Shen HS Library Book Blog

FIC
BRU              In 1968, more than two decades after the end of WW II, the importance of the Navajo code talker was finally recognized when the information became declassified.  In  Joseph Bruchac’s  Code Talker: A Novel about the Navajo Marines of World War Two, this fascinating slice of history is told through the eyes of a Navajo Indian. 

                    At a young age, Navajo boys were sent to a mission boarding school to learn English and told that the Navajo language was totally useless.  Ironically, a few years later, the U.S. Marines were specifically recruiting Navajos because of their native tongue. 

                   After enlisting to fight for his country, Ned quickly learned how his native language would be used in the war against Japan.  The Navajo Marines were to be thrust into the highly secretive and dangerous job of sending messages back and forth in the only language known to be unintelligible to the Japanese while subjected to some of the heaviest fighting during the war. 

               You will want to read this gripping story to discover how their amazing expertise was so critical to America’s victory over Japan.   

 Mrs. Powell, Librarian