Today I am pleased to feature fellow debut author, Christine Kohler, (www.christinekohlerbooks.com) here to talk about her debut book, No Surrender Soldier, (Merit Press /Adams Media/ F+W Media), which is literally hot off the press on January 18th. Congratulations, Christine, and welcome.
Who is your protagonist?
Kiko, a 15-year-old Chamorro boy, is the main character. No Surrender Soldier is told in two points of view—Kiko’s and Isamu Seto, a WWII Japanese soldier—in alternating chapters. I wrote each character in distinctly different voices and dialects. The prologue takes place during WWII when Seto has to decide what to do when the U.S. Marines invade Guam. However, Chapter 1 is Kiko telling the story, but this is clearly Kiko’s story.
What is your debut book about?
Kiko finds out that his mother was raped by a Japanese soldier during WWII. What he doesn’t know is that a WWII Japanese soldier is hiding in the jungle behind his house. No Surrender Soldier is based on a true event and soldier in history who hid on Guam for 28 years rather than surrender or commit suicide.
Where is your book set?
It takes place during the Vietnam war, 1972, on Guam. There are also flashbacks in Seto’s chapters that take place in pre-war Japan.
When did you get your book inspiration?
I worked as a political reporter and foreign correspondent for Gannet, covering the West Pacific. I had lived in Japan, Guam and Hawaii for nearly a decade. While living and traveling throughout Pacific-Asia I was able to visit WWII battle sites and study aspects of the war in the Pacific Theatre first-hand.
Why did you decide to write about your book topic?
The courage of people on all sides of war in the face of horrendous atrocities and deprivation moved me deeply. Researching and writing No Surrender Soldier came out of my effort to try to understand why people do what they do under extreme circumstances.
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Hey READERS, I would love to hear from you.
Is your MIND FULL of old thoughts or new?
Thanks for this interview. Historical fiction from 2 POV–I want to read this book! Off to enter. thanks.
Thank you for featuring Christine Kohler on your blog. What an interesting background she has. There must be multiple fascinating stories running around in her brain.
I appreciate learning about this book through your interview. Having written two adult biographies related to the Persian Gulf War, the strength and courage of the human spirit during times of war is of special interest to me. I really am looking forward to reading this book and like Carol above, I too am off to enter the contests.
Thanks for dropping by, Carol and Sandra. Yes, I’m sure you will both enjoy reading this historical fiction and Christine has done a great job of turning a true story into a fascinating read.