The Hunt for "Tokyo Rose"

[A] dramatic, affecting account...--Publishers Weekly

YA --A study of one of World War II's most hated personalities. One realizes from the evidence Howe presents that the case against Iva Toguri, identified as Tokyo Rose, was contrived and that the furor over her wartime activities was a combination of journalists wanting to create news and government officials looking for revenge against the Japanese. Howe includes detailed information from F.B.I. files and the testimony of surviving principals involved in the situation. The book reveals that Toguri's broadcasting was not in any way detrimental to U. S. troops; in fact, she was forced by the Japanese to broadcast a show with little more than chitchat and music. The book carries a strong message about the vindictiveness of people under the stress of war, the ability of people to use the U. S. justice system for their own profit, and the power of the press. The book will also make readers reflect on American racism, the constitutional rights of the accused, and the morality of U. S. officials. Highly recommended for students of U. S. government, history, and journalism. --Linda A. Vretos, West Potomac High School, Alexandria, VA
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

"Tokyo Rose" was the name given by GIs to the woman whose radio broadcasts for the Japanese attempted to demoralize American troops in Pacific during World War II . But, as we're told here, there was not just one "Tokyo Rose"; more than two dozen women did the broadcasting, the majority of them Japanese-Americans located, for one reason or another, in Japan. Among them was Iva Toguri, who, trapped in Japan by the war, remained loyal to the U.S. and was the only Tokyo Rose who refused to renounce her American citizenship. Ironically, as Howe ( Mata Hari ) relates in this dramatic, affecting account, that citizenship meant that Toguri was the only Rose who could be charged with treason. While preliminary investigations led to no charges, rabble-rousing by Walter Winchell and others in the press resulted in a trial. Toguri was found guilty and spent eight years in prison, but years later was pardoned by President Ford. Photos not seen by PW.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

"Tokyo Rose" is a name that evokes memories of the war in the Pacific to Americans of a certain age. Unlike those other names, however, Tokyo Rose is a myth--or so Howe argues in this intriguing reconstruction of the life of Iva Toguri d'Aquino, the unfortunate California-born Nisei woman who became stranded in Japan at the outbreak of the Pacific War and ended up broadcasting for the Japanese military to American troops in the Pacific. But was she really Tokyo Rose? Was there any single person who was Tokyo Rose? Did Iva Toguri d'Aquino cooperate freely with the Japanese or under duress? And most importantly, was she guilty of treason as charged and convicted? These are the fascinating questions explored in this important book. Howe covers the same ground as Masayo Duus in Tokyo Rose (LJ 6/1/79) but with much more detail from the actual trial records. A journalistic treatment for the general reader.
- John H. Boyle, California State Univ., Chico
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.