Woodman delivers a gripping exploration of war's unending shadow through the lives of two men from opposite sides of global history: Nick Mitchel, a veteran mourning his wife’s death from cancer, and Junichi Takahashi, a World War II survivor grappling with his father’s recent demise. When their respective losses lead them both to the Pacific lagoon known as Truk—a vacation spot for divers that once had been a major Japanese naval base and a theater of much terror and sorrow—a fated encounter between the men forces each to confront the brutal reality of their conflicted pasts. "When does a war actually end?" Nick asks, pondering the perpetual conflict that blurs the lines between the oppressor and the oppressed.

For Nick, Japan was the aggressor. For Junichi, though, his family was undeserving of the hell they endured at the hands of America. Woodman excels in portraying the psychological toll of war when Junichi realizes the possible involvement of Nick in the bombing of his father's ship decades ago, and neither can bring himself to cast the blame aside. Through heart-wrenching narration of Nick's nightmares and haunting visions of his dead comrades during his dives to shipwrecks, Woodman deftly captures the moral dilemmas and guilt that so often follow a confrontation with the long-term impact of our actions, avoiding common pitfalls of romanticizing and dehumanizing soldiers' experiences. "That's the way all wars are fought, by brave, naive young people who don't know what they are doing, but follow orders well."

While the lengthy dialogues at times feel contrived—characters often become overly confessional in their war experiences—the novel offers rich historical insights on the attack on Truk in particular but also, more broadly, the overlooked reality of the costs of war. Trauma lingers, hate perpetuates, soldiers are shell-shocked, bodies are often unrecovered, and survivors are displaced and deprived of food and shelter. Woodman’s empathy and insight will move readers to tears.

Takeaway: A war veteran and a war survivor seek closure from WWII's attack on Truk.

Comparable Titles: Jess Wright’s A Stream to Follow, Gail Tsukiyama’s The Street of a Thousand Blossoms.

Production grades
Cover: B
Design and typography: A-
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A-