Fly+Boys+By+Eric+T

Journal 1 3/17/2011

**__FLY BOYS__** **By: James Bradley** ﻿ **﻿P. 1-112 **

The beginning of the story __Fly Boys__ is an analysis of societal issues and unique cultural beliefs that lead Japan into making the actions they made in WWII. The cultural beliefs that are described in the beginning of the book are about the "Warrior Spirit." The Japanese believed that the "Warrior Spirit" or Yamato damashii (Japanese spirit) would make them unbeatable in the war. The "Warrior Spirit" is about the belief that the Gods would favor and help the Japanese in battles. The Japanese even "convinced themselves that the Japanese spirit was a new secret weapon that would protect Japan" (P.32).One day a man named Bill Doran came to realize that the story of these 9 brave men should be told. These 9 men participated in destroying Japan's communication system on Chichi Jima. This had a major contribution to a U.S. victory. Most of the chapters in the beginnning have a lot of information on history. For example, they have information on the early U.S. when it was 13 colonies and about Japan when it was just started to become a power country. Chapters 3-6 are about the downfall of Japan. Japan’s economy was failing and they needed something to boost their economy. That thing was war. War was the hope for Japan but other people had to suffer from that and the U.S. would not allow that. In an apprehensive mindset and fear for the fall of their country, Japan bombed the capital of China, Nanking. Japan illegally attacked China and it was all over the New York Times magazine. It was the start of a war the U.S. and the world would never forget. I like the book so far because it is very informative. I like learning new information about historical events, especially on WWII. I am starting to learn how Japan got involved in WWII and I’m learning what the U.S. did in response to Japan’s actions. The U.S. warned Japan numerous times to stop their actions but they continued on. I look forward to continuing in the book and learning about the Fly Boys.

 - [|Emperor Hirohito]  - Atomic Bomb  - Ford - Trade exchange in the 1940's --Nationalism in WWII

Journal 2 3/25/11


 * __FLY BOYS __** **By: James Bradley **
 * P. 112-215 **

So far in the book James Bradley talks about how the 8 flyboys came to joining the military. They were all normal high school kids. Most of them were in their 20’s and weren't really sure what life had to offer. They wanted to do exciting things which lead to them to want to fly planes. Of the 8 flyboys most of them wrote on their transcript to be accepted into the military that their reason to be in the military was to serve their country. A lot of them had idols like Charles Lindbergh. Charles Lindbergh was the most famous man of the 20th century. He was a pilot who wanted to fly across the Atlantic Ocean. This also motivated the flyboys to want to fly airplanes. It also talks about the soldiers training and all the tests they had to like eye tests to be able to fly. I also learned that you didn’t need a license to buy an airplane. “Because you didn’t have to have a license to fly an airplane in 1923. (117). The characters are starting to change in their personalities. They are extremely excited to be able to fly and fight. All of them wanted to fight in the war. They all wanted to fly airplanes because those were the cool guys back then. “Airmen were the coolest of the cool” (119). This helped aid the boys in their decision to join the army. I like the book so far and it is very interesting. Part 1 was kind of boring but part 2 is starting to become a lot more interesting. Part 1 contained many facts and was very general and unappealing. Part 2 really started the story of the book. It intoduced the 9 fly foys.

· WWII Airplanes · [|Navy] · Model T · Recession and the war · American industries during WWII

Journal 3 4/4/11
 * __ FLY BOYS __** ** By: James Bradley **
 * P. 215-398 **

Part 3 is all about the history of the U.S. and Japan fighting. Japan is very strong at the time but the U.S. has great training and equipment. The Japanese aircraft Mitsubishi Zero was superior to all U.S. aircrafts. It was a terror to think about fighting with a Mitsubishi Zero. But, soon Japanese pilots were the ones in fear of fighting with an American pilot due to the great training they have endured. The aircraft carriers that the Americans had were like a floating town. Theboys on the planes could visit a doctor or climb into a barber’s chair. They could read the ship’s daily newspaper over their breakfast. They could check out books in the library or shop at the general store. They also attended church, had work schedules, took showers, watched movies, slept in beds, and could even play basketball! The real reason why Japan was defeated was because of the flyboys. On February 16, 1945 the largest and most powerful naval attack force ever assembled launched the first carrier raid on Tokyo. The force had over 1200 planes. Another airplane that contributed to the American victory was the B-29. Back then these planes only cost $600,000! The deadliest battle took place at Okinawa. The U.S. navy suffered more loses than all previous wars combined. The devastating blow that really tallied up the death tolls was the bombing of Nagasaki and Hiroshima. After the bombing emperor Hirohito surrendered to the U.S. Cannibalism was also a very disturbing topic in part 3 of the book. On New Guinea, over 150,00 Japanese troops were starving to death. In order to survive they ate the freshly executed prisoners. A spirit warrior named Tachibana told his men that inorder to survive, "one had to have enough fighting spirit to eath human flesh." (p.227) Tachibana would later be executed as a ciminal of war.

Right now in the book I’m extremely interested. I’m actually learning things about WWII that I didn’t know before. I learned that the aircraft carriers were like towns. I always thought they just had a kitchen and beds. I look forward to reading about how the flyboys conquered the aftermaths of the battle. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; line-height: 150%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 1in; text-indent: -0.25in;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 1in; text-indent: -0.25in;">· Carriers (airplane) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 1in; text-indent: -0.25in;">· [|Chichi Jima] <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 1in; text-indent: -0.25in;">· Entertainment (pre 1946) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 1in; text-indent: -0.25in;">· Japanese soldier training <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 1in; text-indent: -0.25in;">- [|B-29 Bomber]

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">Journal 4 4/11/11 <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 15pt; line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">__**FLY BOYS**__ By James Bradley <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">In the end of the book, 8 of the fly boys were beheaded by the Japanese. Captain Yoshii of Japan ordered to behead all the men and only spent 7 years in jail for the deed. These 8 men suffered a merciless death and are icons of American history. What investigators didn’t know was that there were actually 9 fly boys. The 9th fly boy that survived was found on the shore of Chichi Jima. That man was future president George Walker Bush. George was shot down and his raftdrifted toward this island. He was about to be picked up by Japanese solders but a submarine surfaced and rescued Bush. George was 20 years old when his life was almost over. George Bush avoided death but says he would have rather stayed with his boys and suffered the death. It also talks about how war is a shameful part of our lives. James Bradley said “If we had given in to our fears, we wouldn’t have won that war. There were no replacements out there. Our country was depending on us and we were all ready to die for our country. There was a job to do. We did it.” (p.338) Bradley presents war with extreme clarity. He reminds us that every one of those men that died in the war and is a regular human being. They all had dreams and hopes, and a caring family. Most important, the story is dedicated to the heroism of all of America’s airmen. This book is not just dedicated to one group of men
 * P. 398-483media type="youtube" key="RvizBfsYp4M?version=3" height="230" width="367" align="right" **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">I enjoyed the book. This book appeals to people who are interested in WWII tactics and the history of the war. Someone would like the book if they to learn new things and have maybe had a relative in the war or knew someone who was in it.

· <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">George Walker Bush · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Captain Yoshii · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">New York Times · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[|FDR] · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Harry Truman