philippines.

Even more radically, the authors examine the brutalization of Japanese troops in the boot camps of the Imperial army, where savage beatdowns and nonstop psychological abuse melted men down and remade them as unquestioningly obedient killers. At the same time, the Normans restore the lost humanity of these men, some of whom were irreparably traumatized by the grotesque acts they were forced to commit. Their portrait of the Japanese general is especially affecting, movingly told through excerpts from his letters to his family while he waited, through long days of delay, for his appointment with the firing squad. The authors make a convincing argument that his culpability for the atrocities is an open question, given the palace intrigues of the Japanese high command and the astonishing lack of accountability of many field commanders. And they muster ample evidence to prove that his trial by an American military tribunal was a kangaroo court, its verdict foreordained by MacArthur for political---and self-promotional---purposes.

Echoes of Gitmo, to this reader's ear, which is why I found myself wishing, at the end, that the authors had interlaced some of the themes of their historical narrative with the imperial overreaching and clash-of-civilizations ideologies of the present, when we find ourselves ankle-deep in blood once again, this time in the mountains of Afghanistan.

Too, I wanted the authors to think a little more deeply about the cultural construction of masculinity, since cultural notions of what it means to be a man---whether a living archetype like the cowboy Ben Steele or the samurai general giving the firing squad back its hard-eyed stare---constitute one of this story's barely buried themes. On the movie screen of the American mind, military culture may be about glory and honor. But beneath all the Band of Brothers rhetoric about warrior culture and esprit de corps, it's also about a deeply pathological definition of masculinity. The Japanese military model, more brutal by an order of magnitude, only hyperbolizes that fact.

Then again, the Normans weren't ghostwriting a Chomsky speech. Besides, they'd probably argue that, yes, war is a slaughterbench, but it's also a crucible that boils us down to what we are, at our cores. In one of Tears's many searing scenes, a ship's hold full of half-dead, oxygen-deprived, starvation-crazed American POWs reverts to Hobbes's proverbial state of nature, tearing each other to pieces with their bare hands. At the same time, camaraderie brings out the nobility in others, common men who risk their lives to save their friends, without a thought for the history books, convinced no one will ever know how they lived or died.

Through the Normans' shatteringly understated testimony, we know.

This is an outstanding book. The unrelenting horror of the the Battaan Death March and the subsequent prison camp is so terrible that one wonders how any human being can be so evil, especially to fellow human beings. But it is so common place, even today that such terrible things continue unabated. The veneer of civilization is still so very thin on humankind.

I would have given this a 5 star but I was a bit uncomfortable with the writting style. When I first started reading the book I thought that it was historical fiction where a fictional character (Ben Steel) is the person around which history is told with some liberties taken. I love historical fiction and there are so many good books out there. There were a lot of direct quotes from various people that I wonder if they were made up to enhance the story. I can't remember what I said last week and I wonder how various direct quotes survived for so long. I final realized that Ben Steel was a real person and this was his story to a great degree. He must have been an amazing man to have survived what he did.

The research is obviously extensive and the book well written. I am not sure that I agree with the sympathetic treatment of Gen. Homma. The commander is always responsible for what happens under his command. Looking at it from the passage of 60 years it seems that he was not treated fairly. But given the time, the horrors caused by his soldiers someone had to pay the price and he was the logical one. It is too bad given that he didn't participate directly that he wasn't sentenced to prison as he would have been released in a few year once passions had subsided. An awful lot of really guilty Japanese never were punished.

I bought this for my dad for a birthday present so I can't give a personal review, but my dad loved it. He says that about everything, but he seemed to get through this book faster than most.

I was recently having lunch in a school cafeteria and mentioned to a group of teachers that I had just finished reading Tears in the Darkness. A blank glaze of unfamiliarity ran across their faces and it was then that I realized that the events of WWII are truly fading from memory.

Tears in the Darkness is one of those books that should be read not only for its historical significance, but as a testament to the endurance of the human soul. The authors have done a credible job at relating the events of this event in an interesting and clear manner, with interweaving the the emotions of both the Americans and the Japanese into the period. As with many books written today, this one, too, tends to be somewhat "forgiving" of the atrocities, citing the code of the Samuri and the societal commands of the Japanese during the era as reasons.

I was somewhat dismayed with the sympathy shown towards General Homma by the authors, citing the Japanese leader's lack of direct command and oversight, and an apparent McArthur directive to complete his trail with all haste as reasons for his innocence. Directly guilty or innocent, an officer assumes the consequences of his men in battle, and I was somewhat miffed at the authors' presentation of the trail.

Nevertheless, this book contains much detail and a good explanation of the issues at Bataan. Books like these need to be written and read before more events are forgotten.

Prior to reading this book, I knew very little about the Bataan Death March, an infamous chapter in the war in the Pacific in WW II.

The authors follow Ben Steele, a 23 year old cowboy who'd enlisted in the Army Air Force. The book is not only about him by any means, but his story is the thread that runs through the entire book. He made the march, spent time in several camps in the Philippines; at one point he was so sick with Beriberi that he was triaged into the "cannot survive" section of a prison hospital. However he recovered and was eventually sent on a "Hell ship" - the name given to prison ships transferring prisoners to Japan for slave labor - and finished the war working in a japanese mine with other prisoners.

Ben Steele is ninety when this book was published, he was interviewed by Don Imus on the Imus radio program. Steele is still very much on the ball, and after surviving and returning to the U.S. he became an artist and college art teacher. The book uses many of his drawings as illustrations.

It's a terrific read. The authors, Michael and Elizabeth Norman, are a husband and wife team. She had already written a book about the American nurses trapped on Bataan, They went through all the extensive literature written in English about the March, and also interviewed quite a number of surviving Japanese soldiers. This gives an additional perspective.

And of course, much of the story is horrible and grim. The Death March itself, massacres of prisoners in the jungle, men dying in the bowels of overcrowded prison ships - or being inadvertently killed by allied airplanes (the estimate is that 22,000 Allied prisoners died from Allied bombers and submarine attacks), since the prisoners were sent to Japan in unmarked cargo ships. Horrific sickness in overcrowded and gross prison camps.

The bright spots - the sacrificial heroism of some of the prisoners. There's an interesting story about a Maryknoll priest on a prison ship - William Cummings, the man who coined the phrase "There are no atheists in foxholes." He had enlisted in Bataan, to stay with the troops - he could have been evacuated as a missionary priest. Fr. Cummings died the day before his prison ship arrived in Japan. In summing up his service, including on the prison ship, the authors noted (p. 417n) "It was our general impression, from scores of interviews that every man who'd met "Father Bill" remembered him."

Also of great interest - the discussions about the Japanese soldiers. And in fact their own reminiscences. They themselves were frequently brutalized in their own training and military service - you can see why many of them thought nothing of brutalizing their prisoners. At times, you almost feel sorry for them. When you consider the atrocities, it's hard to believe you might feel that way, but true.

One last point - I know very little about Douglas MacArthur. But he comes off very badly in this narrative. Mishandled the defense of the Philippines, manipulative with the press, and after the war, vindictive toward the Japanese commanders who defeated him. If the book is accurate, the execution of the Japanese general in the Phillipines after the war was almost a show trial, with the verdict and sentencing virtually pre-determined by MacArthur.

All in all, a great and moving narrative.

This is an extraordinary read! I especially appreciated the way the Normans wove Ben Steele's life and war experiences into the book. Ben Steele was there and Ben brought the war and Bataan death march to life. Ben Steele, I so admire and thank you and all those others who were with you. I hope a movie is made with Ben Steele as the star in the movie.

It is hard for anyone that lived through WWII to have any compassion for the enemy, but this work goes a long way in understanding the forces that molded the enemy into brutal, uncaring keepers of their prisoners of war. It is frightening to see how effective military training can be in turning farmers into individuals who care more for their familiy's honor than the lives of those in their care. But more importantly are the interviews with the Japanese soldiers who could not participate in the brutal killing of their captives. What is there in our makeup that overcomes even the harshest training. This is one of the best works I have read in understanding the futility of war and violence in producing lasting results. It also set to right the saying that there are no atheists in foxholes; there are atheists when no God answers the prayers of these brutalized prisoners. And why did Ben Steele survive when so many other good men died? Only God knows. Great book, one of the better WWII personal histories.

Tears in the Darkness
By
Elizabeth & Michael Norman
Published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux 464 pps @ $30.00
The story of the Bataan Death March and its aftermath.

We all think we know what the Japanese did to our POWs in the South Pacific during WWII. A beating here, an atrocity there ... But now, Elizabeth and Michael Norman can take you step by grisly step from the arrival of GI's on the Filipino shore, to their ultimate repatriation at the end of the war.

This book is not for sissies. You have to take on the chin the fact that 46000 Japanese fought 130000 American and Filipino troops, and 76,000 of them surrendered. The largest single defeat in American military history. Add to this the ineptitude and flat-out incompetence of their higher command, and you have a disaster of epic proportions.

But `Tears in the Darkness' is not an analysis of failure, it is a chronicle of courage over adversity. It is a harrowing account of the treatment of American soldiers at the hands of their captors after their defeat.

The husband and wife authors are uniquely qualified to write this book. Elizabeth Norman has already written of the plight of non-combatants in the South Pacific, and her husband Michael has written about men in combat from personal experience.

The plight of POW's in the hands of the Japanese is a very difficult subject to write about effectively. Not least because of the way the Japanese treat each other and the prisoners in their care, is so unspeakable as to be almost unbelievable. It is difficult therefore to describe on page after page atrocious activities without blurring the enormity of the offense. The Normans however succeed admirably. Their prose is elegant and eschews sensation. They are scrupulously fair to all sides, save for an unnecessary deprecation of the Brits towards the end of the work (page 320). It baffled me how the authors could indulge in a detailed love-fest with General Masaharu Homma who was the ranking commander during the abuses (and was executed for it), while deprecating the Brits who, after all, were victims too.

However, this lapse into Anglophobia does not detract from what is a beautifully constructed work of history and human endeavor. The authors brilliantly hang the historiography onto a detailed biography of Ben Steel: an American titan who endured the dreadful experience from start to finish, and lived (and I hope still lives), to tell the tale.

I know that this is a hackneyed phrase; but it is important that everyone reads `Tears in the Dark'. Some will find it disturbing, others will be upset by it - but you must know what went on. And if Ben Steel's return to his family does not bring a tear to your eye - shame on you. But be warned - when you have completed this book, you may see your Toyota in a totally different light.
Ends - 590 words.

Although I have no family members or acquaintances who were POW's, I hold a very strong interest in POW experiences (WWII Pacific Theater), I have read many books on Bataan POW's. This, by far, is one of the best accounts I have ever read; extremely well-written by the Normans. Obviously it proves the stamina and will to live needed through unbelievable odds. The horrors of the Bataan Death March in itself was one thing but to live through tortuous treatment beyond that boggles the mind -- little or no food and water, beatings, seeing fellow Americans, Filipinos and civilians tortured and barbarically killed, tropical diseases, wallowing in filth with little or no basic protection such as clean clothing, foot protection or soap and medicine, etc. only to be followed by the hellships to Japan with equal or worse conditions continuing. This experience proves how low man can go to inflict all of this in the name of war and how high some were able to rise above it and survive. Ben Steele - I'd like to meet the man; unlikely that I will but glad to be an American and in America with him, truly home of the brave. I also recommend "Some Survived" by Manny Lawton.

I consider this book to be one of the best books I have read regarding the Bataan Death March. My father took that march, was at McDonnell, Cabatuan, Bilibid, and onto Japan via Hell Ship. From surrender in April 1942, to Japan in November 1942. It is beyond my comprehension how any person survived the march under the horrendous conditions they experienced. My dad did not talk much about his experience, so I set out to find people who were with him. And I did. Those who were in the 194th Tank Battalion, and those who were in both Japanese Prison Camps where he stayed until the end of the war - one in Mitsushima Prison Camp, in Nagano Prefecture (home of the recent winter Olympics) and at Kanose Prison Camp, where he and the others were liberated.

The authors have written about this time period with compassion, but in great detail, and now I have a much greater understanding of just what all these men went through, and my father, in particular. Along with Richard Gordon's book, HORYO, which told me what my father went through on the Hell Ship, (Richard Gordon was in the first Japanese prison camp with my father - Mitsushima) and TEARS IN THE DARKNESS, giving me real and vivid accounts of the Death March, my empathy for my father and all the men who endured this horror, climbed over 500%.

The authors have also done a great job in interviewing Japanese officers and soldiers, to give a different side of this story.

It reads like a novel. I consider this a must read.

Sally Atwell Williams

I expected this book to be written in military/war style, but was pleasantly surprised at the easy way it read. I could not put the book down. It was well written and well researched. I felt like I was playing a part in each warriors life in this book. It was eye-opening and made me appreciate the horrors these young men endured. Great read. I followed up reading this with "Ghost Soldiers", which focuses on the Ranger rescue mission of some of the Bataan Death March soldiers.

As a Pacific War buff and a vet, I had often heard about the Death March. Nothing could have prepared me, however, for the superb and harrowing full length account laid out in this book.

This tale of a Montana kid who wound up on the other side of the globe to live through just about the worst that mankind and the world has to offer should be required reading for every American who believes that they have it rough. I for one will probably always think back to this book every time I start feeling sorry for myself over some trivial aspect of life.

All in all a fantastic read. Highly recommended.

For those lovers of historical works, this book puts a very human face on a piece of history that most of us dont know much about. I highly recommend this book for any fan of history. We must remember what our fathers and grandfathers went through and sacrificed for our freedom.

this book tells in great detail how the real heroes of WWII lived and died and survived through a horrific time of war. It covers the compassion these brothers in arms had for each other during their time of crisis and brings to light the US soldiers spirit at it's best and worst.You will also learn of the mistakes that the top command made in their lack of planning and readiness for the invasion of the phillipines.
You will end up with a feeling of extreme sadness and at the same time pride in the fact that these men lived through this even to make this a better world.

A wonderful book that you cannot put down. Well written and researched and full of factual comments from participants in the Bataan death march. A great read for those interested in History or the wars!

I will openly admit, I'd never heard of the Bataan Death March, shame on me. But this book not only gives the reader insight into the game plans of the military on both the American and Japanese side, but dwells more on the common soldiers who survived. The authors have made these horrific events read like fiction which made this an easy read for someone like myself, who is new to reading stories about World War II.

I highly recommend this book and will be passing my copy on to all my reading friends.

This book describes one of the ultimate barbaric events in modern history.
While one must be in awe of those that survived, one must also be disturbed
by how animalistic humans can become. You get examples of the human will to live and also how
low humans will fall under certain circumstances. Barbarism didnt disappear in the dark ages.

I'm a World War II buff and I knew before I even opened this book that I would find it to be a great read. Riveting is more like it. The author has done an excellent job of weaving an international tragedy of death, cruelty, destruction, and political gain with a very personal story of how it all crashed down on one young soldier; and those within his circle of acquaintance. This book is a page turner from the first page to the last and tends to leave one emotionally raw. A gritty and sad composition of truth from both sides of the battle and imprisonment lends a lot of explanation of the "why" and "how", but thankfully does not exonerate. I'm grateful that the author leads us out of the dark despair with the closure I had hoped for; that of knowing the outcome of Ben Steele's life.

Great book. Riveting. Recommend for anyone interested in WWII but more than just about the war. Using one man's story to tell of one of the most memorable events of the war was brilliant.

Great book to read and enjoy. This book is well written and very fascinating. I couldn't put it down.

This is a book Americans should read-from those like me who remember the fall of the Philippines to those who have no awareness of the Bataan Death March. And why? Because memory betrays us and we recall General Douglas MacArthur reluctantly leaving his men behind to escape to Australia and returning triumphantly through the surf to liberate the Philippines. It was the stuff of heroism, and he was rewarded with the Medal of Honor.

But we need to know what really happened in order to give honor to the men who were left behind, beaten, starved, left to die where they dropped, abandoned by their leader and their country. These were just members of our armed forces, serving their country, standing between us and those who would destroy us. We need to read their stories and remember them.

The authors are meticulous in their portrayal of the life of the men after the surrender of General Ned King. He had become certain that only death was left for troops who had run out of food, water and ammunition though he knew the surrender would be a stain on his reputation. He did not realize the savagery of the Japanese foot soldier who had been trained by savagery. The years from 1942 to 1945 saw the ever-growing decline in the number of prisoners from starvation, disease, beatings and finally inability to keep trying to survive. The trials after the Japanese surrender showed the bewilderment of the enemy generals, their culture so different from ours that they couldn't understand our prosecution.

This is hard reading, but it is necessary to know that our sons, brothers, fathers were surviving on watery rice gruel with bugs and stones in it along with polluted water from streams and swamps while we were struggling with sugar rationing and other "privations." We all pulled together during World War II, but we need to remember those who didn't come back as well as those who came back with memories so terrible that to sleep was to relive their experiences.

I just finished reading this book. This is a great book to read. Every chapter is so intense that you don't want to put down the book.
I have an uncle who was a Filipino war hero who died in the Bataan Death March. Now, I envision how he must have felt and how he could have died in the hands of the Japanese Imperial Army. I also recently visited the Philippines and actually visited some of the places where Ben Steele went through like the Subic, San Fernando and Bilibid Prison.

I ORDERED THIS BOOK AND PAID FOR IT USING MY AMX CARD. THE BOOK WAS 2 WEEKS PAST ARRIVAL DATE ESTIMATED AND I RECEIVE AN AMBIGUIOUS ANSWER FROM THE SELLER THAT HE HAD MAILED AND WAS CURRENT WITH ALL SHIPMENTS GOING OUT BUT WOULD CHECK. NEVER HEARD BACK. 3 MORE EMAILS WENT UNANSWERED UNTIL I FNALLY GAVE UP AND HAD PROTESTED THE PAYMENT WITH AMX AND SENT AMAZON AN EMAIL WHICH I NEVER GOT A RESPONSE. THIS HAS REALLY TESTED MY FAITH AS I HAVE OVERALL PURCHASED ALLOT OF BOOKS FROM AMAZON OR ONE OF THEIR VENDORS. I NOW SEE WHERE THERE ARE MANY COMPLAINTS WITH THIS MERCHANT BUT STILL NO RESPONSE FROM ANYONE REGARDING HIS BOOK. VERY BAD EXPERIENCE.

Though I have spent much of my life in and around military people, and having been in the ministry for 25 years, I never realized how dramatically these men suffered. It is unbelievable. I personally knew one of the forced marchers in California, though he never really talked about Bataan other than to say he lost most of his eyesight because of the depridation. His name was Jim Strain. This book should be a wake up call for sleeping Americans!

This is a brilliant and important book. At the same time, because of the subject and the talent of the writers, it is not an easy read. About half way through I had to ask myself, "Just how much truth can an individual bear to know?" I've never before read such a superb rendering of Filipino and American suffering and heroism. Where students of history are still required to read books, this should be a mandatory assignment. The Normans have successfully brought a horrifying chapter of the past back to life and have in doing so reminded every reader of the true experiences and the hopes and dreams of a generation that saved the future for us. Midway through the book, there is a turn for even worse things to come after the death march and the labor camps. Some 40,000 prisoners are transformed by the Japanese into slaves. Not "virtual" slaves, but rather slaves. Japan had never signed the Geneva convention proscribing the use of POWs as slave labor, and so for that reason and many more they decided to use the Americans and Filipinos as slaves. They were packed aboard "death ships" and transported to Japan and other Japanese held areas to work -- seven days a week, 52 weeks per year. Without families or wives or relatives, obviously, without religious services, without organizations of support, without much hope for the ordeal ending other than by death, with constant beating and humiliation and beratings -- these men endured. It is said that 20% died and were thrown overboard during the voyages from the Philippines to other hellish areas. Some ships were sunk by allied submarines and when they were hit the Japanese crews locked the hatches from the outside to make sure all aboard drowned. When a few survivors made it to Japanese ships they were pushed away or beaten. This episode, lengthy as it is, of modern slavery, has been ignored and pushed under the rug by academics and by those who explore the history of slavery. Thousands of these slaves are still alive -- they walk among us. They had a Middle Passage fully as horrifying and hellish as any from Africa to the New World. And yet the legacy of that slavery -- on the individual and on the society -- has, as far as I know, never been recognized or considered. The Normans are owed a great historical debt for using readily available sources to describe the full hellishness of the underworld aboard the death ships that carried men packed literally like sardines standing side by side, through the Pacific to slavery and death. Here is a book that will haunt your dreams and inform your waking life. Here is a must read narrative. These stories, this information, should not merely be put out there but should be discussed at length. This is a long episode that needs to be used as instruction (and not, as Lincoln said of the Civil War, as something to be "avenged.") Much of this book seems to be, to the common read, absolutely incredible. Not untruthful. Not dishonest or exaggerated. But rather jut absolutely incredible. It says things about the human soul that we need to know and that need to be said over and over and over again. It says things about slavery and its impact on society and the individual that needs to be explored.

It is unfortunate that this book should appear when, it seems, fewer and fewer of this nation's leaders are actually reading books, books of consequence and truth. That it should appear when so many of the general public no longer reads lengthy narratives. That it should appear when the movie making industry in America has become a pathetic parody of itself, grinding out money makers with the same entertainment value as an ATM machine. Interviews on TV with the "stars" and directors of recent "war" movies, next to this truthful and honest and documented story that is not told and probably will not be told on film because it is too grimly honest, seem without doubt completely beneath contempt.

I cannot get over this story. I think my own conclusion, made again and again as I read it, began with "I can't believe that...." and not meaning that I really cannot believe, but meaning truly that knowing what these authors tell us, and document meticulously, challenges and batters our conventional and comfortable assessments of human nature.

This book should be on the mandatory reading list for the military academies in the US and for the National Defense University. But, I would wager, that it will not be. The last chapters in particular, are extraordinary in their drama and emotion and they read like a song or a poem. The sensitivity and the sensibility of the authors is extraordinary, masterful. I will not say more as the last fifty pages are a joy to read and to experience. An absolute joy. Try to hold back your own tears when you come to the final sentences of this narrative.

I heard Philip Caputo say one time that the worst treatment of veterans is to forget them, to write them off. Thank God, the Normans have made that impossible for all who pick up this narrative. In reading this I am reminded of the British inscription for the dead at Kohima, "When you go home, tell them of us and say, for your tomorrow, we gave our today."

Horrible as this story is -- and there is indeed heroism in it also -- there are several instances, unfortunatley, of horrors even worse that have not been explored by American journalists and historians. The treatment of French and Vietnamese prisoners taken in May 1954 after the fall of Dienbienphu to the Vietminh resulted in a fatality rate among POWS higher than that even of the Bataan Death March. This is documented by the International Red Cross. Starting with Stanley Karnow's popular chronicle of the Vietnam conflict and including of course the PBS series on Vietnam, that infamy has been ignored, dismissed and simply pushed aside. For that reason(and others) Karnow is as popular in Vietnam today as he is in the West. I hope some American writers will turn next to that sad and shocking chapter in history. It is time that political correctness stop dominating history and that writers at least try to live up to the very high standards set by the Normans in this work.

When I read a rare book like this that totally blows me away, I am reminded of how difficult it can be to find books of this caliber. As I read the book, it kept gnawing away at my brain how human emotion (You got heart) which apparently is considered the wild card of life, the great intangible, where soberness and maturity is crushed by raw stress is so orchestrated and physically real in war. In others words it's so primal that people are so human, and lose it past the breaking point running on adrenaline and despair. This book also makes me imagine if the deceased could communicate, what they would say and what we would learn, as impossible as for us to change. To end, the book is a no-brainer, the story transcends time and place, you should read it slow, give it your full attention. Also might have given more details, just too spent and numb from experiencing this gift. Read: The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of World War II .

The details of the "death march" provide an extraordinary view of the battle of Bataan and its aftermath. The author provides an evenhanded review of the situation facing the both the prisoners and their captives. The hardships and bravery of the captured soldiers touch the heart. 'Must reading' for anyone interested in the early days of the war in the Pacific, decisions of commanders, lack of foresight in planning, and stories of horror and bravery.

I really enjoyed this book. I love how the authors blend history with the story of a soldier that was there. I have read a lot of books this year and this was one of the best.

After seeing a review on tv, I bought this book as a gift to my husband. He never makes time to read. He finished this book in two days. I am reading it now. Tears in the Darkness is a priceless treasure.

I've read more than 50 books on the terrible tribulations of the men who became prisoners of the Japanese in World War II. That does not make me an expert but it does give me a standard by which I measure the stories. My favorites are those told first hand, the actual autobiographies. There will probably not be any new first person accounts anymore but there are books coming out that are using diaries, interviews and research of records. Such is the Norman's book, "Tears in the Darkness." They used the story of Ben Steele, a young cowboy from Montana who found himself in the Philippines when the Japanese attacked. They also fleshed out the book with various other already published stories of other POWs as well as the viewpoints of some of their Japanese captors. That was interesting but not new as these stories have been published as well. I got a little weary of reading about the horrible conditions the men were subjected to; the filth, the hunger, the humiliation, the beatings, the death and begin to feel like saying, "Okay, we get it." I kept looking for the indomitable spirit and even humor of the young Americans and their increasing faith in God that are so prevalent in nearly all the other books I've read. Instead the book left me feeling gloomy and meloncholy. I wonder if being so far removed from the actual happenings and not really having been there might have caused the Normans to be more clinical in their approach. Or maybe it was Ben Steele's attitude which seemed to permeate the writings. I would have liked to seen more joy when they were rescued and more thanks given to a country who never forgot them. This was a horrible, horrible chapter in our country's history but also inspiring. For someone who has only read this particular book about this era I think they may have missed the best stories. There's good stuff that comes out of bad and I'm not sure this is represented in the Norman's book. I would have liked to have seen the title be "Tears in the Darkness: A Story of the Bataan Death March . . ." not "THE Story " . . . Hopefully readers will be spurred to read more.

This book is truely a story of the darkest part of hell. It is understated yet so graphic that at times I simply had to put it down and walk away. It will makes you come to grips with yourself and face the question of what you would have done had you been faced with the nightmare of the Bataaan Death March. Men were force to burry men who were still alive. Refusing to do so meant their own deaths. There surely is no bottom with human behavior.

Mr Steele the protagonist is truely a heroic survivor. The authors the Normans have told a tell well and just. I will stop this review. Words about the book can not do it justice. If you have the heart read this book. Be forewarned: you will cry. But you will also learn about the best and worst in the human race. Pray god this soon doesn't happen again.

This book is well researched, well organized, and well written. It brings the experience of the soldiers, from both sides of the battle, to life so that the reader can both understand and appreciate the sacrifices made in war. I highly recommend this book.

Tears in the Darkness is prolifically researched historical narrative of the tragedy of Battan during World War II. The book combines the perspectives of hundreds of participants in the atrocious event into a comprehensive survey that crosses army lines and ranks. The narrative follows the events endured by Ben Steele, former Montana range hand who enlists in the army airborne. The content is unsettling with page after page of humans acting inhumanely. To their credit, the authors portray neither side as good nor evil. The lasting impact of the book is that war itself is the ultimate evil that transforms ordinary humans from everyday life into cruel terrorists. Soldiers from both sides fell back into their most bloodthirsty primitive natures, quite prepared to destroy any traces of goodness or mercy within themselves in order to vanquish the demonic foe. War gives an opportunity of the bullied to become the bully. War itself is an omnibus crime against humanity for which `conventions of war' is an oxymoron.

In terms of specific people, the authors do infer some bouquets for some major players while throwing some bricks at others. For example, General Douglas MacArthur is a villain for abandoning his troops to starvation and abject captivity. He is portrayed as a megalomaniac who faded away into the sunset unscathed, leaving 76,000 men to wither away while he found more photo opportunities. Judas kiss. After the war, MacArthur was the accuser, prosecutor and jury for the war crime trials. On the other hand, General Ned King is viewed more sympathetically. He accepted responsibility for the surrender and endured the consequences of surrender with his men.

Through his narration, Norman and Norma delineate logistic quandaries of both sides including tactical errors and perceived victories. Similar to "Red Badge of Courage," "Tears in the Darkness" ends on a high mark of human fortitude when the main character, Ben Steele, finds contentment in a relatively pastoral and mundane life.

This book is very well written. The writing is clear and concise which I see lacking in many other published books.
The situation leading up to the actual death march is a critical part of the story. Far too many historical based books get bogged down in details losing the point of the story. In this book the historical facts are interspersed with individual stories provides balance that keeps you reading.

This is a carefully detailed story of the Japanese occupation of the Philippines and the resulting trauma endured by American prisoners of war. The words paint vivid pictures of hardship and endurance that is almost beyond belief as prisoners are subjected to abuse and starvation. Prisoners faced unbearable heat, disease, injury and complete lack of even the basic human needs of food, water and shelter. At the same time, there is also compassion as some prisoners risked swift death to help their comrades.

It is an important story retold by the few who managed, by some miracle, to survive months and years in a living hell.

I am not only dissatisfy but also disappointed with the seller. I ordered this book back on June 29, 2009. I have written the seller no less then three times, with no answer. This is the second time in twenty years, that I have ran into this situation. In a way I feel that Amazon is not to fault for this since they have so many venders. I am hoping they look into this vender, but yet
that no help to me, is it. Unbelievable !!

PS I rate this seller, like I just can't.

A wonderful well written book. Great insights about ww2 u never hear about and the affects to a western cowboy family. Also the cruelty of war brought down to a personal level.

This book was everything I expected it to be. I had not known what exactly the war and the imprisonment in the Phillipines was like. THis book certainly explained it in great form and detail. Ben Steele should be louded for his survival and strength. You really should thank Don Imus for having the authors on radio. That is where I heard the authors talking and Mr. Steele called in from his home in Montana. Great work !
Thanks
Stu Schwartz

My Dad was a World War Two POW (Prisoner of war) and came home with a steel plate in his head, so from a first hand point of view I was interested in reading this book. If you are expecting something light this is not the book to read.

And I so appreciate that the authors are so fair in getting the stories of the participants on both sides out to the world. The book made me cry, caused me to think long and hard about so much. If nothing else the book should make you the reader pause and if honest, ask yourself if you could follow orders to kill, or if you could step outside the box and say 'no' and risk the consequences.

Or could you step forward to help when the person next to you simply cannot walk another mile in death march that is causing those around you to drop dead or drop and be killed. Do you have what it takes to help others escape during war?

So many Americans will never be faced with a life and death choice. Its to easy to sit in one home, well fed and lacking in nothing and quickly say they would do the right thing.

There is a reason the World War men and women are called the 'Greatest Generation'.