One Thousand Days in Siberia: The Odyssey of a Japanese-American POW
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Book Overview
Iwao Peter Sano, a California Nisei, sailed to Japan in 1939 to become an adopted son to his childless aunt and uncle. He was fifteen and knew no Japanese. In the spring of 1945, loyal to his new country, Sano was drafted in the last levy raised in the war. Sent through Korea to join the Kwantung Army in Manchuria, Sano arrived in Hailar, one hundred miles from the Soviet border, as the war was coming to a close. In the confusion that resulted when the war ended, Sano had the bad luck to be in a unit that surrendered to the Russians. It would be nearly three years before he was released to return to Japan. Sano's account of life in the POW and labor camps of Siberia is the story of a little-known part of the great conflagration that was World War II. It is also the poignant memoir of a man who was always an outsider, both as an American youth of Japanese ancestry and then as a young Japanese man whose loyalties were suspect to his new compatriots.
Format:Paperback
Language:English
ISBN:0803292600
ISBN13:9780803292604
Release Date:April 1999
Publisher:University of Nebraska Press
Length:238 Pages
Weight:0.60 lbs.
Dimensions:0.5" x 5.2" x 8.0"
Customer Reviews
1 rating
A powerful story of an incredible man!
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 27 years ago
About eight years ago, I read Peter Sano's story when it was in its earliest form. I knew then that he should have it published - and finally, he did. Peter was born in America but at the age of 15, in 1939, he was sent to Japan to become the adopted son of his childless aunt and uncle. Drafted into the Japanese army in 1945, Peter was sent to war. By being in the wrong place at the wrong time, Peter ended up in Siberian POW and labor camps for three years before finally being released. During those years, Peter made life bearable for many of his fellow prisoners, often at his own expense - and though he downplays his heroism, he kept some people alive who would otherwise have perished. His is a tale both humorous and tragic and in the end, inspiring. Today, Peter is back in America, an accomplished architect, husband, father, and one of the kindest and gentlest souls I have ever met. It was impossible to put down his manuscript once I started it until I had devoured every page. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys tales of triumph over adversity, love beating hate, and quick wits winning out over the harshest odds.
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