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Book Review by Lindsay M. Timarong Pangelinan

Rainbow Over Hell by Tsuneyuki Mohri
Translated by Sharon Fujimoto-Johnson
Pacific Press 2006
Soft cover; 192 pages; US$14.99

Based on the true-life story of a young Japanese civilian named Saburo Arakaki who survived the Battle of Saipan during World War II, Rainbow Over Hell is about the triumph of the human spirit and the return of hope after great loss and sacrifice. In the Western world, there are few accounts of what happened during this period in history, much less this horrific battle, from the Japanese standpoint, and Saburo Arakaki’s story is one of renewed hope and forgiveness after the conditions of war sparked hatred and animosity towards Americans.

Saburo Arakaki was 18 years old and a student at the Japanese-run Saipan Vocational School in 1944 when the Battle of Saipan began in the West Pacific. When the U.S. Marines landed on the beaches of Saipan, he fled with thousands of other Japanese civilians, rescuing a Japanese army officer, to what is today known as Suicide Cliff, where many people chose to leap to their deaths rather than surrender to U.S. Marines. He narrowly escaped death a number of times, and ended up joining a group of Japanese militants in which he followed orders to assassinate two fellow Japanese prisoners of war who were thought to be cooperating with U.S. forces. Arakaki was eventually captured together with the historic group of 48 stragglers who were the last to surrender to U.S. troops on the island of Saipan.

Saburo Arakaki was sentenced to death for the two murders he committed at the Japanese prisoners-of-war camp on Saipan, and so was sent to Guam for execution. However, he unexpectedly received a life-imprisonment sentence and was subsequently sent to Hawaii to serve out his life sentence on the island of Oahu. In prison, Arakaki had given up on life altogether when a chance encounter with Christianity changed him so much that his own warden began petitioning for his release. He received full pardon from President Eisenhower in 1954, and returned to Japan, where he became a Seventh-day Adventist Christian preacher.

Saburo Arakaki’s story is an inspiring account of survival. It is beautifully written and colorfully descriptive of the ravages of war and the objectivity of duty. It is not overly religious and yet it captures the spiritual basis of emotional and psychological transformation. It is an easy and interesting read for casual readers and serious war history buffs alike.

The book was originally written in Japanese by award-winning author Tsuneyuki Mohri, and published by two major Japanese publishing companies. It was subsequently translated into English by writer and translator Sharon Fujimoto-Johnson and made available in English in March 2006 by Pacific Press.

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This review originally appeared in June 2006 in PACIFIC ISLANDS REPORT.

Lindsay M. Timarong Pangelinan is assistant editor at Pacific Islands Report.

Tsuneyuki Mohri is an award-winning Japanese author, playwright and producer whose work encompasses fiction and nonfiction books, TV, film, radio, and stage. His work often explores issues in war. The recipient of numerous awards, Mohri was scriptwriter and producer of the successful Japanese film, Summer of Moonlight Sonata, adapted from his novel of the same title.

Sharon Fujimoto-Johnson is a writer and translator in Sacramento, California. Previously, she worked as assistant editor and designer for Spectrum. Her work has been published in such magazines as Dimsum, Spectrum, Japanophile, and Fibromyalgia Aware. Rainbow Over Hell is her first book-length work to be published.