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Tales of the South Pacific
Winner of the 1948 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction
Enter the exotic world of the South Pacific, meet the men and women caught up in the drama of a big war. The young Marine who falls madly in love with a beautiful Tonkinese girl. Nurse Nellie and her French planter, Emile De Becque. The soldiers, sailors, and nurses playing at war and waiting for love in a tropic paradise.
Enter the exotic world of the South Pacific, meet the men and women caught up in the drama of a big war. The young Marine who falls madly in love with a beautiful Tonkinese girl. Nurse Nellie and her French planter, Emile De Becque. The soldiers, sailors, and nurses playing at war and waiting for love in a tropic paradise.
384 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1947
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About the author
James A. Michener
525 books3,600 followersJames Albert Michener is best known for his sweeping multi-generation historical fiction sagas, usually focusing on and titled after a particular geographical region. His first novel,
Tales of the South Pacific
, which inspired the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical South Pacific, won the 1948 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.
Toward the end of his life, he created the Journey Prize, awarded annually for the year's best short story published by an emerging Canadian writer; founded an MFA program now, named the Michener Center for Writers, at the University of Texas at Austin; and made substantial contributions to the James A. Michener Art Museum in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, best known for its permanent collection of Pennsylvania Impressionist paintings and a room containing Michener's own typewriter, books, and various memorabilia.
Michener's entry in Who's Who in America says he was born on Feb. 3, 1907. But he said in his 1992 memoirs that the circumstances of his birth remained cloudy and he did not know just when he was born or who his parents were.
Toward the end of his life, he created the Journey Prize, awarded annually for the year's best short story published by an emerging Canadian writer; founded an MFA program now, named the Michener Center for Writers, at the University of Texas at Austin; and made substantial contributions to the James A. Michener Art Museum in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, best known for its permanent collection of Pennsylvania Impressionist paintings and a room containing Michener's own typewriter, books, and various memorabilia.
Michener's entry in Who's Who in America says he was born on Feb. 3, 1907. But he said in his 1992 memoirs that the circumstances of his birth remained cloudy and he did not know just when he was born or who his parents were.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 671 reviews
September 2, 2016
1948 Pulitzer Prize winner.
This was the book that caused the Pulitzer committee to change the name of the category from novel to fiction. That's because this is actually a group of 19 short stories, and they are similar in themes and subject matter, and they are sequential or chronological which gives it the feeling of a novel.
It's about WWII in the Pacific. An ugly, horrific disaster taking place in paradise; talk about a contradiction. But it's historical fiction at a high level; you don't come away from a Michener book saying I didn't learn anything. And where most historical fiction writers lean heavily on the fiction and less on the history, Michener leans on the history.
This book spawned a successful Broadway musical, South Pacific, and a feature film. It was also the basis for Michener's television series, Adventures in Paradise. If you are a Michener newbie I wouldn't start with this one. I always recommend Hawaii. I think it is his best novel, and if you are only going to read one, that should be the one.
4 stars.
This was the book that caused the Pulitzer committee to change the name of the category from novel to fiction. That's because this is actually a group of 19 short stories, and they are similar in themes and subject matter, and they are sequential or chronological which gives it the feeling of a novel.
It's about WWII in the Pacific. An ugly, horrific disaster taking place in paradise; talk about a contradiction. But it's historical fiction at a high level; you don't come away from a Michener book saying I didn't learn anything. And where most historical fiction writers lean heavily on the fiction and less on the history, Michener leans on the history.
This book spawned a successful Broadway musical, South Pacific, and a feature film. It was also the basis for Michener's television series, Adventures in Paradise. If you are a Michener newbie I wouldn't start with this one. I always recommend Hawaii. I think it is his best novel, and if you are only going to read one, that should be the one.
4 stars.
June 4, 2013
Easily more than the sum of its parts, this collection of stories is an eye-opening account of life in wartime: not the horrors of war (though there’s a bit of that), but the waiting, the selfless heroism, the bottled-up passion, the thankless endless toil, the vast logistics of a campaign, the suddenness of death and loss and love. The omission of this work from the academic canon is utterly incomprehensible to me; it’s everything that All Quiet on the Western Front is said to be, and more. Michener is far more than a captivating storyteller, collector of colorful characters, painter of vivid natural imagery, and chronicler of the orchestrations of world warfare. Each of the "tales" comprising his carefully-constructed epic narrative is at once thematically and stylistically related to the other smaller narratives and at the same time artistically whole in itself. While he does have poetic phrases at his command, what he can say without saying it – a subtly omitted word or a hint - is breathtaking.
Michener impresses with his vast understanding of the scope of a military operation, as in the chapter “Alligator” (the codename for a fictitious invasion) – the planning, the estimated casualties, the men needed to build, the men needed simply to replace pencils and paper for plans, and on and on – and then he finishes with a few brief, poignant lines of a man who wrote to a plain woman – “who would never be married in a hundred years anyway” – a proposal: “You was very sweet to me and I want to tell you if I…” “But he didn’t. Some don’t.” But, Michener says, that letter plus the one from the chaplain was almost as good as being married. That talent of Michener’s, the ability to juggle the big picture with the little human details, the forgotten grunts, the KIA and the faceless laborers, just blows me away. With every paragraph he weaves a new story of heroism, or efficiency, or defiance, or laziness, or lust, or bravery, or shame, and every character is all too human and believable. It makes the climax of the book, the landing at the island of Kuralei, all the more moving, as his narrator surveys the littered beaches and mourns the dead. This book is quite simply a brilliant masterpiece that should be read by every student of American history; it may be fiction, but it shows more plainly how this was the “Greatest Generation” without hagiography or needless embellishment. The did what they were asked to do, and worked and died and complained and loved, and they weren’t saints or perfect soldiers. They were Americans, is all.
Michener impresses with his vast understanding of the scope of a military operation, as in the chapter “Alligator” (the codename for a fictitious invasion) – the planning, the estimated casualties, the men needed to build, the men needed simply to replace pencils and paper for plans, and on and on – and then he finishes with a few brief, poignant lines of a man who wrote to a plain woman – “who would never be married in a hundred years anyway” – a proposal: “You was very sweet to me and I want to tell you if I…” “But he didn’t. Some don’t.” But, Michener says, that letter plus the one from the chaplain was almost as good as being married. That talent of Michener’s, the ability to juggle the big picture with the little human details, the forgotten grunts, the KIA and the faceless laborers, just blows me away. With every paragraph he weaves a new story of heroism, or efficiency, or defiance, or laziness, or lust, or bravery, or shame, and every character is all too human and believable. It makes the climax of the book, the landing at the island of Kuralei, all the more moving, as his narrator surveys the littered beaches and mourns the dead. This book is quite simply a brilliant masterpiece that should be read by every student of American history; it may be fiction, but it shows more plainly how this was the “Greatest Generation” without hagiography or needless embellishment. The did what they were asked to do, and worked and died and complained and loved, and they weren’t saints or perfect soldiers. They were Americans, is all.
April 18, 2024
A series of short stories set in the South Pacific during World War II. James A Michener lays it all bare, like a bleached-out beach, baking in the island sun. The stories tell of unbearably hot days and frigid nights, of relentless mosquitoes and horrible diseases. And not just physical disease, but the mental illnesses that accompanies war. Not surprisingly for the 1940’s, the book is full of solders displaying racism and misogyny. Female native women of child-bearing ages had to evacuated from islands to prevent rape by American military men. Nurses had to be constantly chaperoned to avoid the same. Yes, it’s set during war, and while you’ll get a glimpse of the horrors of battle, you’ll spend more time, like many of the military did, waiting and preparing for battle. Mitchener is at his best describing the unique characters and events in between the military action. When days turn into months, and months into years, soldiers eventually realize they are not just fighting a war, they are living their lives.
“I wish I could tell you about the sweating jungle, the full moon rising behind the volcanoes, and the waiting. The waiting. The timeless repetitive waiting.”
There is such a juxtaposition between the tranquil beauty of the South Pacific and the ugliness in wartime and in men’s hearts. Michener describes moment of bravery, empathy, and even love and then alternates to moments of bigotry, violence, and death. He lovingly describes the beauty of natives and scenes of tropical paradise, then a few pages later he reveals the confusion and insanity of combat.
Five stars for compelling storytelling that brings to life the locations, characters, and events of World War II in the South Pacific. Deserving of its Pulitzer Prize for the honest writing of the weakness and strengths in humanity that war exposes.
“I wish I could tell you about the sweating jungle, the full moon rising behind the volcanoes, and the waiting. The waiting. The timeless repetitive waiting.”
There is such a juxtaposition between the tranquil beauty of the South Pacific and the ugliness in wartime and in men’s hearts. Michener describes moment of bravery, empathy, and even love and then alternates to moments of bigotry, violence, and death. He lovingly describes the beauty of natives and scenes of tropical paradise, then a few pages later he reveals the confusion and insanity of combat.
Five stars for compelling storytelling that brings to life the locations, characters, and events of World War II in the South Pacific. Deserving of its Pulitzer Prize for the honest writing of the weakness and strengths in humanity that war exposes.
November 4, 2023
One of the finest collections of linked stories, Tales of the South Pacific is set during WWII and depicts the experiences (and emotions) of a wide cast of characters (e.g., sailors/soldiers, nurses, island natives). It won the Pulitzer Prize in 1948. The included stories deal with questions of war, culture, and life, such as: What is the nature of courage and from where does it arise? What does intergroup contact reveal about the intrinsic value, similarities, and deservingness (of love) of all humans? What are the social, economic, and psychological effects of war on the military personnel and civilians involved?
It is best to read the stories in order as certain key characters (e.g., Tony Fry, Bill Harbison, Joe Cable) are connecting threads, such that later stories build on earlier ones (or resonate most if you know about the preceding events), and the last stories cover what ultimately happens to those characters. Below, I summarize each story (in order) and provide illustrative quotes.
The South Pacific
This is a short, humorous introduction, which sets the stage for the subsequent stories.
“‘Anybody in here fix a zipper?’ I asked, and a chief machinist said he thought he could, but he was drunk and all he did was to rip the admiral’s underwear, which made me laugh again.”
Coral Sea
This story details what it is like waiting to be attacked, knowing that when the attack comes it will be utterly devastating.
“By now no one could talk or think … In anxiety we waited, and all about the silent jungle bore down upon us with heat, flies, sickness and ominous silence.”
Mutiny
After being sent to an island to build an airstrip, the narrator learns about its history and comes to understand that the trees he must knock down are “a living cathedral.”
“To keep the prisoners out. In case they mutinied. They did, too. All the time. This was an island of horror.”
An Officer and a Gentleman
Seemingly about how the Navy misspends (or misuses) its talent and about the consequences of ill-planned assignment and promotion decisions. Herein, Bill Harbison is assigned to be a recreation officer and doesn’t like it. Later stories come back to him.
“It was too bad that Ensign Bill Harbison joined the Navy … He had a sharp mind. In almost any group he was outstanding.”
The Cave
Among the best in the collection, this story tells about the connections between a brave PT boat officer and a “Remittance Man” who is hiding away in the jungle providing information on the enemy, while being hunted. The story describes people who differ greatly in personality reckoning with circumstances that reveal who they truly are, in terms of courage.
“He was unsure of himself around other officers, but he was a devil in a PT Boat. Didn’t know what fear was.”
“But what I mean is, how does a guy get courage like that?”
The Milk Run
The focus of this story is a rescue mention to save one pilot.
“When you try to deliver this precious milk, little kids are all around you with .22’s, popping at you.”
The Alligator
This is about the research for a military operation, wherein the admirals’ top-of-the-head decisions are made real/doable by the work of specialists.
“Long before the first ship set sail for Kuralei, almost before the long-range bombers started softening it up, the medical history of the battle was written. Like all such predictions, it was bloody and cruel and remorseless.”
Our Heroine
One of my favorites in the collection, this is about a nurse from Arkansas who meets a Frenchman with an island plantation and cacao grove. She believes she wants to see the world and meet people from different places and cultures, but, given her southern background, is she ready to do so?
“Hers was the heart-hunger that has sent people of all ages in search of new thoughts and deeper perceptions.”
Dry Rot
A tale about dealing with skin diseases, heat itch, fungus, and loneliness.
“A steady stream of guys, just as good as Joe, went back to the States, under guard.”
Fo’ Dolla
Another of my favorites and it includes one of the most memorable characters (Bloody Mary). This is about intergroup contact, about how the presence of the military changes everything for civilians, including island natives and indentured servants from Tonkin, China, and about the relationships that emerge in this context.
“Into this economy comes a couple hundred thousand American soldiers with more money than they can spend.”
“The yellow woman learned dozes of white words but the white men learned not one yellow word. When she had mastered their vilest obscenities, they made her an honorary Marine, emblem and all.”
Passion
A man struggles to write his wife about an ordeal where he was lost at sea on a raft, revealing the differences in relationship styles across people.
“Passion! … By heaven! The lord certainly dispenses uneven quantities of it to different people.”
A Boar’s Tooth
This story focuses on a tribe where pigs are the center of the religion, and are sacrificed, revealing a lot about the importance and sources of social solidarity.
“But there was one flaw. Among all this luxury there was no reason for living.”
“But it takes strong ritual to affect some sinners.”
Wine for the Mess at Segi
In this story, there is a dangerous plane trip to secure whiskey for Christmas, wherein we learn that a wine mess really doesn’t have wine and that it’s a mistake to kill nearby crabs.
“I think the Roman emperors made war the way Tony Fry did. No man worked less than he, and few accomplished more”
The Airstrip at Konora
The assignment herein is to build an airstrip quickly, despite how hard it is or how dangerous.
“When you went into Konora, the chips were down. You battered out an airstrip in record time, or else…”
Those Who Fraternize
There are promiscuous men and women. There are women who slap and kick. This story is about them.
“I talk very serious. When you kissing me? When you taking my dress off? I s’pose you never wish your wife dead?”
The Strike
About a relentless supply officer who creates a petty, hateful social environment, and how he has jokes played on him.
“The captain’s principal innovations, however, concerned free time, entertainment, and recreation ... All games were canceled.”
Frisco
Soldiers watch a naval battle unfold, waiting to make a beach landing the following day, and bond over their memories of Market Street in San Francisco.
“Men who would work as never before when the sun came up, could not drive themselves to sleep. They clustered about the rails and guns to watch the American Navy in its first great Pacific bombardment.”
The Landing on Kuralie
The beach invasion happens and it is depicted in detail. It is complicated by loose lips and the defenses planned by a Japanese officer who was educated in the United States.
“Some fell wounded. Others died standing up and took a ghostly step toward the trench. Some dropped from fright and lay like dead men. But most went on, grunting as they met the Japs with bayonets.”
“We hadn’t expected a Cal Tech honors graduate to be waiting for us on the very beach we wanted.”
A Cemetery at Hoga Point
The narrator receives a tour of the post-invasion cemetery, where the dead soldiers are buried, from the Black caretaker.
“Up here … dey is only heroes. Me ‘n’ Denis has often remarked dat never again will we be surrounded only by heroes.”
“No, suh! … Dey’s only so many good men, and if you uses ‘em up, where you gonna git de others?”
“Up here ever’body is easy to get along wid. Doan’ make no difference is you cullud or white. When yo’ dead you fo’get all dat stuff.”
It is best to read the stories in order as certain key characters (e.g., Tony Fry, Bill Harbison, Joe Cable) are connecting threads, such that later stories build on earlier ones (or resonate most if you know about the preceding events), and the last stories cover what ultimately happens to those characters. Below, I summarize each story (in order) and provide illustrative quotes.
The South Pacific
This is a short, humorous introduction, which sets the stage for the subsequent stories.
“‘Anybody in here fix a zipper?’ I asked, and a chief machinist said he thought he could, but he was drunk and all he did was to rip the admiral’s underwear, which made me laugh again.”
Coral Sea
This story details what it is like waiting to be attacked, knowing that when the attack comes it will be utterly devastating.
“By now no one could talk or think … In anxiety we waited, and all about the silent jungle bore down upon us with heat, flies, sickness and ominous silence.”
Mutiny
After being sent to an island to build an airstrip, the narrator learns about its history and comes to understand that the trees he must knock down are “a living cathedral.”
“To keep the prisoners out. In case they mutinied. They did, too. All the time. This was an island of horror.”
An Officer and a Gentleman
Seemingly about how the Navy misspends (or misuses) its talent and about the consequences of ill-planned assignment and promotion decisions. Herein, Bill Harbison is assigned to be a recreation officer and doesn’t like it. Later stories come back to him.
“It was too bad that Ensign Bill Harbison joined the Navy … He had a sharp mind. In almost any group he was outstanding.”
The Cave
Among the best in the collection, this story tells about the connections between a brave PT boat officer and a “Remittance Man” who is hiding away in the jungle providing information on the enemy, while being hunted. The story describes people who differ greatly in personality reckoning with circumstances that reveal who they truly are, in terms of courage.
“He was unsure of himself around other officers, but he was a devil in a PT Boat. Didn’t know what fear was.”
“But what I mean is, how does a guy get courage like that?”
The Milk Run
The focus of this story is a rescue mention to save one pilot.
“When you try to deliver this precious milk, little kids are all around you with .22’s, popping at you.”
The Alligator
This is about the research for a military operation, wherein the admirals’ top-of-the-head decisions are made real/doable by the work of specialists.
“Long before the first ship set sail for Kuralei, almost before the long-range bombers started softening it up, the medical history of the battle was written. Like all such predictions, it was bloody and cruel and remorseless.”
Our Heroine
One of my favorites in the collection, this is about a nurse from Arkansas who meets a Frenchman with an island plantation and cacao grove. She believes she wants to see the world and meet people from different places and cultures, but, given her southern background, is she ready to do so?
“Hers was the heart-hunger that has sent people of all ages in search of new thoughts and deeper perceptions.”
Dry Rot
A tale about dealing with skin diseases, heat itch, fungus, and loneliness.
“A steady stream of guys, just as good as Joe, went back to the States, under guard.”
Fo’ Dolla
Another of my favorites and it includes one of the most memorable characters (Bloody Mary). This is about intergroup contact, about how the presence of the military changes everything for civilians, including island natives and indentured servants from Tonkin, China, and about the relationships that emerge in this context.
“Into this economy comes a couple hundred thousand American soldiers with more money than they can spend.”
“The yellow woman learned dozes of white words but the white men learned not one yellow word. When she had mastered their vilest obscenities, they made her an honorary Marine, emblem and all.”
Passion
A man struggles to write his wife about an ordeal where he was lost at sea on a raft, revealing the differences in relationship styles across people.
“Passion! … By heaven! The lord certainly dispenses uneven quantities of it to different people.”
A Boar’s Tooth
This story focuses on a tribe where pigs are the center of the religion, and are sacrificed, revealing a lot about the importance and sources of social solidarity.
“But there was one flaw. Among all this luxury there was no reason for living.”
“But it takes strong ritual to affect some sinners.”
Wine for the Mess at Segi
In this story, there is a dangerous plane trip to secure whiskey for Christmas, wherein we learn that a wine mess really doesn’t have wine and that it’s a mistake to kill nearby crabs.
“I think the Roman emperors made war the way Tony Fry did. No man worked less than he, and few accomplished more”
The Airstrip at Konora
The assignment herein is to build an airstrip quickly, despite how hard it is or how dangerous.
“When you went into Konora, the chips were down. You battered out an airstrip in record time, or else…”
Those Who Fraternize
There are promiscuous men and women. There are women who slap and kick. This story is about them.
“I talk very serious. When you kissing me? When you taking my dress off? I s’pose you never wish your wife dead?”
The Strike
About a relentless supply officer who creates a petty, hateful social environment, and how he has jokes played on him.
“The captain’s principal innovations, however, concerned free time, entertainment, and recreation ... All games were canceled.”
Frisco
Soldiers watch a naval battle unfold, waiting to make a beach landing the following day, and bond over their memories of Market Street in San Francisco.
“Men who would work as never before when the sun came up, could not drive themselves to sleep. They clustered about the rails and guns to watch the American Navy in its first great Pacific bombardment.”
The Landing on Kuralie
The beach invasion happens and it is depicted in detail. It is complicated by loose lips and the defenses planned by a Japanese officer who was educated in the United States.
“Some fell wounded. Others died standing up and took a ghostly step toward the trench. Some dropped from fright and lay like dead men. But most went on, grunting as they met the Japs with bayonets.”
“We hadn’t expected a Cal Tech honors graduate to be waiting for us on the very beach we wanted.”
A Cemetery at Hoga Point
The narrator receives a tour of the post-invasion cemetery, where the dead soldiers are buried, from the Black caretaker.
“Up here … dey is only heroes. Me ‘n’ Denis has often remarked dat never again will we be surrounded only by heroes.”
“No, suh! … Dey’s only so many good men, and if you uses ‘em up, where you gonna git de others?”
“Up here ever’body is easy to get along wid. Doan’ make no difference is you cullud or white. When yo’ dead you fo’get all dat stuff.”
May 20, 2020
This is not a collection of short stories but rather a group of tales- some more tangential than others- with recurring characters, themes and locations. These stories largely consist of officers, enlisted men, nurses, and natives who attempt to stay busy- physically and mentally- as they await the next push of the war.
Michener's two areas of focus here are the clash of drastically different cultures and the soldiers' struggle to grapple with the age old question of "why am I here"? Most of these stories detail the inner workings of the characters' minds, their desires, their fears. I was expecting more attention given to the conflict itself, but Michener is more interested in illustrating the emotional toll of waiting; waiting for the next deadly push and trying to make the most out of the time they have to themselves.
This is a novel of several narrative threads that are tied together with the concluding attack on Kuralei. It is the only chapter dedicated to conflict, and it is expertly done by Michener. Some of the best chapters, however, are rather simple affairs such as a Doctor trying to find passion in a letter to his wife, or a lonely enlisted man who clings to an unknown pen pal.
Tragic stuff. Wonderful book.
Michener's two areas of focus here are the clash of drastically different cultures and the soldiers' struggle to grapple with the age old question of "why am I here"? Most of these stories detail the inner workings of the characters' minds, their desires, their fears. I was expecting more attention given to the conflict itself, but Michener is more interested in illustrating the emotional toll of waiting; waiting for the next deadly push and trying to make the most out of the time they have to themselves.
This is a novel of several narrative threads that are tied together with the concluding attack on Kuralei. It is the only chapter dedicated to conflict, and it is expertly done by Michener. Some of the best chapters, however, are rather simple affairs such as a Doctor trying to find passion in a letter to his wife, or a lonely enlisted man who clings to an unknown pen pal.
Tragic stuff. Wonderful book.
September 21, 2021
I am of that generation that grew up seeing these monstrously enormous hardcovers with MICHENER written down the spine on bookshelves on the rare moments my family went visiting. I later read a handful of them (Alaska, Texas, and Chesapeake) and felt myself a bigger, better person for having survived them. Actually, that isn't fair because, especially for Texas and Chesapeake, I really did enjoy the stories and felt I learned something about history each time. They were all multigenerational family epics of fiction set with relative realism in a historical, geographical context.
Tales of the South Pacific is a totally different animal, however. In his first book, at the relatively old age for a debut writer at 40, Michener fictionalizes his own experiences in WWII in the South Pacific in a series of 19 short stories. They are rather scattershot at the start but start to dovetail together towards the middle and then follow the narrative of an island-hopping campaign to the end. I will risk being called excessively woke when I say that the portrayal of women here (almost 100% prostitutes) and the way they are treated and talked about by all the men is deplorable. If the stories hadn't coagulated into a narrative towards the end, I would have dissed the book with only 3 stars. However, there is a certain quality to Michener's writing which, if at first sounded too much like Hemmingway, seems to develop its own unique voice towards the middle and remains somewhat a precursor to the sarcastic humor later employed by James Heller in Catch-22.
As per usual during this period, the war dominated publishing and there were probably not a lot of alternatives for the Pulitzer committee when they gave Michener his first and only Pulitzer Prize.
My votable list of Pulitzer winners which I have read (only have the 40s, 50s, and 60s to finish!):
September 6, 2021
James A. Michener's Tales of the South Pacific, a collection of connected stories of rear-echelon service in the Solomons and New Hebrides during World War II, received a Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1948, inspired the Broadway musical South Pacific, and served as the foundation for the early-1960s TV series Adventures in Paradise. I found it boring. In trying to describe the tales, the words flat, cliched, repetitive, and dated came to mind. The book has not withstood the test of time. It rates only Two Stars in the Bali Ha'i of my library.
March 25, 2024
1948 Pulitzer Prize Winner.
First Read - April 2017
I read this book for my Pulitzer Prize Reading Challenge. I'm probably already prejudiced when reading any PP winner, but I really tried to remain neutral while reading this book.
With the amount of WWII literature I have been reading, I'm finding myself wondering if I am in fact a Pacifist - or at least against war. Because I'm NOT against someone physically defending themselves.
This book was heart wrenching. So many men died. So many men committed adultery on their wives. I HATE adultery. I don't know if anyone can remain integral in war. The more I read of people in the trenches, and the effects of war (PTSD, dead fathers, mothers, brothers, lovers, family) the more I believe war is awful.
I respect those who fought and died for their country, but then I'm torn when I read accounts of those men willing to lay down their lives for those they left behind, but are having multiple affairs with women while abroad.
This book tugged on so many of my heart strings. Men fell in love with island woman but refused to marry them because they were coloured (yellow, black, mixed). I wasn't used to reading a book where most of the racism was thrown against other races (like the "yellows" or the "Japs") and I wasn't as affected by the racial terms. However, as soon as I read about a coloured person being called a "nigger," I would flare up. Interesting how racism affects us more when your race is the target.
I was going to give this book a 4 star because of the amount of affairs, but the last chapters did me in for a 5 star. Michener wrote so so so so well.
I'm really glad I knew that this book was a collection of short stories- literally "tales of the South Pacific," various accounts of men who fought in different locations. I may have gotten confused and quit reading because the story line didn't flow smoothly.
My favourite chapters were 'Mutiny,' 'Our Heroine,' and 'Fo Dolla.'
Highly recommend this book!
Second Read - March 2024
I don’t know what I was on the first time I read this book. My biggest take away was that this story was what I wrote, ”this book was a collection of short stories - literally ‘Tales of the South Pacific.’ Somehow I was convinced that each chapter was a stand alone and the story line didn’t flow smoothly. Clearly from the 5 star rating I gave, that didn’t bother me. But this time I’m like, wait! Wasn’t he mentioned in an earlier chapter? And Oh! We’re learning more about this person now. And hey! He’s back again!
Honestly - I was apparently out to lunch my first read through, but I still loved it then and still love it now.
First Read - April 2017
I read this book for my Pulitzer Prize Reading Challenge. I'm probably already prejudiced when reading any PP winner, but I really tried to remain neutral while reading this book.
With the amount of WWII literature I have been reading, I'm finding myself wondering if I am in fact a Pacifist - or at least against war. Because I'm NOT against someone physically defending themselves.
This book was heart wrenching. So many men died. So many men committed adultery on their wives. I HATE adultery. I don't know if anyone can remain integral in war. The more I read of people in the trenches, and the effects of war (PTSD, dead fathers, mothers, brothers, lovers, family) the more I believe war is awful.
I respect those who fought and died for their country, but then I'm torn when I read accounts of those men willing to lay down their lives for those they left behind, but are having multiple affairs with women while abroad.
This book tugged on so many of my heart strings. Men fell in love with island woman but refused to marry them because they were coloured (yellow, black, mixed). I wasn't used to reading a book where most of the racism was thrown against other races (like the "yellows" or the "Japs") and I wasn't as affected by the racial terms. However, as soon as I read about a coloured person being called a "nigger," I would flare up. Interesting how racism affects us more when your race is the target.
I was going to give this book a 4 star because of the amount of affairs, but the last chapters did me in for a 5 star. Michener wrote so so so so well.
I'm really glad I knew that this book was a collection of short stories- literally "tales of the South Pacific," various accounts of men who fought in different locations. I may have gotten confused and quit reading because the story line didn't flow smoothly.
My favourite chapters were 'Mutiny,' 'Our Heroine,' and 'Fo Dolla.'
Highly recommend this book!
Second Read - March 2024
I don’t know what I was on the first time I read this book. My biggest take away was that this story was what I wrote, ”this book was a collection of short stories - literally ‘Tales of the South Pacific.’ Somehow I was convinced that each chapter was a stand alone and the story line didn’t flow smoothly. Clearly from the 5 star rating I gave, that didn’t bother me. But this time I’m like, wait! Wasn’t he mentioned in an earlier chapter? And Oh! We’re learning more about this person now. And hey! He’s back again!
Honestly - I was apparently out to lunch my first read through, but I still loved it then and still love it now.
May 21, 2013
I must say that I really did not enjoy reading this book. It is incredibly slow, is shows a very distorted fairy-taleesque picture of the Pacific theater, and many of the problems in the story, in my opinion, are incredibly mundane.
However, despite disliking the book I respect the role of Tales of the South Pacific in American literary history. Here's why: When this book was released in 1947, it was the book America needed, not the book that best showed life in the Pacific. The American public had been through so much during WWII that they would not be interested in a Saving Private Ryan novel equivalent, like Helmet for My Pillow. As a result, we get Tales of the South Pacific. A mundane book about mundane events, except for the second to last story.
Read this book if you are interested in reading about how people wanted to view the war after it ended, but not as a way to view the war as it happened.
However, despite disliking the book I respect the role of Tales of the South Pacific in American literary history. Here's why: When this book was released in 1947, it was the book America needed, not the book that best showed life in the Pacific. The American public had been through so much during WWII that they would not be interested in a Saving Private Ryan novel equivalent, like Helmet for My Pillow. As a result, we get Tales of the South Pacific. A mundane book about mundane events, except for the second to last story.
Read this book if you are interested in reading about how people wanted to view the war after it ended, but not as a way to view the war as it happened.
September 8, 2007
I think this book is a must-read for any American in the post-WWII era. Framed as a collection of loosely-connected short stories, narrated from a single perspectivce, Mitchner weaves together themes of love, loss, and struggle with a lucid and sometimes technical commentary on the American war effort in the Pacific theater. His characters are both intensely human and larger than life, and the developing theme throughout the book is that titanic and often tragic effors contribute to the betterment of individual people (and to our society as a whole). This is the oldest story in our collective history: anecdotes and tales of adventure, set against an exotic background, grounded in our own perspective. The "Tales" are above all inspiring--and stand apart from any American literature written since the inception of our nation.
May 1, 2013
Not at all like South Pacific, no body talking happy talk, no women warbling about washing men out of their hair.
What there is, is a collection of stories, some funny, some tragic and all set in the south pacific. Michener writes well and you begin to care about the men he talks about, many seem disillusioned, far away from home and family and seeming to spend most of the time waiting.
What there is, is a collection of stories, some funny, some tragic and all set in the south pacific. Michener writes well and you begin to care about the men he talks about, many seem disillusioned, far away from home and family and seeming to spend most of the time waiting.
December 12, 2020
The Jason Pettus 2020 Autumn Reading Challenge (join us!)
#4: A Pulitzer Prize winner
When I was growing up in the 1970s, seemingly every adult I knew had at least a couple of James A. Michener's humongous historical-fiction tomes in their bookshelves, and it always made me curious to take some of them on once I got old enough and became a good enough reader to do so; but now that I have gotten old enough, Michener has profoundly fallen out of favor, and in the 2020s I doubt you'll find even one young person out of ten who has even heard of him. That's a shame, I discovered after finally reading my very first book of his, which happens to be the very first book he wrote, 1947's Tales of the South Pacific; because despite the daunting reputation of his books' page counts, this turned out to be one of the more pleasantly readable books I've taken on in the last year, a much more poetic and emotionally moving manuscript than I was expecting from Michener's reputation as "King of the Overlong Exposition."
Michener's one and only Pulitzer win of the over 50 books he published, and the source material for the Broadway musical of the same name, this is even more surprising when you realize that he was a simple high-school teacher with no publishing credits in the years leading up to World War Two, and that he only wrote this book in a personal attempt to capture all the crazy stories he witnessed as a Navy journalist during the war (a position he volunteered for because of otherwise being a pacifist Quaker, and a position only given to him because his commanding officers mistakenly thought he was the son of Admiral Marc Mitscher, and therefore needed to be handled with kid gloves). But once you read it, you immediately understand why the wartime Pulitzer committee would consider this irresistible catnip; because much like John Hersey's fellow Pulitzer-winning A Bell for Adano two years previously, Michener's main point here is to show how the benefits of a capitalist democracy like the US provided the exact entrepreneurial skills and "can-do attitude" that allowed the US to be the decisive factor in the Allies winning the war in the first place, a sort of paean to the kinds of quick thinking, solutions on the fly, and dogged persistence that allowed the American military to finally overcome a vastly superior Japanese force, one that already knew the tiny hidden islands of the Pacific Ocean with a kind of intimacy and mastery that the US still hasn't acquired even 80 years later.
But what sets this apart from previous wartime books -- and what truly made it so beloved when it first came out -- is that Michener digs down to find the beating heartbeat of humanity that lurks within these stories of battleship maneuvers and bombing raids, excelling at showing just how much downtime there is between battles in war, and the various good, bad, serious and silly ways the soldiers involved deal with these anxious downtimes. And in this, Michener is surprisingly critical of the very soldiers he means to champion, not shying away at all from the acknowledgement that alcoholism was rampant among the US military during the war, that there were many soldiers who used fascism as a convenient excuse to line their own pockets, and that American nurses had to be stationed literally on islands by themselves with no male soldiers in sight, for fear of otherwise being the perpetual victims of sexual assault the entire time they were there. It's the back-and-forth between this idealistic heroism and the sometimes ugly realities of human nature that provides the frisson that makes this book so readable, and it pretty much draws a line in the sand that demarks the way that all military stories were told before it, and the way all such stories were permanently changed after it.
Nonetheless, I'm giving it 4 stars instead of 5, mostly as a way of acknowledging that younger readers and especially readers of color will find every single problematic element that's almost always found in books this old; for despite Michener's relatively progressive stance here that "rape is bad," he still loads this manuscript up with so many awkward cultural statements about race and gender as to give heart palpitations to any good Woke. I personally wasn't that particularly bothered by it; but with every passing year, I feel more and more compelled to follow up such statements with an acknowledgement that I'm a 51-year-old straight white male, so of course I wasn't that particularly bothered by it, but that others with different backgrounds than mine will find this a much more troubling book than I did. (And of course, the less said about the musical adaptation's "There's Nothin' Like a Dame," in which Rodgers and Hammerstein make a lighthearted joke about these soldiers' predelection for serially raping any woman who comes within grabbing distance of them [actual lyrics: "We feel as hungry as the wolf felt when he met Red Riding Hood"], the better.)
So all in all, like most books of this type, caution and an open mind is required when approaching Tales of the South Pacific here 74 years after its initial publication; but if you're able to do so, you'll find a surprisingly enjoyable, surprisingly sophisticated record of both the highs and lows of the so-called "Greatest Generation," and I have to admit that this did nothing but even further solidify my interest in reading yet more by Michener. (For those who don't know, by the '70s Michener had become much more famous for outputting enormous 1,500-page novels every few years about such specific subjects as the history of Poland, the founding of Judaism, and the establishment of America's space program, gaining accolades worldwide for his meticulous research and even-handed overviews; so there's a big part of me that feels like I haven't "truly experienced" Michener until I take on at least one of these.) That probably won't be coming until another year from now, though, so I hope you'll join me again in late autumn 2021 for that!
#4: A Pulitzer Prize winner
When I was growing up in the 1970s, seemingly every adult I knew had at least a couple of James A. Michener's humongous historical-fiction tomes in their bookshelves, and it always made me curious to take some of them on once I got old enough and became a good enough reader to do so; but now that I have gotten old enough, Michener has profoundly fallen out of favor, and in the 2020s I doubt you'll find even one young person out of ten who has even heard of him. That's a shame, I discovered after finally reading my very first book of his, which happens to be the very first book he wrote, 1947's Tales of the South Pacific; because despite the daunting reputation of his books' page counts, this turned out to be one of the more pleasantly readable books I've taken on in the last year, a much more poetic and emotionally moving manuscript than I was expecting from Michener's reputation as "King of the Overlong Exposition."
Michener's one and only Pulitzer win of the over 50 books he published, and the source material for the Broadway musical of the same name, this is even more surprising when you realize that he was a simple high-school teacher with no publishing credits in the years leading up to World War Two, and that he only wrote this book in a personal attempt to capture all the crazy stories he witnessed as a Navy journalist during the war (a position he volunteered for because of otherwise being a pacifist Quaker, and a position only given to him because his commanding officers mistakenly thought he was the son of Admiral Marc Mitscher, and therefore needed to be handled with kid gloves). But once you read it, you immediately understand why the wartime Pulitzer committee would consider this irresistible catnip; because much like John Hersey's fellow Pulitzer-winning A Bell for Adano two years previously, Michener's main point here is to show how the benefits of a capitalist democracy like the US provided the exact entrepreneurial skills and "can-do attitude" that allowed the US to be the decisive factor in the Allies winning the war in the first place, a sort of paean to the kinds of quick thinking, solutions on the fly, and dogged persistence that allowed the American military to finally overcome a vastly superior Japanese force, one that already knew the tiny hidden islands of the Pacific Ocean with a kind of intimacy and mastery that the US still hasn't acquired even 80 years later.
But what sets this apart from previous wartime books -- and what truly made it so beloved when it first came out -- is that Michener digs down to find the beating heartbeat of humanity that lurks within these stories of battleship maneuvers and bombing raids, excelling at showing just how much downtime there is between battles in war, and the various good, bad, serious and silly ways the soldiers involved deal with these anxious downtimes. And in this, Michener is surprisingly critical of the very soldiers he means to champion, not shying away at all from the acknowledgement that alcoholism was rampant among the US military during the war, that there were many soldiers who used fascism as a convenient excuse to line their own pockets, and that American nurses had to be stationed literally on islands by themselves with no male soldiers in sight, for fear of otherwise being the perpetual victims of sexual assault the entire time they were there. It's the back-and-forth between this idealistic heroism and the sometimes ugly realities of human nature that provides the frisson that makes this book so readable, and it pretty much draws a line in the sand that demarks the way that all military stories were told before it, and the way all such stories were permanently changed after it.
Nonetheless, I'm giving it 4 stars instead of 5, mostly as a way of acknowledging that younger readers and especially readers of color will find every single problematic element that's almost always found in books this old; for despite Michener's relatively progressive stance here that "rape is bad," he still loads this manuscript up with so many awkward cultural statements about race and gender as to give heart palpitations to any good Woke. I personally wasn't that particularly bothered by it; but with every passing year, I feel more and more compelled to follow up such statements with an acknowledgement that I'm a 51-year-old straight white male, so of course I wasn't that particularly bothered by it, but that others with different backgrounds than mine will find this a much more troubling book than I did. (And of course, the less said about the musical adaptation's "There's Nothin' Like a Dame," in which Rodgers and Hammerstein make a lighthearted joke about these soldiers' predelection for serially raping any woman who comes within grabbing distance of them [actual lyrics: "We feel as hungry as the wolf felt when he met Red Riding Hood"], the better.)
So all in all, like most books of this type, caution and an open mind is required when approaching Tales of the South Pacific here 74 years after its initial publication; but if you're able to do so, you'll find a surprisingly enjoyable, surprisingly sophisticated record of both the highs and lows of the so-called "Greatest Generation," and I have to admit that this did nothing but even further solidify my interest in reading yet more by Michener. (For those who don't know, by the '70s Michener had become much more famous for outputting enormous 1,500-page novels every few years about such specific subjects as the history of Poland, the founding of Judaism, and the establishment of America's space program, gaining accolades worldwide for his meticulous research and even-handed overviews; so there's a big part of me that feels like I haven't "truly experienced" Michener until I take on at least one of these.) That probably won't be coming until another year from now, though, so I hope you'll join me again in late autumn 2021 for that!
March 19, 2010
Outstanding. My favorite Michener. It won a Pulitzer Prize, what more can I say about it. Mini vignettes about World War II in the Pacific that are funny, ironic, and tragic. How it became a musical I'll never understand. It should have been an epic series like "Winds of War" or "Band of Brothers". Maybe some day. After this I moved on to "Hawaii," "Caravans," "Return to Paradise," "The Source," and of course "The Drifters" among many others. (I was reading these while on active duty in the Air Force so I could visualize quite easily some of his settings.) As you can see I developed a love for Michener after "Tales . . ." You may get hooked too. Read and enjoy the ride.
December 24, 2024
2024 Review/Update:
An interesting look at the life of sailors in the Pacific during World War II. Beautiful descriptions of the South Seas islands, funny anecdotes, and quirky characters. True “source material” from the War, as it was published very shortly thereafter, and is based on the author’s time there during the War. Written as a series of vignettes or short stories, with some recurring characters. Ponders the meaning of life, the meaning of love, and the futility of war.
Written at a time when the world was a much bigger place, some terms used in the book could be uncomfortable for the contemporary reader. However, I am confident, from reading the whole book through, that the author meant no disrespect.
Recommend.
An interesting look at the life of sailors in the Pacific during World War II. Beautiful descriptions of the South Seas islands, funny anecdotes, and quirky characters. True “source material” from the War, as it was published very shortly thereafter, and is based on the author’s time there during the War. Written as a series of vignettes or short stories, with some recurring characters. Ponders the meaning of life, the meaning of love, and the futility of war.
Written at a time when the world was a much bigger place, some terms used in the book could be uncomfortable for the contemporary reader. However, I am confident, from reading the whole book through, that the author meant no disrespect.
Recommend.
November 8, 2025
Tales of the South Pacific by James A. Michener
10 out of 10
These glorious Tales of the South Pacific have reminded this reader of the absolute favorite Somerset Maugham and his own Rain and other South Pacific Stories - http://realini.blogspot.com/2012/12/r... - in that they also have phenomenal local figures, the paradise that we may all wish to surround ourselves with, but also The Caine Mutiny - http://realini.blogspot.com/2017/05/n... - for the interaction between various enlisted men during conflict and the more recent rea, Falconer - http://realini.blogspot.com/2020/05/f... - where Farragut has a life changing experience in the same paradisiacal environment, for under pressure from the oppressive heat and humidity, the rotting of flesh and combat fatigue, he becomes a drug addict and that would eventually lead him to prison and worse, he would commit fratricide and fuck up his life and finish that of his brother, with impact on families and others…
Which also brings to mind one of the Myths of Happiness (this is also a great book by Sonja Lyubomirsky http://realini.blogspot.com/2015/02/t... ) which holds that we would be happy if only we were to live on a tropical, South Pacific Island (Caribbean or California would do) only studies have demonstrated that this is not true, because the Hedonic Adaptation phenomenon intervenes and once we reside in that terrestrial heaven, we Adapt to the splendor, palm trees, flavors, sublime waters and notice the exorbitant price paid for food, fuel, electricity (which another expert on happiness, Professor Ed Diener points out that it is often unavailable) almost all of which have to be either imported or produced at great cost, given the circumstances of the geography that has elements of Eden, but also the adversities that come with it…hurricanes among them…
Tales of the South Pacific combines the description of this exalting Paradise, with events from World War II, with exceptional skill, the book has won The Pulitzer Prize for Literature in 1948 and the adventures of officers and enlisted men on and near the islands of the New Hebrides (now Vanuatu), Espiritu Santo, the Solomon and some other islands, in the Coral Sea, thrill, captivate readers with a unique mixture of humor and horror, for some of the locals sell…human heads for fifty ‘dolla’ and some of the soldiers are interested to buy them (one even has a plan to store the head in the cellar, where it would be a center piece at the end of the conflict) together with the special, local skirts, which are now painted with…tablets brought in by Atebrine Eddie, albeit the authorities want to prevent individuals from selling direct to the sailors, in order to keep almost all the profits for the plantation owners who hold a monopoly on the trade and only give a pittance to manufacturers, who obviously try to circumvented this unfair rule…
One of the main characters of the Tales claims a descent form the famous (or infamous) Fletcher Christian, of the Mutiny on the Bounty fame, who has fathered many children and his genetic line is apparently visible in the WWII, when quite a few are called Christian and one of the descendants is involved in the skirt trade, up to the point where the American command draws a line, to appease the local officials…
Bloody Mary is a florid, smart, vivacious, resilient, admirable personage, a woman that works hard and loves life, like almost all the natives, tries to trade with the Americans and their allies, white Westerners that keep the distance mostly, due to racist prejudices at the time, that would prevent most from getting married to the beautiful local women, except for some notable men and some women with open minded personalities, though even in their cases, it takes some persuading and introspection…take the case of Ensign Nellie Forbush, a US Nurse, who has first a relationship with Commander Harbison, with whom she thinks she might marry, until she asks if he has a wife and the snobbish fool is offended by the idea that he could become the consort of someone ‘inferior’, then he nearly rapes the woman.
After this traumatic experience, Nellie meets with the French plantation owner – he would state that he has more than one hundred thousand in property, which would be over five million in the dollars of the day – Emile De Becque, who is past his prime, has suffered from all the diseases of the Orient, furthermore, he tells the story of the murder he is wanted for in Marseille, and the reason for his departure to the other end of the world, but who seems as a very good prospective spouse for the nurse, who accepts to marry him, only to have second thoughts when she learns about the many children he has on the islands, the result of living with native women, beautiful girls most of them, but of mixed race, a fact that offends the white woman, who realizes that she would become an outcast at home, where the idea of even mixing with the ‘black race’ is anathema at the time (for the members of the cult of the Very Stable Genius, perhaps it still is to some extent)
Yet another central figure, Lieutenant Joseph Cable, has the same problem, after he meets and becomes infatuated (using love here could seem exaggerated, given the qualms he has and the fact that that supposedly all conquering, blissful, magnificent, ‘many splendored thing’ , if really experienced, according to the definition given by Thomas Mann in one of his works, would have left no hesitation and allowed no other outcome for the issue) with Liat, a native girl of exquisite, sublime beauty, genteel character, resilient and patient approach (she waits so much for the challenged lover to decide in her favor, for our age, that looks like an oxymoron, at least in ‘modern societies’, those that have eliminated barbaric customs which give all the power to the male and keep women helpless) that is wanted by so many, including the aforementioned Emile De Becque – Nurse Nellie, as stated, has an adverse reaction to the idea of being step mother to mixed race children, writes home to a boy and thinks she wants to marry him, only to change her mind yet again…
The much older, repellent French murderer (albeit Cable does not know about the past of the plantation owner) will be the husband of outstanding Liat, unless Cable takes his only remaining chance, which Bloody Mary makes every effort to explain to him in unhesitating, clear terms ‘you fool, this is your last chance’, but the man keeps repeating with chagrin and deep regret that he cannot do this, for the primitive, racist reasons that have been mentioned, he will not be able to return with Liat to America, to his home…the alternative is clear, he could decide to live in the South Pacific and Bloody Mary mentions the huge fortune she has accumulated and would be available…
Alas, without writing names and fates, it could be said that for a number of those involved in the war, characters in these sublime Tales of the South Pacific, some decisions appear futile, with hindsight, knowing that some of them do not return, to the US or anywhere else…
10 out of 10
These glorious Tales of the South Pacific have reminded this reader of the absolute favorite Somerset Maugham and his own Rain and other South Pacific Stories - http://realini.blogspot.com/2012/12/r... - in that they also have phenomenal local figures, the paradise that we may all wish to surround ourselves with, but also The Caine Mutiny - http://realini.blogspot.com/2017/05/n... - for the interaction between various enlisted men during conflict and the more recent rea, Falconer - http://realini.blogspot.com/2020/05/f... - where Farragut has a life changing experience in the same paradisiacal environment, for under pressure from the oppressive heat and humidity, the rotting of flesh and combat fatigue, he becomes a drug addict and that would eventually lead him to prison and worse, he would commit fratricide and fuck up his life and finish that of his brother, with impact on families and others…
Which also brings to mind one of the Myths of Happiness (this is also a great book by Sonja Lyubomirsky http://realini.blogspot.com/2015/02/t... ) which holds that we would be happy if only we were to live on a tropical, South Pacific Island (Caribbean or California would do) only studies have demonstrated that this is not true, because the Hedonic Adaptation phenomenon intervenes and once we reside in that terrestrial heaven, we Adapt to the splendor, palm trees, flavors, sublime waters and notice the exorbitant price paid for food, fuel, electricity (which another expert on happiness, Professor Ed Diener points out that it is often unavailable) almost all of which have to be either imported or produced at great cost, given the circumstances of the geography that has elements of Eden, but also the adversities that come with it…hurricanes among them…
Tales of the South Pacific combines the description of this exalting Paradise, with events from World War II, with exceptional skill, the book has won The Pulitzer Prize for Literature in 1948 and the adventures of officers and enlisted men on and near the islands of the New Hebrides (now Vanuatu), Espiritu Santo, the Solomon and some other islands, in the Coral Sea, thrill, captivate readers with a unique mixture of humor and horror, for some of the locals sell…human heads for fifty ‘dolla’ and some of the soldiers are interested to buy them (one even has a plan to store the head in the cellar, where it would be a center piece at the end of the conflict) together with the special, local skirts, which are now painted with…tablets brought in by Atebrine Eddie, albeit the authorities want to prevent individuals from selling direct to the sailors, in order to keep almost all the profits for the plantation owners who hold a monopoly on the trade and only give a pittance to manufacturers, who obviously try to circumvented this unfair rule…
One of the main characters of the Tales claims a descent form the famous (or infamous) Fletcher Christian, of the Mutiny on the Bounty fame, who has fathered many children and his genetic line is apparently visible in the WWII, when quite a few are called Christian and one of the descendants is involved in the skirt trade, up to the point where the American command draws a line, to appease the local officials…
Bloody Mary is a florid, smart, vivacious, resilient, admirable personage, a woman that works hard and loves life, like almost all the natives, tries to trade with the Americans and their allies, white Westerners that keep the distance mostly, due to racist prejudices at the time, that would prevent most from getting married to the beautiful local women, except for some notable men and some women with open minded personalities, though even in their cases, it takes some persuading and introspection…take the case of Ensign Nellie Forbush, a US Nurse, who has first a relationship with Commander Harbison, with whom she thinks she might marry, until she asks if he has a wife and the snobbish fool is offended by the idea that he could become the consort of someone ‘inferior’, then he nearly rapes the woman.
After this traumatic experience, Nellie meets with the French plantation owner – he would state that he has more than one hundred thousand in property, which would be over five million in the dollars of the day – Emile De Becque, who is past his prime, has suffered from all the diseases of the Orient, furthermore, he tells the story of the murder he is wanted for in Marseille, and the reason for his departure to the other end of the world, but who seems as a very good prospective spouse for the nurse, who accepts to marry him, only to have second thoughts when she learns about the many children he has on the islands, the result of living with native women, beautiful girls most of them, but of mixed race, a fact that offends the white woman, who realizes that she would become an outcast at home, where the idea of even mixing with the ‘black race’ is anathema at the time (for the members of the cult of the Very Stable Genius, perhaps it still is to some extent)
Yet another central figure, Lieutenant Joseph Cable, has the same problem, after he meets and becomes infatuated (using love here could seem exaggerated, given the qualms he has and the fact that that supposedly all conquering, blissful, magnificent, ‘many splendored thing’ , if really experienced, according to the definition given by Thomas Mann in one of his works, would have left no hesitation and allowed no other outcome for the issue) with Liat, a native girl of exquisite, sublime beauty, genteel character, resilient and patient approach (she waits so much for the challenged lover to decide in her favor, for our age, that looks like an oxymoron, at least in ‘modern societies’, those that have eliminated barbaric customs which give all the power to the male and keep women helpless) that is wanted by so many, including the aforementioned Emile De Becque – Nurse Nellie, as stated, has an adverse reaction to the idea of being step mother to mixed race children, writes home to a boy and thinks she wants to marry him, only to change her mind yet again…
The much older, repellent French murderer (albeit Cable does not know about the past of the plantation owner) will be the husband of outstanding Liat, unless Cable takes his only remaining chance, which Bloody Mary makes every effort to explain to him in unhesitating, clear terms ‘you fool, this is your last chance’, but the man keeps repeating with chagrin and deep regret that he cannot do this, for the primitive, racist reasons that have been mentioned, he will not be able to return with Liat to America, to his home…the alternative is clear, he could decide to live in the South Pacific and Bloody Mary mentions the huge fortune she has accumulated and would be available…
Alas, without writing names and fates, it could be said that for a number of those involved in the war, characters in these sublime Tales of the South Pacific, some decisions appear futile, with hindsight, knowing that some of them do not return, to the US or anywhere else…
September 9, 2020
Excellent book that progresses from lighter fare to a powerfully poignant ending.
October 17, 2017
**Review Pending**
How does one review a book like this? I took awhile to get through it (but that could be just me - I don't particularly feel the need to rush through books like this... only taking it in a bit at a time) but I found it quite engaging on the whole. I found out that it inspired a Rodgers & Hammerstein film of the same name - and after that I could not but read the book in that narrator voice that usually comes from films of that era so that the whole reading experience became somewhat documentary-like in parts.
"Before me lay the dead, the heroic dead who took the island. Upon a strange plateau, on a strange island, in a strange sea, far from their farms and villages, they slept forever beside the lagoon which bore them to their day of battle. Over them the sea birds dipped in endless homage. Above them the deep blue sky erected a cathedral. I cannot put into words the emotions that capture me as I looked on the graves of my friends. Never once during the five weeks I helped to plan the operations... did I believe that I would die. No more did any man who now lay still in death. The Marine in the prow of the ship, he might die. The SeaBee who made noises when he ate, he might topple from the crane. But not I!
... If you sit at home and read that two hundred and eighty-one men die in taking an island, the number is only a symbol for the mind to classify. But when you stand at the white crosses, the two hundred and eighty one dead became men: the sons, the husbands, and the lovers."
How does one review a book like this? I took awhile to get through it (but that could be just me - I don't particularly feel the need to rush through books like this... only taking it in a bit at a time) but I found it quite engaging on the whole. I found out that it inspired a Rodgers & Hammerstein film of the same name - and after that I could not but read the book in that narrator voice that usually comes from films of that era so that the whole reading experience became somewhat documentary-like in parts.
"Before me lay the dead, the heroic dead who took the island. Upon a strange plateau, on a strange island, in a strange sea, far from their farms and villages, they slept forever beside the lagoon which bore them to their day of battle. Over them the sea birds dipped in endless homage. Above them the deep blue sky erected a cathedral. I cannot put into words the emotions that capture me as I looked on the graves of my friends. Never once during the five weeks I helped to plan the operations... did I believe that I would die. No more did any man who now lay still in death. The Marine in the prow of the ship, he might die. The SeaBee who made noises when he ate, he might topple from the crane. But not I!
... If you sit at home and read that two hundred and eighty-one men die in taking an island, the number is only a symbol for the mind to classify. But when you stand at the white crosses, the two hundred and eighty one dead became men: the sons, the husbands, and the lovers."
February 4, 2024
So it took me longer than normal to read this book but do you know what? I really enjoyed it!! Its a WW2 story but in some weird way its NOT a war story at all. Its not actually about the fighting (although there is a tiny bit of that way on the end), its about how different Americans in the service deal with living in the tropics. These are really "human interest" stories. And each chapter tells a different little story and features different characters. And some characters come back again later so they sort of become like old friends. And that is how I felt about some of them at the end of the book... That they were old friends of sorts.
I will admit I really don't care for war stories too much. But this is about jungle rot on your skin, and how some islanders worship pigs and flying crazy distances to get alcohol for Christmas and trying to control an old islander woman who is selling grass skirts (plus other assorted stuff) to the troops just outside camp by a huge banyon tree and how a nurse got involved with a Frenchman who had a bunch of daughters with the locals... Its crazy situations (sometimes humorous), its a bit of romance, its action. Its how the viewpoints of Americans cannot line up with what the locals believe or even with the French because they were raised totally different. Its culture clashes. Letters censored before being mailed home and yes some people lie or exaggerate in the letters. And some go stir crazy being stuck on the islands. Tons of alcohol is consumed and much trade is done with the locals. Pineapples are popular.
And these stories are very easy to read. The words just flow like magic. These tales are entertaining. Never boring at all. I can see by reading this why this author back in his day was so popular and wrote so many books! But I found the stuff in here both fascinating and shocking. Did it take the bigwigs in DC seven months to plan an attack? Does your skin get horrid sores from sweating in the tropics?? Just fascinating details.
I was a tad sad when the book ended.
I will definitely read the sequel! Which I already own.
And of you want adventures with shrunken heads this is the place! Steamy jungles and seasickness and volcanoes emitting smoke in the distance.
I highly recommend you read this old classic.
I will admit I really don't care for war stories too much. But this is about jungle rot on your skin, and how some islanders worship pigs and flying crazy distances to get alcohol for Christmas and trying to control an old islander woman who is selling grass skirts (plus other assorted stuff) to the troops just outside camp by a huge banyon tree and how a nurse got involved with a Frenchman who had a bunch of daughters with the locals... Its crazy situations (sometimes humorous), its a bit of romance, its action. Its how the viewpoints of Americans cannot line up with what the locals believe or even with the French because they were raised totally different. Its culture clashes. Letters censored before being mailed home and yes some people lie or exaggerate in the letters. And some go stir crazy being stuck on the islands. Tons of alcohol is consumed and much trade is done with the locals. Pineapples are popular.
And these stories are very easy to read. The words just flow like magic. These tales are entertaining. Never boring at all. I can see by reading this why this author back in his day was so popular and wrote so many books! But I found the stuff in here both fascinating and shocking. Did it take the bigwigs in DC seven months to plan an attack? Does your skin get horrid sores from sweating in the tropics?? Just fascinating details.
I was a tad sad when the book ended.
I will definitely read the sequel! Which I already own.
And of you want adventures with shrunken heads this is the place! Steamy jungles and seasickness and volcanoes emitting smoke in the distance.
I highly recommend you read this old classic.
June 18, 2023
South Pacific was one of the first movies and musicals I saw on Betamax, back in the late seventies. I must have seen it no less than a dozen times since then, and Bali-Ha'i, Bloody Mary, Lt. Cable, Liat, and the dashing Emile de Becque were household names in my household. But up until a few years ago I didn't realize the movie, which was based on the Broadway musical, was based on a book by James Michener, an author I've admired since reading his exhaustively researched epic, Hawaii--that was a truly exceptional book. And yet, Tales of the South Pacific is a very different book.
The tales are a collection of stories of the islands during WWII, loosely connected through its eclectic cast of characters, with narration by an unnamed Michener. War is the circumstance that binds each narrative, Tolstoy's War and Peace seemingly the characters' book du jour, but save for two or three tales, warfare does not dominate the story, at least not to me. Michener's magic lies in the telling of the story, captivating even with the most innocuous of plots, such as an inter-island search for crates of whisky for Christmas eve. But since the romance of South Pacific and Bali-Ha'i have stayed with me since childhood, it was the chapters on Lt. Joe Cable, Liat, Bloody Mary, Nellie Forbush, and Emile de Becque I found most fascinating. The only real romance, of course, lies in Bali-Ha'i, "lonely island," "special island," "floating in the sunshine." Joe Cable and Liat's encounters, so romantically, musically played out in Hollywood vignettes you tend to ignore the fact her mother practically pimped her--are gritty, sordid, and urgent. For a sense of urgency, exceedingly overruled by the prejudice of its time, ruled the days and waking nights of American officers and servicemen, and precisely why prescient French expats exiled their womenfolk to Bali-Ha'i. But "Cable was truly enraptured. The frieze of women looked like models awaiting the immortalizing brush of Gauguin. Unaware of their forbidding ugliness by American middle class standards, they were equally unaware of their surpassing beauty by the artist's immortal standards." Clearly ripe for the picking, by Bloody Mary's standards. On the other hand, Forbush and de Becque's romance most resembles that of the Broadway musical, if you can ignore the haciendero Frenchman's (as portrayed by the ridiculously handsome Italian Rossano Brazzi in the movie) gold tooth and the fact that he has four daughters by Polynesian, Tonkinese, and Melanese women. Most of the stories are inconclusive, but for the occasional definitive sentiment. Such as when "Lt. Cable acknowledged that he had reached a great impasse in his life. At that time he did not know that never again, as long as he lived, would he write to that girl in Philadelphia. He would try several times thereafter, but false words would not come, and true words he dared not write." I believe Michener dared, and wrote true.
The tales are a collection of stories of the islands during WWII, loosely connected through its eclectic cast of characters, with narration by an unnamed Michener. War is the circumstance that binds each narrative, Tolstoy's War and Peace seemingly the characters' book du jour, but save for two or three tales, warfare does not dominate the story, at least not to me. Michener's magic lies in the telling of the story, captivating even with the most innocuous of plots, such as an inter-island search for crates of whisky for Christmas eve. But since the romance of South Pacific and Bali-Ha'i have stayed with me since childhood, it was the chapters on Lt. Joe Cable, Liat, Bloody Mary, Nellie Forbush, and Emile de Becque I found most fascinating. The only real romance, of course, lies in Bali-Ha'i, "lonely island," "special island," "floating in the sunshine." Joe Cable and Liat's encounters, so romantically, musically played out in Hollywood vignettes you tend to ignore the fact her mother practically pimped her--are gritty, sordid, and urgent. For a sense of urgency, exceedingly overruled by the prejudice of its time, ruled the days and waking nights of American officers and servicemen, and precisely why prescient French expats exiled their womenfolk to Bali-Ha'i. But "Cable was truly enraptured. The frieze of women looked like models awaiting the immortalizing brush of Gauguin. Unaware of their forbidding ugliness by American middle class standards, they were equally unaware of their surpassing beauty by the artist's immortal standards." Clearly ripe for the picking, by Bloody Mary's standards. On the other hand, Forbush and de Becque's romance most resembles that of the Broadway musical, if you can ignore the haciendero Frenchman's (as portrayed by the ridiculously handsome Italian Rossano Brazzi in the movie) gold tooth and the fact that he has four daughters by Polynesian, Tonkinese, and Melanese women. Most of the stories are inconclusive, but for the occasional definitive sentiment. Such as when "Lt. Cable acknowledged that he had reached a great impasse in his life. At that time he did not know that never again, as long as he lived, would he write to that girl in Philadelphia. He would try several times thereafter, but false words would not come, and true words he dared not write." I believe Michener dared, and wrote true.
August 4, 2017
This was Michener's first book and it is obvious why it won the Pulitzer. Written in 1946 and published a year later, it must have been one of the first epics on the Second World War, and one that focused entirely on the Pacific theatre would catch the eye of the jury even easier. Although widely fictional - as always with Michener - the excellent short stories and tales take the reader along some of the U.S. Navy operations between 1942 and '44, focusing on the Solomon and Russell islands, as well as a major fictional operation against the Japanese empire on Kuralei island.
The author served in the Pacific himself, making this 360-page novel extremely vivid, accountable and worth reading to this day. Michener had the talent to describe a cacao plant in every detail for half a dozen pages, and as a reader you were still captured by his beautiful use of English.
The author served in the Pacific himself, making this 360-page novel extremely vivid, accountable and worth reading to this day. Michener had the talent to describe a cacao plant in every detail for half a dozen pages, and as a reader you were still captured by his beautiful use of English.
March 31, 2015
Not compelling. Felt too much like reading out of obligation. I kept thinking, "It won the 1948 Pulitzer, it will be good. Just keep going". Yet, time is short and there are too many other glorious options waiting to spend in drudgery. It's not you, it's me.
December 22, 2015
Our fathers and grandfathers war. Now we need to fight the one on our hands. Can't do a good review with current GR settings. Just housekeeping here.
February 16, 2021
2.5 stars. This was a jarring read because of the way in which American colonialism and war are romanticized as heart-stirring nostalgia (more on that in a moment). I had seen the film version of the musical as a kid, but it was quite whitewashed, and I had not yet understood the context mentioned above.
It's not even that Michener celebrates America's colonial madness; it's that he seems blissfully unaware that the nation (or his book) is even engaged with it. As much as I hate Kipling, at least he was aware that he was an imperialist. The characters in this book are like the type Graham Greene satirized in The Quiet American, who just bumble their way through world affairs unaware that their meddling is leaving behind a trail of dumpster fire atrocities, only to look back on their handiwork and say, "Well, aren't you going to thank us for 'helping' you?" This book is like the fictional, unironic equivalent of Randy Newman's "Political Science." It essentially posits that the White Man’s Burden isn't so burdensome -- if only he could get to frolic with the native girls a little more often, and as long as the folks back home don't find out, naturally...
There are two themes running throughout these loose connections of tales: 1) American soldiers asking “What am I doing here?” and 2) the idea that the Japanese were destroying the land while the Americans were raping the women. (Michener uses that word several times, almost casually, in just that context.) Indeed, the most famous story, “Fo’ Dolla’,” upon which the musical and film were largely based, features the fictional island Bali Ha'i, described as teeming with young native girls who are being hidden away so they wouldn’t be “raped” by American soldiers. The exception is made for officers, who are allowed on the island to rape the underage girls on the sly.
That certainly changes one’s perception of the Rodgers & Hammerstein song “Bali Ha'i.”
In fact, that song is sung by “Bloody Mary,” who in the short story is inviting Joe onto the island so he can have his way with her daughter. The fact that this moment in the musical -- and this song in particular -- is so closely associated with nostalgia and celebrates the Good Old Days of American GIs in the Pacific is troubling to say the least. Michener’s fiction isn’t quite so romanticized as the musical, but it’s close. At times, I didn’t know if he was being straightforward or heavily ironic in his depiction of American colonial atrocity tugging at the heart-strings. Sometimes his lines, written in a seemingly unironic manner, left me shaking my head. (Example: “Tonkinese were in reality Chinese, sort of the way Canadians were Americans, only a little different.” Yikes. Where do we even begin to unpack all the issues with that line?)
I am quite aware that I’m reading these tales through the lens of a post-Vietnam, post-colonial 21st century perspective, in which the American-as-colonizer is criticized rather than romanticized, and in which American soldiers having their way with natives isn’t just a bit of “letting off steam,” but is a war crime. In truth, that’s the way it always was, but it took Vietnam for those realities to filter down through the American consciousness. These tales could never be written in this way -- and celebrated as straight nostalgia pieces -- in the 21st century. And that’s for the best.
Finally, a word on nostalgia: the descriptions, imagery, characters, and storylines in this book seemed just like the kind of stories returning soldiers from WWII would tell: quasi-mythical, gritty, slightly romanticized, and masking their atrocity in a kind of inauthentic naivety. (“I’m jus’ a small-town boy from Texas!” etc.) The stories here also remind me of the kind of movies that were made during the war, but without the Hollywood glam. The book was written for an audience who had never lived these experiences (including the returning soldiers), and also quite clearly for future audiences who would read the stories in years or decades hence. Michener speaks directly to these audiences in the opening tale, which acts as a prologue, almost as if he knew the stories in this book would be the “ur-text” or genesis for all later American mythologizing of the War in the Pacific.
Do these stories reflect what it was REALLY like to be stationed in the South Pacific? Yes and no. Which is to say that nostalgia doesn’t reflect our past experiences as much as it shapes and structures how we desire our past experiences to be remembered (by ourselves and by others). It teaches us what we SHOULD be desiring to remember, whether those memories are real or imagined. In that sense, my grandfather would think these stories reflect what he experienced during his time in the South Pacific, not because the stories are an accurate reflection of his memories as such, but because the stories are telling him precisely how he should remember his own experiences. (In short, the stories are conditioning him --and we as readers -- not just what to remember, but HOW to remember.) Nostalgia constructs memory (not vice versa), and so Michener is structuring how we should feel about this specific time and place (the South Pacific) by telling us exactly how we should all remember the events, even if we weren’t there. Indeed, whether we happened to be there or not is moot because nostalgia doesn’t actually remember; it teaches us how to generate memory through desire. And those memories are constructed whether we as Americans were stationed in Guadalcanal in ‘43 or reading this in 2021, because what we desire as a nation is the construction (the storytelling, the myth, the TALE) which becomes what we term “memory.” And so readers are reminded of their fathers and grandfathers in these tales, not because they accurately reflect their experiences in the Pacific (we can never know that -- and I don’t think they could, either) but because Michener was directing us to be reminded of them: showing us the “tales” that we desire (and those returning soldiers desired, as well) -- the tales they should have lived. As such, the fiction becomes the reality as it instructs us how to “remember” the great past that never was.
And so this may be one of the most “American” pieces of fiction of the 20th century...but not for the reasons lauded by the critics upon its release in 1947.
It's not even that Michener celebrates America's colonial madness; it's that he seems blissfully unaware that the nation (or his book) is even engaged with it. As much as I hate Kipling, at least he was aware that he was an imperialist. The characters in this book are like the type Graham Greene satirized in The Quiet American, who just bumble their way through world affairs unaware that their meddling is leaving behind a trail of dumpster fire atrocities, only to look back on their handiwork and say, "Well, aren't you going to thank us for 'helping' you?" This book is like the fictional, unironic equivalent of Randy Newman's "Political Science." It essentially posits that the White Man’s Burden isn't so burdensome -- if only he could get to frolic with the native girls a little more often, and as long as the folks back home don't find out, naturally...
There are two themes running throughout these loose connections of tales: 1) American soldiers asking “What am I doing here?” and 2) the idea that the Japanese were destroying the land while the Americans were raping the women. (Michener uses that word several times, almost casually, in just that context.) Indeed, the most famous story, “Fo’ Dolla’,” upon which the musical and film were largely based, features the fictional island Bali Ha'i, described as teeming with young native girls who are being hidden away so they wouldn’t be “raped” by American soldiers. The exception is made for officers, who are allowed on the island to rape the underage girls on the sly.
That certainly changes one’s perception of the Rodgers & Hammerstein song “Bali Ha'i.”
In fact, that song is sung by “Bloody Mary,” who in the short story is inviting Joe onto the island so he can have his way with her daughter. The fact that this moment in the musical -- and this song in particular -- is so closely associated with nostalgia and celebrates the Good Old Days of American GIs in the Pacific is troubling to say the least. Michener’s fiction isn’t quite so romanticized as the musical, but it’s close. At times, I didn’t know if he was being straightforward or heavily ironic in his depiction of American colonial atrocity tugging at the heart-strings. Sometimes his lines, written in a seemingly unironic manner, left me shaking my head. (Example: “Tonkinese were in reality Chinese, sort of the way Canadians were Americans, only a little different.” Yikes. Where do we even begin to unpack all the issues with that line?)
I am quite aware that I’m reading these tales through the lens of a post-Vietnam, post-colonial 21st century perspective, in which the American-as-colonizer is criticized rather than romanticized, and in which American soldiers having their way with natives isn’t just a bit of “letting off steam,” but is a war crime. In truth, that’s the way it always was, but it took Vietnam for those realities to filter down through the American consciousness. These tales could never be written in this way -- and celebrated as straight nostalgia pieces -- in the 21st century. And that’s for the best.
Finally, a word on nostalgia: the descriptions, imagery, characters, and storylines in this book seemed just like the kind of stories returning soldiers from WWII would tell: quasi-mythical, gritty, slightly romanticized, and masking their atrocity in a kind of inauthentic naivety. (“I’m jus’ a small-town boy from Texas!” etc.) The stories here also remind me of the kind of movies that were made during the war, but without the Hollywood glam. The book was written for an audience who had never lived these experiences (including the returning soldiers), and also quite clearly for future audiences who would read the stories in years or decades hence. Michener speaks directly to these audiences in the opening tale, which acts as a prologue, almost as if he knew the stories in this book would be the “ur-text” or genesis for all later American mythologizing of the War in the Pacific.
Do these stories reflect what it was REALLY like to be stationed in the South Pacific? Yes and no. Which is to say that nostalgia doesn’t reflect our past experiences as much as it shapes and structures how we desire our past experiences to be remembered (by ourselves and by others). It teaches us what we SHOULD be desiring to remember, whether those memories are real or imagined. In that sense, my grandfather would think these stories reflect what he experienced during his time in the South Pacific, not because the stories are an accurate reflection of his memories as such, but because the stories are telling him precisely how he should remember his own experiences. (In short, the stories are conditioning him --and we as readers -- not just what to remember, but HOW to remember.) Nostalgia constructs memory (not vice versa), and so Michener is structuring how we should feel about this specific time and place (the South Pacific) by telling us exactly how we should all remember the events, even if we weren’t there. Indeed, whether we happened to be there or not is moot because nostalgia doesn’t actually remember; it teaches us how to generate memory through desire. And those memories are constructed whether we as Americans were stationed in Guadalcanal in ‘43 or reading this in 2021, because what we desire as a nation is the construction (the storytelling, the myth, the TALE) which becomes what we term “memory.” And so readers are reminded of their fathers and grandfathers in these tales, not because they accurately reflect their experiences in the Pacific (we can never know that -- and I don’t think they could, either) but because Michener was directing us to be reminded of them: showing us the “tales” that we desire (and those returning soldiers desired, as well) -- the tales they should have lived. As such, the fiction becomes the reality as it instructs us how to “remember” the great past that never was.
And so this may be one of the most “American” pieces of fiction of the 20th century...but not for the reasons lauded by the critics upon its release in 1947.
August 21, 2022
I wish I could put my finger on why I found this book such a chore to read; all I can say is that felt uneven and most of the 'tales' were just stale and lifeless.
May 10, 2016
I must say I LOVE this book.
Michener's tale is about what people do in a war
when they are just forced to sit around on lots of islands
because the alternative is allowing the Japanese to sit around on them instead.
It was the war he says when everyone got a chance to read Tolstoy's "War and Peace".
That's how long it was...the book AND the waiting.
'Rock-jolly' got some - these cracked and had to be sent back to the States 'under guard'.
Another stole a truck with nowhere to go - his island had only 3 miles of road.
One hit an officer.
One stowed away on a ship - any ship, going anywhere.
And no one was spared feet fungus,prickly heat and malaria.
I have visited the Solomons and Guadacanal where large tracts of land
are still mined from this period of bloody history.
There are places here where folk still won't venture.
One near the local highschool.
And the native people were still talking about it, this war,
as fresh as if it had happened yesterday.
But I knew it was 1974.
I didn't realise then that 29 years was a very short time
when it came to war, the never forgotten tragedy of a war.
They took me out in their canoe
to one of the several channels separating the scattered islands of the Shortlands
not far off Bouganville,
to point out to me the submerged American plane that had crashed there
sometime in the mid 1940's.
It lay there, a huge shadow,
a daily reminder,
and suddenly past and present clashed together.
It was only in later years that I realised that WE hadn't finished discussing
that war either. Obsessed is not the word
...perhaps it is Grief and Loss and Horror.THAT was the obsession.
A few days later two of the young children, out fishing from a canoe,
had hooked a shark which began dragging them down that channel
and out to the open sea, beyond the reef.
Laughingly they retold how they had found a knife and cut the line.
Their white teeth flashed as they giggled.
No drama. This was their backyard.
But I had been told how the landing marines,
terrified of sharks - it wasn't their backyard -
had been given a shark-repellant to throw in the water
when they were wading in. It didn't work , of course,
but it got them out of their landing craft, with faith intact.
People who see the musical "South Pacific" as a soft alternative
may have forgotten that summoning up deep racism in plot and song
had only received similar exposure in "Showboat".
To place this in the musical was to be true to Michener's book
and to sing about it , sheer defiance.
And racism is still far from dead in America,
It is only in the 18th chapter (there are 19 altogether ),
that we actually have a Big Battle
with "The Landing on Kuralei".
It explodes in useless and unavoidable slaughter,
mainly of young men we have just gotten to know in some detail
- they are blown apart before the fighting has even gotten underway.
And one of the best and most humane of leaders is killed by a suicide Japanese soldier.
He is replaced by a thorough racist, a man not worthy of any command
and in the final chapter we meet two niggers, as he calls them,
who are being punished by him by having to guard the cemetery.
"A Cemetery At Hoga Point" reunites us with the men just wiped out
in the previous chapter
For 'the niggers' it is an honour
and a place of reverence and fellowship
because here lie their mates,
both black and white.
They tend their graves and flower them
This last time I read Michener's book , I was still being surprised by the Process of Rereading.
I'd first read this book at 12 years of age...now I was in my early 60's.
But this was the first time
when reading this last chapter
I wept uncontrollably.
But I knew the book was exactly the same,
the book I'd read at twelve,
and a few times after.
So what had changed ???
June 13, 2023
Immersing readers in the vibrant culture and dramatic history of the South Pacific, James A. Michener's "Tales of the South Pacific" is a captivating collection of interconnected stories that won him the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1948. With vivid descriptions, diverse characters, and a keen understanding of human nature, Michener paints a broad canvas of the Pacific theater during World War II. While some elements of the book might feel dated, its storytelling power and historical significance give it a solid four-star rating.
"Tales of the South Pacific" is not a conventional novel, but rather a series of 19 interlinked stories or sketches. Each tale offers a glimpse into the lives of the various servicemen and local inhabitants on the Pacific islands during the war. The characters are diverse and well-developed, ranging from nurses and naval officers to French planters and native islanders.
Michener's descriptions of the Pacific islands are stunning in their detail and vividness. From the bustling naval bases to the pristine natural landscapes, each setting is brought to life with evocative prose. One can almost feel the tropical heat, see the azure waters, and hear the hum of the military operations.
Yet, the heart of "Tales of the South Pacific" lies in its exploration of the human experience during wartime. Michener examines the hopes, fears, and struggles of his characters with sensitivity and insight, offering a nuanced picture of life during the war. Themes of love, loneliness, culture clash, and the absurdity of war are skillfully woven into the stories, giving the book a timeless relevance.
However, "Tales of the South Pacific" reflects the time it was written and the historical context it depicts. Some perspectives and portrayals may feel dated or problematic to contemporary readers, particularly in terms of racial and cultural representation. Nevertheless, the book remains an important historical document, providing valuable insights into the attitudes and conditions of a specific era.
In conclusion, "Tales of the South Pacific" is a compelling collection of stories that transports readers to the Pacific theater of World War II. With its vibrant settings, diverse characters, and thoughtful exploration of the human condition, it remains a classic of war literature. While certain elements may feel dated, the power of Michener's storytelling and the historical significance of the book earn it a well-deserved four-star rating.
"Tales of the South Pacific" is not a conventional novel, but rather a series of 19 interlinked stories or sketches. Each tale offers a glimpse into the lives of the various servicemen and local inhabitants on the Pacific islands during the war. The characters are diverse and well-developed, ranging from nurses and naval officers to French planters and native islanders.
Michener's descriptions of the Pacific islands are stunning in their detail and vividness. From the bustling naval bases to the pristine natural landscapes, each setting is brought to life with evocative prose. One can almost feel the tropical heat, see the azure waters, and hear the hum of the military operations.
Yet, the heart of "Tales of the South Pacific" lies in its exploration of the human experience during wartime. Michener examines the hopes, fears, and struggles of his characters with sensitivity and insight, offering a nuanced picture of life during the war. Themes of love, loneliness, culture clash, and the absurdity of war are skillfully woven into the stories, giving the book a timeless relevance.
However, "Tales of the South Pacific" reflects the time it was written and the historical context it depicts. Some perspectives and portrayals may feel dated or problematic to contemporary readers, particularly in terms of racial and cultural representation. Nevertheless, the book remains an important historical document, providing valuable insights into the attitudes and conditions of a specific era.
In conclusion, "Tales of the South Pacific" is a compelling collection of stories that transports readers to the Pacific theater of World War II. With its vibrant settings, diverse characters, and thoughtful exploration of the human condition, it remains a classic of war literature. While certain elements may feel dated, the power of Michener's storytelling and the historical significance of the book earn it a well-deserved four-star rating.
August 5, 2020
A few weeks ago I re-watched the musical South Pacific and decided to read the source material.
Many of the stories are familiar and there are humorous notes, but there is less gloss and more realism. Michener delves into serious subjects such as racism, rape, antisemitism, interracial romance and even homophobia. Some of the characters and stories in the play were conflated to tighten up the narrative.
Published in 1947, the book has an immediacy that is impossible to deny. For many, the Pacific war was a war of waiting punctuated by death and danger. An island would be captured, then they would wait while plans and preparations are made for the next battle.
Many of the stories are about the support staff: the supply officers, the nurses, the radio operators, the pilots ferrying cargo between islands, and the Seebees (short for CB, Construction Battalions. The Seebees were responsible for building camps, depots, ports and airstrips often on short time tables and under enemy fire.)
All of the men were far from home, dealing with tropical heat and disease in addition to the perils of war.
The book starts gently, and gradually builds to a crescendo with the invasion of the fictional island of Kuralei. He talks early on about planning and estimating casualty figures so that adequate medical support will be available, but the final battle is much bloodier than anticipated. Several characters from the earlier stories do not survive. In the final story, the narrator visits a small cemetery on an island where an airstrip was built in just 15 days under enemy fire. He muses about the good men who lie there.
"I was appalled at the relentless manner in which one dead plus one dead plus one dead add up to three white crosses. If you sit at home and read that 281 men die in taking an island, the number is only a symbol for the mind to classify. But when you stand at the white crosses, the 281 dead become men: the sons, the husbands and the lovers."
I thought many times about my father, and the half remembered stories he told. Of the photos of his camp in the Phillipines and paying young boys to knock down the coconuts from the trees to keep them from falling on soldiers heads. Of the sounds of monkeys in the trees. Of the map of Mindinao which hung above the piano for many years.
Many of the stories are familiar and there are humorous notes, but there is less gloss and more realism. Michener delves into serious subjects such as racism, rape, antisemitism, interracial romance and even homophobia. Some of the characters and stories in the play were conflated to tighten up the narrative.
Published in 1947, the book has an immediacy that is impossible to deny. For many, the Pacific war was a war of waiting punctuated by death and danger. An island would be captured, then they would wait while plans and preparations are made for the next battle.
Many of the stories are about the support staff: the supply officers, the nurses, the radio operators, the pilots ferrying cargo between islands, and the Seebees (short for CB, Construction Battalions. The Seebees were responsible for building camps, depots, ports and airstrips often on short time tables and under enemy fire.)
All of the men were far from home, dealing with tropical heat and disease in addition to the perils of war.
The book starts gently, and gradually builds to a crescendo with the invasion of the fictional island of Kuralei. He talks early on about planning and estimating casualty figures so that adequate medical support will be available, but the final battle is much bloodier than anticipated. Several characters from the earlier stories do not survive. In the final story, the narrator visits a small cemetery on an island where an airstrip was built in just 15 days under enemy fire. He muses about the good men who lie there.
"I was appalled at the relentless manner in which one dead plus one dead plus one dead add up to three white crosses. If you sit at home and read that 281 men die in taking an island, the number is only a symbol for the mind to classify. But when you stand at the white crosses, the 281 dead become men: the sons, the husbands and the lovers."
I thought many times about my father, and the half remembered stories he told. Of the photos of his camp in the Phillipines and paying young boys to knock down the coconuts from the trees to keep them from falling on soldiers heads. Of the sounds of monkeys in the trees. Of the map of Mindinao which hung above the piano for many years.
May 12, 2020
I wish I could tell you about the South Pacific. The way it actually was. The endless ocean. The infinite specks of coral we called islands. Coconut palms nodding gracefully toward the ocean. Reefs upon which waves broke into spray and inner lagoons, lovely beyond description. I wish I could tell you about the sweating jungle, the full moon rising behind the volcanoes, and the waiting. The waiting. The timeless, repetitive waiting.
October 19, 2020
Are you up on GI slang? When you put a bunch of young men together in combat situations, the unity that is forged by protecting each other as a group can have some interesting side effects. One is a shared language. As I read James Michener's Tales of the South Pacific, I coincidently worked a crossword puzzle by Merl Reagle with a WWII GI Mess Hall Slang theme. See how many of these slang food words and phrases you know the original word for: (answer key below)
Sand and dirt
Ptomaine steak
Shingle
Machine oil
Paint remover
Armored cow
Dog biscuits
Hot water
Shrapnel
Battery acid
Gun wadding
Mystery plate
Ammunition
Solvent
Rubber patches
Transfusion
Michener served as an aviation mechanic in WWII in the South Pacific from 1941 to 1943, and wrote Tales of the South Pacific in 1947, based on his experiences there. The startling contrast between the area's dazzling beauty and the horrors of war obviously lends itself to drama. I only knew the Rogers and Hammerstein musical version of South Pacific. When I read on the book jacket that it won the Pulitzer Prize I was stunned. After reading it I understand. First of all, timing probably had a lot to do with its commercial and critical success. What would appeal to readers more than a real-life chronicle of our men's day-to-day lives in the recent war? And the story drips with humanity. It explores heroism, fear of death, island fever (isolation psychology), religion, codes of honor, interracial love and racism.
I struggled a bit with the book's classification. I suppose the author determines whether to call something fiction or nonfiction. Even if names are changed, knowing that Michener lived these stories would suggest that we could look at this book as his memoir of his time there. Since it was classified as fiction, I have to assume he felt that he used significant artistic license to tweak the events.
The writing is often poignant:
"They will live a long time, these men of the South Pacific. They had an American quality. They, like their victories, will be remembered as long as our generation lives. After that, like men of the Confederacy, they will become strangers. Longer and longer shadows will obscure them, until their Guadalcanal sounds distant on the ear like Shiloh and Valley Forge."
Ironically, they live yet largely because of the Rogers and Hammerstein musical which, I would guess, is watched a thousand times more now than the book is read. Incidentally, those of you familiar with the musical version can discover in the book how Bloody Mary got her nickname. And I learned that the mysterious mists obscuring the small island of Bali Ha'i were not just a Hollywood special effect:
"It is a miracle of the South Pacific that islands which are relatively only a few miles away are rarely seen. Hot air, rising constantly from steaming jungles, makes omnipresent clouds hover above each island. So dense are they that usually they obscure and often completely hide the islands they attend."
Michener never ceased to be amazed by the heroism he found in everyday men. A dangerous mission was planned to land on and scout a small island crawling with Japanese soldiers. Volunteers were sought:
"Almost all of them said something like 'I hear you got a job,' or 'What's this about a job?' I have since learned that when the Japs want volunteers for something unduly risky, their officers rise and shout at the men about ancestors, emperors and glory. In the Seabees, at least, you sort of pass the word around, and pretty soon forty guys come ambling in with their hats in their hands, nervous like."
At the end, Michener tells of the time he visited a lonely cemetery for U. S. troops built on a lovely plateau overlooking the ocean. I had tears streaming down my face as I finished the book:
"A white picket fence surrounded the burial ground. From one corner rose a slim steel flagpole. From it fluttered an American flag. Because the air was so clean, the white stripes and the stars shone more beautifully than any I had ever seen before. Before me lay the dead, the heroic dead who took the island. Upon a strange plateau, on a strange island, in a strange sea, far from their farms and villages, they slept forever beside the lagoon which bore them to their day of battle. Over them the sea birds dipped in endless homage. Above them the deep sky erected a cathedral. I cannot put into words the emotions that captured me as I looked upon the graves of my friends."
At the cemetery, Michener met two Black American soldiers whose proud duty it was to tend the cemetery. They took tremendous pride in their job, and they had a story to tell about each man buried there.
Answer Key:
Sand and dirt = salt and pepper
Ptomaine steak = meatloaf
Shingle = toast
Machine oil = syrup
Paint remover = coffee
Armored cow = canned milk
Dog biscuits = crackers
Hot water = soup
Shrapnel = grape nuts
Battery acid = coffee
Gun wadding = bread
Mystery plate = hash
Ammunition = beans
Solvent = coffee
Rubber patches = pancakes
Transfusion = ketchup
Sand and dirt
Ptomaine steak
Shingle
Machine oil
Paint remover
Armored cow
Dog biscuits
Hot water
Shrapnel
Battery acid
Gun wadding
Mystery plate
Ammunition
Solvent
Rubber patches
Transfusion
Michener served as an aviation mechanic in WWII in the South Pacific from 1941 to 1943, and wrote Tales of the South Pacific in 1947, based on his experiences there. The startling contrast between the area's dazzling beauty and the horrors of war obviously lends itself to drama. I only knew the Rogers and Hammerstein musical version of South Pacific. When I read on the book jacket that it won the Pulitzer Prize I was stunned. After reading it I understand. First of all, timing probably had a lot to do with its commercial and critical success. What would appeal to readers more than a real-life chronicle of our men's day-to-day lives in the recent war? And the story drips with humanity. It explores heroism, fear of death, island fever (isolation psychology), religion, codes of honor, interracial love and racism.
I struggled a bit with the book's classification. I suppose the author determines whether to call something fiction or nonfiction. Even if names are changed, knowing that Michener lived these stories would suggest that we could look at this book as his memoir of his time there. Since it was classified as fiction, I have to assume he felt that he used significant artistic license to tweak the events.
The writing is often poignant:
"They will live a long time, these men of the South Pacific. They had an American quality. They, like their victories, will be remembered as long as our generation lives. After that, like men of the Confederacy, they will become strangers. Longer and longer shadows will obscure them, until their Guadalcanal sounds distant on the ear like Shiloh and Valley Forge."
Ironically, they live yet largely because of the Rogers and Hammerstein musical which, I would guess, is watched a thousand times more now than the book is read. Incidentally, those of you familiar with the musical version can discover in the book how Bloody Mary got her nickname. And I learned that the mysterious mists obscuring the small island of Bali Ha'i were not just a Hollywood special effect:
"It is a miracle of the South Pacific that islands which are relatively only a few miles away are rarely seen. Hot air, rising constantly from steaming jungles, makes omnipresent clouds hover above each island. So dense are they that usually they obscure and often completely hide the islands they attend."
Michener never ceased to be amazed by the heroism he found in everyday men. A dangerous mission was planned to land on and scout a small island crawling with Japanese soldiers. Volunteers were sought:
"Almost all of them said something like 'I hear you got a job,' or 'What's this about a job?' I have since learned that when the Japs want volunteers for something unduly risky, their officers rise and shout at the men about ancestors, emperors and glory. In the Seabees, at least, you sort of pass the word around, and pretty soon forty guys come ambling in with their hats in their hands, nervous like."
At the end, Michener tells of the time he visited a lonely cemetery for U. S. troops built on a lovely plateau overlooking the ocean. I had tears streaming down my face as I finished the book:
"A white picket fence surrounded the burial ground. From one corner rose a slim steel flagpole. From it fluttered an American flag. Because the air was so clean, the white stripes and the stars shone more beautifully than any I had ever seen before. Before me lay the dead, the heroic dead who took the island. Upon a strange plateau, on a strange island, in a strange sea, far from their farms and villages, they slept forever beside the lagoon which bore them to their day of battle. Over them the sea birds dipped in endless homage. Above them the deep sky erected a cathedral. I cannot put into words the emotions that captured me as I looked upon the graves of my friends."
At the cemetery, Michener met two Black American soldiers whose proud duty it was to tend the cemetery. They took tremendous pride in their job, and they had a story to tell about each man buried there.
Answer Key:
Sand and dirt = salt and pepper
Ptomaine steak = meatloaf
Shingle = toast
Machine oil = syrup
Paint remover = coffee
Armored cow = canned milk
Dog biscuits = crackers
Hot water = soup
Shrapnel = grape nuts
Battery acid = coffee
Gun wadding = bread
Mystery plate = hash
Ammunition = beans
Solvent = coffee
Rubber patches = pancakes
Transfusion = ketchup
July 29, 2020
I had certain expectations prior to reading Tales of the South Pacific. I have read my share of war novels. I just couldn’t get excited about reading another one. Then there was Michener. I had read one of his novels many years ago, far enough in the past I couldn’t remember much, but I remembered not enjoying it. Finally, there was the musical and the movie. I generally like musicals, but not that one. So I put Tales of the South Pacific off for quite a while even though it was sitting there on my shelf.
Eventually I decided it was time. What I discovered was the best WWII novel that I think I have read to date. It is not a true novel, but a group of interrelated stories that progress sequentially in time and events with the war in the Pacific. Some characters appear in only one of the stories, Both others in multiple stories. Likewise, plot lines carry across stories, with a few running through many stories. The narrator in all the stories is “the Commander”, a character styled after the position and role Michener played in WWII.
What I enjoyed the most, though, is that the stories touch on many aspects of a war effort but that you rarely ever hear mentioned. There are the Seabees and their role in creating the facilities, in a very short time, required by the Navy and its personnel. There is the Supply function, necessary to keep such a huge organization functioning on a normal day but that becomes critical when preparing for and initiating an attack. My favorite story focused on turning an island controlled by the Japanese into a U.S. airbase in 15 days. Then there is the human element: the waiting, and more waiting, and what you do to keep yourself entertained between waiting and waiting.
I enjoy short stories and typically really enjoy interconnected short stories, so Tales of the South Pacific was a perfect fit. Together the stories provided a detailed and in-depth picture of what it takes to conduct a war and the impact a war effort has on the people residing in the war zone. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Eventually I decided it was time. What I discovered was the best WWII novel that I think I have read to date. It is not a true novel, but a group of interrelated stories that progress sequentially in time and events with the war in the Pacific. Some characters appear in only one of the stories, Both others in multiple stories. Likewise, plot lines carry across stories, with a few running through many stories. The narrator in all the stories is “the Commander”, a character styled after the position and role Michener played in WWII.
What I enjoyed the most, though, is that the stories touch on many aspects of a war effort but that you rarely ever hear mentioned. There are the Seabees and their role in creating the facilities, in a very short time, required by the Navy and its personnel. There is the Supply function, necessary to keep such a huge organization functioning on a normal day but that becomes critical when preparing for and initiating an attack. My favorite story focused on turning an island controlled by the Japanese into a U.S. airbase in 15 days. Then there is the human element: the waiting, and more waiting, and what you do to keep yourself entertained between waiting and waiting.
I enjoy short stories and typically really enjoy interconnected short stories, so Tales of the South Pacific was a perfect fit. Together the stories provided a detailed and in-depth picture of what it takes to conduct a war and the impact a war effort has on the people residing in the war zone. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
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