Warriors: Navajo Code Talkers

by Kenji Kawano

Book Overview

The American offensive in the Pacific during World War II was] hampered by the Japanese ability to crack the most secret U.S. Codes. Navajo was virtually unknown outside the reservations, ... and their] code proved uncrackable. Kenji Kawano's striking photographs capture the quiet dignity of the surviving veterans as they recall their actions --Los Angeles Times

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0873585135
• ISBN13: 9780873585132
• Release Date: September 1990
• Publisher: Cooper Square Pub
• Length: 128 Pages
• Weight: 0.99 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 10.0" x 8.7"

Customer Reviews

Photographic testament to native American veterans of WW2

I've never had much interest in the Second World War - tv documentaries about it leave me cold. However, a recent visit to Utah (and a museum display in a Burger King branch) triggered my interest in the "Code Talkers". Japanese photographer Kawano has taken portraits of all the Navajo veterans he could find. These are the native Americans who were recruited by the marines to use their native language in transmissions behind enemy lines in the Far East. It proved to be the only unbreakable spoken code in military history. These black and white pictures are a poignant and eloquent testament to their heroism. A short introduction and occasional quotes from the subjects help set the context. It is a remarkable achievement, fusing art and history