Blood and Bushido

Book excerpt: Imperial Japan's wartime atrocities left a bloody stain on the waters of the Pacific...This is a story that might have quietly slipped beneath the waves of history had Bernard Edwards not written this important book. Blood & Bushido vividly recounts the barbaric actions of Japan's navy in the wake of its attacks on Allied shipping, including the ramming of lifeboats, the machine-gunning of survivors and the bayoneting and beheading of captives. As Edwards explains, the ancient Japanese warrior code of Bushido-under which capture is forbidden--was in stark and lethal contrast to the humane code of conduct usually honored by seafarers. Anyone unfortunate enough to fall victim to the Imperial Navy paid a terrible price. Drawing on the dramatic accounts of Allied survivors, Blood & Bushido serves as a reminder of the Imperial Navy's inhumane acts and a tribute to those who perished because of them.