Samurai: The Unforgettable Saga of Japan's Greatest Fighter Pilot

by Saburō Sakai, Fred Saito, Martin Caidin

Book by

Genres: History, Aviation, Nonfiction, Biography, Japan, World War II, Military Fiction

315 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1957

About the author

Saburō Sakai (Japanese: 坂井 三郎) was a Japanese naval aviator and flying ace ("Gekitsui-O", 撃墜王) of the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II. Sakai had 28 aerial victories, including shared ones, according to official Japanese records, though he and his ghostwriter Martin Caidin claimed much higher numbers.

Reviews

[Carol Storm · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first-person story of Japan's greatest flying ace in World War II. Explosive action! Excruciatingly painful wounds, and the stubborn pride of a man who refuses to be defeated.

One thing that makes this book fun is that if you have a lot of romantic illusions about Japan or the samurai class this book will cure them. Not that Saburo Sakai isn't a class act, and a gentleman, but that he grew up very poor in spite of his "samurai" ancestry. I mean like on the farm, dirt poor. It's also interesting that though he's a tough guy and a born fighter there's nothing "macho" about his outlook. Indeed, he makes it clear his role model for enduring agony is his mother. Last of all, the love story he tells about meeting his wife and surviving the last desperate weeks of the war is truly inspiring.

This is a great book for anyone who likes World War II, flying aces, history, and Japanese culture.

[Michael Burnam-Fink · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sakai was one of the Imperial Japanese Navy's top aces, with over 60 confirmed kills in air to air combat. He also had a charmed life which somehow saw him through the war despite the tremendous losses the IJN took. This memoir focuses mostly on the dogfights, with just enough life on the ground to provide context.

Sakai was born in an impoverished family of samurai origin, and wound up in the IJN in the 30s. He was one of 75 enlisted men selected for flight training, and one of 25 in that class to actually graduate, making him a true elite in the air. Superior individual training and superior aircraft let Sakai rack up the scores in fighting over China, and then in five glorious months posted to Lae dueling P-39s and P-40s over New Guinea. But while this was still the period of Japan's easy victories, there were cracks. The B-17 was a true flying fortress, fast and difficult to shoot down. And no matter how many planes Sakai and his squadron shot down, the Americans and Australians were always back up in the air the next day, bombing Lae and opening new bases.

Sakai avoided an assignment to the doomed Midway fleet, and was transferred to Rabaul for the Battle of Guadalcanal. His first encounter with American Navy pilots in F4F Wildcats was of a different order, and Sakai's Zero was shot full of holes, and he was heavily wounded. Somehow, he nursed his crippled plane back to Rabaul, and was sent home to Japan for surgery. He lost sight in one eye, a major disadvantage for a fighter pilot, and as the war turned against the Japanese, he returned to combat. He was posted to Iwo Jima months before the invasion, where his squadron of 80 Zeroes was decimated by the superior F6F Hellcat. He was ordered on a kamikaze mission, but failed to find the American fleet. Somewhat shockingly, Iwo Jima was barely defended at this point. If the Americans had invaded in May 1944 instead of fulfilling McArthur's promise to return the Philippines, they could have taken the island with minimal resistance.

He and the remaining Japanese aces were withdrawn to form interception squadrons, piloting Raiden and Shinden fighters against B-29 raids. These last-generation planes were heavily armed bomber destroyers, but they were vulnerable to escorting P-51s. And ultimately, sheer numbers and a switch to night bombing rendered Sakai and his comrades impotent.

Samurai! puts a human voice to an enemy that was dehumanized during the war, and the doomed heroism of Japan's defenders at the end of the war.

[Steven Godin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating memoir by a modest and humble man who was simply going about his job serving his country. Such a phenomenal record for a WW2 pilot, and I couldn't quite believe some of his astounding feats - I mean, how on earth could one could fly, with overwhelming odds against him, over 500 miles in a plane all beat to shit whilst half blind and partially paralyzed and still manage to land safely. You try sticking Top Gun's Maverick in the cockpit of one of these Zero Fighters over the Pacific and I doubt he would have lasted a day. I can't say I've ever really had much enthusiasm for reading about the aerial warfare side of WW2, and much of the book does recall his dogfights, but it blew my expectations away. A true Japanese legend.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

There's a lot of air battles in this. And not much of anything else. I liked Saburo's honesty. There's a story where he and an allied pilot are locked in an exhausting dogfight. Eventually Saburo gets a couple of shots at the cockpit, glass shatters! He pulls up alongside and the badly wounded allied pilot raises his arm in a sort of salute. Saburo salutes back, two warriors reaching out across the sky ... before he falls behind to shoot the crippled plane out of the sky. Oh. Did he mean to tell us that he watched the crippled plane limp to safety?

But not so much fun as: Kamikaze: A Japanese Pilot's Own Spectacular Story of the Famous Suicide Squadrons

[Colin Heaton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was always one of my favorite books as a younger reader. I finally met and came to know Saburo Sakai, and he was one of the most entertaining interviews I ever conducted and published. This book is 100% true, no embellishment, and if you want to see the mind of a young man who became a national hero, in a war he hated, read this book.

[George K. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Τον τελευταίο καιρό έχω φάει ένα κόλλημα με τα non-fiction βιβλία, κυρίως με αυτά που έχουν να κάνουν με στρατιωτική ιστορία, μαρτυρίες ανθρώπων από τα πεδία των μαχών, παιχνίδια αληθινών κατασκόπων κλπ, γι'αυτό και προμηθεύτηκα κάμποσα και έχω σκοπό να προμηθευτώ περισσότερα στο άμεσο μέλλον. Το συγκεκριμένο βιβλίο το έβρισκα συνεχώς μπροστά μου στο Goodreads, σε λίστες με τα καλύτερα βιβλία του είδους του, ήξερα όμως ότι δεν είχε μεταφραστεί στα ελληνικά. Μέχρι που πριν λίγες μέρες πήρα χαμπάρι την ελληνική έκδοση, που κυκλοφόρησε τέλη Μαΐου. Ε, χάρηκα πολύ και αμέσως το αγόρασα! Και, φυσικά, δεν άργησα να το πιάσω στα χέρια μου με σκοπό να το διαβάσω.

Τα (πολλά) λόγια είναι φτώχεια: Στο βιβλίο αυτό διαβάζουμε σε πρώτο πρόσωπο τα κατορθώματα ενός από τους καλύτερους και ηρωικότερους πιλότους που πολέμησαν ποτέ στον Β' Παγκόσμιο Πόλεμο, του θρυλικού Γιαπωνέζου πιλότου Σαμπούρο Σακάι. Από τις Φιλιππίνες μέχρι την Ίβο Τζίμα, ο Σακάι ήταν στο επίκεντρο των σκληρών αερομαχιών στο "Θέατρο του Ειρηνικού ωκεανού", πιλοτάροντας κυρίως ένα καταδιωκτικό Zero της Μιτσουμπίσι. Κατέρριψε κάμποσα καταδιωκτικά και βομβαρδιστικά, πολέμησε στο πλευρό πολλών ηρωικών και εξαιρετικών πιλότων και βρέθηκε αντιμέτωπος με επίσης ηρωικούς και ικανούς πιλότους, καθώς και με εξαιρετικά πολεμικά αεροπλάνα της εποχής. Πολλές φορές βρέθηκε κοντά στον θάνατο, ενώ δυο φορές τραυματίστηκε σοβαρά (η δεύτερη φορά τον κράτησε στο έδαφος για πολλούς μήνες). Τελικά, όμως, επέζησε του πολέμου, και έζησε μέχρι το 2000, όπου και πέθανε σε ηλικία 84 ετών, την στιγμή που οι περισσότεροι συμπολεμιστές του πέθαναν σε ηλικία αρκετά κάτω των 30 ετών...

Λοιπόν, το βιβλίο είναι γεμάτο με περιγραφές από αερομαχίες, οι οποίες κάποιες φορές είναι σχετικά σύντομες και περιεκτικές, κάποιες άλλες όμως με περισσότερες λεπτομέρειες και φανερά πιο έντονες. Όπως και να'χει, οι περιγραφές αυτές με ταξίδεψαν στους ουρανούς πάνω από τον Ειρηνικό, πίσω στα δύσκολα χρόνια του Β' Παγκοσμίου Πολέμου, ανάμεσα στα αντιμαχόμενα πολεμικά αεροπλάνα. Όμως δεν υπάρχουν μόνο τέτοιες περιγραφές. Γινόμαστε μάρτυρες και πολλών στιγμών του Σακάι κάτω στο έδαφος, είτε στις διάφορες στρατιωτικές βάσεις πριν και μετά τις αερομαχίες του -σε στιγμές χαλάρωσης ή κάτω από βομβαρδισμούς εχθρικών πολεμικών αεροπλάνων-, είτε στα νοσοκομεία που νοσηλεύτηκε για λίγο καιρό, είτε στα σπίτια συγγενικών του προσώπων. Και, επίσης, διαβάζουμε πολλές σκέψεις του γύρω από το πιλοτάρισμα, το καθήκον του σαν πατριώτης, την οικογένειά του, τους συμπολεμιστές και τους αντιπάλους του, αλλά και για τον πόλεμο και τον κόσμο γύρω του. Με το πέρασμα των σελίδων, βλέπουμε και την εξέλιξη του πολέμου και πως αυτή επηρέασε τον Σακάι, αρχικά υπάρχει ενθουσιασμός και μεγάλη αισιοδοξία, οι νίκες είναι πολλές και μεγάλες, όμως όταν τα πράγματα αρχίζουν και αλλάζουν, οι εχθροί γίνονται πιο δυνατοί και οι ήττες είναι συντριπτικά περισσότερες από τις νίκες, τότε έρχεται η κατήφεια και η απαισιοδοξία...

Το βιβλίο δεν το έγραψε ο Σαμπούρο Σακάι, αλλά ένας Αμερικάνος δημοσιογράφος, ο Μάρτιν Καϊντίν, σε συνεργασία με έναν ανταποκριτή του Associated Press, τον Φρεντ Σάιτο. Το όλο κείμενο, όμως, βασίστηκε αποκλειστικά στις προσωπικές σημειώσεις του Σακάι, αλλά και στις εκατοντάδες απαντήσεις που έδωσε ο θρυλικός αυτός πιλότος στις ερωτήσεις του Σάιτο (σε συνδυασμό με κάποια επίσημα έγγραφα). Η γραφή είναι εξαιρετική, εθιστική και ευκολοδιάβαστη, με πολύ δυνατές περιγραφές των πολεμικών σκηνών, πραγματικά έγινα ένα με τον Σακάι και το Zero του. Σε πολλά σημεία η ένταση βαράει κόκκινο και ο ενθουσιασμός ενός λάτρη των πολεμικών/περιπετειωδών ιστοριών όπως εγώ έφτασε σε πολύ υψηλά επίπεδα. Βλέπω ότι το έγραψα πάλι το σεντονάκι μου, κάτι λογικό όμως γιατί το βιβλίο με ενθουσίασε. Σίγουρα είναι ένα βιβλίο που θα ξαναδιαβάσω στο μέλλον και που δυσκολεύομαι να βάλω στην άκρη, τώρα που το τελείωσα.

Υ.Γ. Όσον αφορά την ελληνική έκδοση, μου φάνηκε πολύ ωραία, με προσεγμένη και γλαφυρή μετάφραση, με δυο χάρτες και λίγες φωτογραφίες να συνοδεύουν το κείμενο. Στο τέλος της ελληνικής έκδοσης υπάρχουν και δεκαπέντε σελίδες, που έγραψε ένας Αμερικάνος συνταγματάρχης εν αποστρατεία, του οποίου ο πατέρας σκοτώθηκε στις 9 Ιουνίου του 1942, από τα πυρά του Zero του Σαμπούρο Σακάι. Αυτός ο τύπος, λοιπόν, συναντήθηκε με τον Σακάι και τον φιλοξένησε στο σπίτι του. Τα λόγια είναι περιττά...

[KOMET · Rating 5 out of 5]

Though hailing from a poor farming family, Saburo Sakai managed to gain admittance to a pilot training program in the Imperial Japanese Navy during the mid-1930s. Sakai shares with the reader the rigors of that program, which washed out many would-be pilots. He passed his training program with honors and was posted to a fighter squadron in China, where he experienced his first combat.

With the coming of the Pacific War in December 1941, Sakai saw action first over the Philippines (where he achieved his first aerial victories) and later in the Dutch East Indies. He was now a Chief Petty Officer in command of his own flight within a squadron.

Throughout the spring and summer of 1942, Sakai's unit -- which was stationed in Lae, New Guinea --- was frequently in combat against Allied air units. He details much of what his combat service was like at that time. By early August, Sakai's unit had been transferred to Rabaul, a key Japanese strongpoint in the Solomon Islands, wherefrom he had his first combat against American air units over Guadalcanal, shortly after the U.S. Marines had landed there as part of a long term effort to neutralize Japanese military power in the South Pacific. Sakai entered combat on August 8 against an American F4F Wildcat, which though outclassed in several respects by his Zero fighter, was capable of taking considerable punishment and outdiving the Zero in aerial combat. After an extended dogfight, Sakai was able to get the upper hand and shoot down the Wildcat. Then he took on an SBD Dauntless dive bomber and shot it down.

But shortly after shooting down his second enemy aircraft of the day, Sakai took on what he initially believed to be a bunch of Wildcat single-seat fighters. Unfortunately for him, they proved to be Grumman TBF Avenger torpedo bombers, which sported a rear gun turret. Sakai was grievously wounded by one of the Avengers' rear gunners and, despite being blinded in one eye, flew over 1,000 miles back to his home base at Rabaul. Two more years would pass before Sakai would again see combat, albeit in a limited capacity.

The story ends with Sakai shedding some light on his early postwar experiences in Japan.

[Sleepy Boy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb memoir by one of Japan's leading aces.

[Wurmo · Rating 4 out of 5]

For someone who is perpetually intrigued by the combat that took place in the Pacific Theater of Operations during World War II, it was very interesting to read a book from the perspective of a Japanese fighter ace. I had previously read "Oba: The Last Samurai," but this was an entirely different reading experience for some reason. Overall, Saburo Sakai's story is a gripping one. He experienced some of the most intense aerial combat of the entire war, from his early days flying in China to the hairy combat over Lai and Rabaul to the final days of the war on the Japanese homeland. As with many pilot memoirs, the aerial accomplishments of Saburo and his fellow Japanese pilots seem over-exaggerated, but this is too be expected. Also, the multiple love interests he speaks of throughout the narrative, while adding a human element to the story, seem a bit forced. Overall, though, this book is a reflection of the man's life. And what life reads like a perfect story? Definitely a wonderful supplemental read for anyone interested in the air war over the Pacific -- or the Pacific War as a whole. It helps American readers understand that the enemy had a face.

[Juxhin Deliu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Uno degli assi dell'aviazione giapponese si narra dall'infanzia travagliata sino all'entrata nel corpo, ripercorrendo perlopiù tutta la sua risma di battaglie durante la seconda guerra mondiale, dalle prime missioni in Cina sino alla resa finale, passando per le prime vittorie, sino alla campagna di Guadalcanal e l'invasione delle Filippine. Sebbene risulti ripetitivo a tratti, il resoconto è assai vivido e per nulla tronfio di nazionalismo; Sakai, pur proveniente da una fiera famiglia di samurai e amando la sua patria, non manca di denunciare le colpe dello stato maggiore e l'illusione della vittoria allora radicata in Giappone. Su tutto primeggia il suo personale attacco ai reparti "kamikaze", manifestazione distorta dello Spirito Guerriero nipponico e null'altro che uno scempio, sotto l'aura di onorevole sacrificio.

[Dave Roberts · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting biography of a WWII Japanese fighter pilot and his experiences during the war. He was one of Japan's leading aces.

At the outset of the war, the Japanese flew the Zero, a fighter that was superior to US fighters, and Sakai downed many US fighters. Later, as the US introduced superior plans, the Japanese new, faster planes came too late.

Sakai's heroism and dedication are impressive. Reading this book, I'm impressed that there are skilled, principled, heroic fighters on both sides of a war. It's such a tragedy that their skills are used just to attempt to kill one another.

The book provides interesting insight into the psychology of a fighter pilot as well as a small but interesting window into Japanese culture.

[Allan Harle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Without a doubt my favourite book about aviation in WW2.

[Carolyn Page · Rating 3 out of 5]

A unique look at the other side. I love books like these, that turn your perspectives sideways.

[Abdullah Almuslem · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first time I read the Japanese point view on WWII. Saburo Sakai was a Japanese fighter pilot who fought in China and the Pacific theater during WWII. He is credited with more than 60 kill in the air.

In this semi-autobiography, Sakai gives a different picture than the common stereotype about the Japanese during WWII. In any Hollywood war movie, the Japanese fighters appears as hysterical and cruel seeking death in any way possible which was the American propaganda way to demonize the Japanese. Although, this image maybe partially true, this book gives a different Picture. This book says that the Japanese are not just beasts that want to kill and die, but rather human being that feel and show compassion. Sakai tells the story of his compacts in the air against the American and how difficult it was for him to see his comrades die one by one.

It was also very difficult for him to see his country being teared apart by the continuous raids that bombarded everything. He also talked about the Kamikaze attacks where the Japanese performed suicide missions like crushing their planes against enemy ships to kill as much Americans as possible. He himself was ordered to perform one, and he touchingly talked about the mental struggle and stress of this act. Fortunately, his attack was almost useless as almost all the planes that accompanied him were shut down. He was lost alone in the ocean and had battled with himself to go back facing the shame of not killing himself. He got back to the Island expecting disgrace but his commander understood the hopelessness of that mission. However, the Japanese later organized a well-planned Kamikaz attack which led to a lot of casualties among the Americans. Sakai did not object on such organized attacks because they showed their effect on the enemy. Interestingly, many volunteered in these Kamikaz attacks which tells a lot about the personality of the Japanese fighters.

Few Highlights:

“In the Imperial Japanese Navy I learned only one trade— how to man a fighter plane and how to kill enemies of my country. This I did for nearly five years, in China and across the Pacific. I knew no other life; I was a warrior of the air.

“But to fly is just like swimming. You do not forget easily.

It is still difficult, if not altogether impossible, for Americans and other westerners to appreciate the harshness of the discipline under which we then lived in the Navy.

I could count only upon myself and my wingmen and the assistance I knew I would always receive from my fellow pilots. Had I gone into battle only shouting historic phrases, I would never have survived this long

This was an interesting and a good book

[Locky · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for anyone interested in the Japanese viewpoint of WWII. Combined with Toland's 'The Rising Sun', this book gives a great look into the war and what it meant for a single Japanese pilot - from the promising beginning, where the Japanese Zero fighter was the apex predator of the sky, to the hopeless ending, where Japan resorted to the desperate tactic of kamikaze attacks.
Sakai does well to dispute some of the American propaganda used during the war, refuting some of their more wild claims of air superiority.
Not once during 'Samaurai!' was I lost in the terminology of the aircrafts (I've never been one to care about aircraft/navy vessels) which is also to Sakai's credit.

My biggest peeve with the book had little to do with the content itself, but rather its publisher. There must have been 30 spelling mistakes and grammatical errors at a minimum and it's in desperate need of a proofreader.

[Jeff Dawson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Saburo Sakai gives a no-nonsense look behind the curtain of the IJN air corp. For those of us who have studied the training techniques the Japanese used on their trainees, there will be little surprise at the brutality they dished out to new recruits. No matter how harsh we in the West view these tactics, Saburo constantly goes back to how it saved his life more than once.
For some of us it might be hard to enjoy this story when he starts describing his and his wing’s accomplishments against the British, Australian, Chinese and American pilots who are being shot down in droves. I didn’t feel the same animosity when reading about the German fighter pilots who downed scores and scores of fighters and bombers. Is it because the Japanese had the surprise attack at Pearl Harbor or the fact we know how barbaric the IJA treated our prisoners of war? Perhaps it a combination of the two. That aside, it is a good read.
He will take you through his training, aspirations, dreams, conquests, comradeship and yes, once promoted to an officer, the true news that the war is lost and it’s only a matter of time to accept the inevitable.
Reading his story reminded me of the Calculus II professor I had in college. When he realized I was going to be setting the curve for the class, on the low end, he asked, “What would you like to discuss/” Seeing how is ancestry was Japanese, “Where you in Japan during the war and what do you remember?” There recollections of the Battle of Midway were very close. Saburo was able to read the transcripts after his promotion while my professor said, “we knew when none of the sailors, ships or flyers returned.”
A good solid read with one major problem, like so many books that have been republished and released, this one is packed with unacceptable grammatical mistakes. I came up with at least thirty-seven. Again, unacceptable!

Four Stars

[Matti Karjalainen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Saburo Sakain "Samurai" (WSOY, 1958) on tunnetuimpiin japanilaisiin hävittäjä-ässiin kuuluvan lentäjän muistelmateos, jossa hän kertoo värikkäästi kokemuksistaan Tyynenmeren rintamalla vuosina 1938-1945. Sakai tarinoi mielenkiintoisesti myös japanilaisesta yhteiskunnasta ja tapakulttuurista, ja onpa mukana myös tunteisiin vetoava rakkaustarina. Huomasin ajattelevani monta kertaa, että tässä olisi sellaisenaan kaikki ainekset hyväksi elokuvaksi!

Lentäjämuistelmia varjostaa kyllä epäily siitä, että osa kirjassa esiintyvistä tarinoista olisi mielikuvituksen tuotetta. Sakain kirjassa esittämä väite kuudestakymmenestäneljästä ilmavoitosta on myös asetettu kyseenalaiseksi, ja esimerkiksi Wikipedian mukaan tuossa luvussa saattaa olla yli puolet ilmaa.

Niin tai näin, "Samurai" on joka tapauksessa mieleenpainuva teos, ja yksi kiehtovimmista lukemistani ilmailukirjoista kautta aikain. Lentämistä kuvaavissa kohtauksissa teos tuntuu kirjaimellisesti nousevan siivilleen ja kiidättävän lukijansa armottomiin ilmataisteluihin Tyynen valtameren yläpuolelle. Vakavasti haavoittuneen Sakain paluulentoa kuvaava luku on huikea, samaten tarina - lieneekö sitten totta vai ei - pommikoneen lentäjästä, joka unelmoi silmukan tekemisestä.

Sakai kuvaa ilmasotaa raadollisesti. Sotalennot eivät ole ilmojen ritarien jaloa leikkiä, eikä niillä ammuta alas pelkkiä metallisia koneita, vaan lihaa ja verta olevia miehiä, jotka kokevat karmeita loppuja palaessaan hengiltä, syöksyessään alas viidakkoon tai joutuessaan meren uhreiksi.

Hieno kirja, jota ei voi kuin suositella kaikille ilmailusta kiinnostuneille lukijoille!

[David B · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the autobiography of Japan's greatest ace pilot to survive WWII. Saburo Sakai became a hero in his homeland and his account of his place in the Pacific War is even-handed and illuminating. In the early days of the war, victory seems to come relatively easy to him and the other pilots in his fighter group due to their superior training and the excellence of the Mitsubishi Zero fighter. As the war wears on, however, and the United States becomes more fully engaged on its Western front, the tide turns and the situation becomes increasingly desperate for Sakai and his compatriots, until the inevitable crushing defeat. Sakai, along with his co-authors Martin Caidin and Fred Saito, presents exciting accounts of air battles and Sakai's harrowing experience piloting his aircraft back to base after sustaining injuries that should have killed him. As good as this stuff is, I was glad that the home front wasn't neglected in his narrative. In addition to being a great air warrior, he also lived a wonderful love story with his future wife.

[Steven · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best war biographies I've ever read. Enlightening to read about the war from the Japanese side. Sakai is one of the top scoring Japanese ace of world war II, credited with 28 kills, but he claimed that the real number is about 64. The book chronicles his struggle through the tyranical discipline and bullying of the Japanese Air Force, his camaraderie with fellow flyers (most of the best Japanese pilots came from the same squadron, the same with the Luftwaffe), his struggle when he is mortally wounded during the Guadacanal campaign, his love for his wife that went through substantial tribulation through the war. It's a highly recommended tale about the amazing human strength to endure suffering. The suffering people went through in the war is just beyond anything we can comprehend. He went on to become a Buddhist, unwilling to kill any living thing as a form of penance.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author, with some well-noted help, woke me up to some elements of Japanese culture, especially the extreme discipline in their Navy during empire times. being slapped was normal in their training, and in some wartime matters.
Saburo Sakai was individually one of the best fighter pilots of all time. His survival is testimony enough in that. Many of the pilots he knew did not.
His mental approach to his tasks, and to survive is plenty of reason to reread. It's been a very long time since I carefully laid this one down, knowing my worldview had changed. That was back in 1968.

[Alfredo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Emocionante, terrible, entretenida, desoladoramente bella, dolorosa, vengativa historia. Va de menos a más y ya después de que a Saburo Sakai le meten una bala en el cerebro volando su Zero se convierte una adicción.

PS: Es la autobiografía de Sakai. Lo de la bala va como en la mitad del libro. i.e. una bala en el cerebro volando un avión dañado a 1000 kms de su pista más cercana no era motivo para echarse a morir.

[Art · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read alot of these books. When I was in High School at Sebeka, MN and when I was in the Army. Especially my 1st Tour as a MP in Muenster by Dieberg, Aschafflengberg Darmstadt area.
Trying to find and catalog the books I have read in the past.
Many I need to re-read again.

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

I met Mr. Sakai in 1982. He visited Elmendorf AFB in Alaska, where I was stationed as an F-15 pilot. His tour of Elmendorf and other military bases was arranged by the US government, and he traveled with one of the two US Army P-40 pilots who managed to get airborne from Wheeler Field during the Pearl Harbor attack on Dec 7, 1941. Although Saburo Sakai was not a participant in the Pearl Harbor attack (he was fighting in the Philippines on the Day of Infamy), the two were paired to represent the two sides of the air war in the Pacific. I gave the two men a tour of our F-15 simulator facility, including some cockpit time for each, and then they were whisked away by their escort officers. At the time, I'm embarrassed to admit, I didn't know the first thing about Sakai or his remarkable record as a Japanese Imperial Navy fighter pilot during WWII. I'm trying to make up for that now.

As for his memoir, I was most interested in the details of how the IJN recruited pilot candidates, their rank structure (Sakai was an enlisted man until very late in the war), how they trained on the ground and in the air, how they were billeted and fed during deployments to Lae, Rabaul, and Iwo Jima, and how they communicated in the air (there being no radios in Zeros early in the war). I was disappointed in the descriptions of dogfights and tactics, and perhaps that is the fault of the translator. I wish he had gone into much more detail.

Sakai's description of life as a Navy man during the war, particularly as the tide turned against Japan, is fascinating, and here he does go into great detail, describing primitive facilities and the almost nonexistent supply chain between the homeland and forward-deployed units throughout the Pacific. The glimpses he provides of civilian life at home in Japan during occasional leaves and later, during his hospitalization, are also fascinating. The folks at home were fed a diet of non-stop propaganda utterly ungrounded in reality, and by the time they realized they were being lied to and were in fact losing the war there wasn't much anyone could do other than what they were already doing ... nearly everyone, by 1944, was working in direct support of the war in one role or another. Alas, I was not at all interested in the many pages Sakai devoted to his future wife and yawned my way through those sections, anxious to get back to the fighting.

I read the Kindle edition, which included a fair number of typos. I wondered if the print editions contained maps and illustrations, because those would have been helpful. As it was, I kept my iPad at my side to look up maps of the Pacific islands Sakai flew from and those he attacked, occasionally looking up Japanese fighter types on Wikipedia.

Of course Sakai was a patriotic Japanese citizen (and not just that ... he actually came from a samurai family). He was, in every way, prepared to die for his country. There is no tone of apology in his memories, nor should there be. For many Americans, including myself, the events Sakai describes, and their aftermath, are very much within living memory. My father, then a sailor, was in the fleet attacking Okinawa. I was stationed at Kadena Air Base on Okinawa, a Zero base during the war, and later at Hickam Field in Honolulu, living in a WWII-era bungalow bordering Pearl Harbor. I've been to Guam and Truk Lagoon, both occupied by the Japanese during the war. I've flown out of RAAF Darwin, once attacked by the Japanese, and the airfield at Shemya Island (ditto). I know people from both sides who lived through the war (though there aren't many left today).

There are many who on principle will never read the memoir of a man who fought on Japan's side, and I cannot blame them. But I wish I'd known who Sakai was when I met him in 1982 ... I'd have peppered him with questions!

[Christopher · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've always been fascinated by WWII in the South Pacific, but I haven't read as much about the Japanese perspective. A friend loaned this book to me after a discussion about WWII aviation, especially in the Pacific war.

I didn't think too much of the book, though I'm prepared to concede at least part of that is cultural, since he's telling the story from a perspective and an upbringing very different from mine. But there were a couple of things that just didn't resonate with me at all.

One of them is the simple fact that he is very clearly bragging, and that wouldn't bother me so much if it weren't for the fact that he is constantly pretending to be humble. The humility rings very false as he tells tales of his constant successes in arial combat, and keeps a running count throughout the book of how many planes he shot down. What's worse, I very much doubt his claims are true. He claims to have shot down 64 allied airplanes over the course of his career, which is significantly more than any allied pilot, and he is very clearly proud of that number. The problem is, it is almost certainly not true. Allied pilots followed a different and significantly stricter method of confirming claims from arial combat than the Japanese did - in order for allied pilots to receive credit for a claim, it had to be witnessed and corroborated by fellow pilots and to some extent had to be justified in separate allied assessments of the Japanese order of battle. The Japanese were not so strict, and several of this author's claims were unverified.

A larger problem with the story, in my opinion, was that the author seemed to think there was a very specific point where the tide turned against the Japanese, and if they had done a few things differently, they might have prevailed. For the first part of the book, he talks about continuous successes, both in the air and on the ground, and these seemed to indicate to him that the Japanese military was nearly invincible. And he may even have believed that at the time. It's around halfway through the book where he recognizes that the allied equipment is becoming superior, and the allied pilots, as they gained experience, were becoming far more effective. To him, it's a sudden change, as if it were caused by a few incidental details, and if everyone had continued to push and succeed the way he had been, they could have prevailed.

The reality, I think, is fundamentally different. The Japanese were never going to prevail, and there was nothing they could have done to change that fact. What appeared to be victories for the Japanese in 1941 and 1942 were just essentially defensive actions on the part of the allies while they awaited the production of materiel and the training of sailors, soldiers and pilots. Once that happened, the appearance of Japanese invincibility was overwhelmed by the reality of the situation they had put themselves in. It was a fight they couldn't possibly win, and there were a few people in Japan, most famously Admiral Yamamoto, who knew that from the very beginning.

So the author tells a story with an arc that hinged on key moments, and even as he tells the story in retrospect, he seems surprised at the turning of the tide, the loss of his friends and the ultimate humiliation of their loss. And I can at least sympathize with people who might have felt that way at the time, in the situation. But with the benefit of hindsight, they should be able to see the futility of what they tried in the first place. And a story told in hindsight should acknowledge that there is no way it could possibly have turned out any differently than it did.

[William Webb · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the seminal World War Two biographies, regardless of nationality, made all the more fascinating because few Japanese pilots scored more kills than Sakai and of Japan's greatest aces, only he survived. His account is a rare look inside the ramshackle Japanese war machine, first as it overran most of the western Pacific and then as it collapsed. It's pretty much a must read for anyone wishing to understand the air war over the Pacific theater.

[Gísli Gíslason · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked Samurai a lot, it gave great insight into the Japanese side, the "glory" days, when there were few aircraft and the hard training and Zero's gave the Japanese the edge until the war changed completely, the US outproduced the Japanese in quantity and quality and the Japanese were so short on pilots that they sent the new recruits woefully trained in inferior planes, almost as targets for the US pilots.

As a wargamer I felt this book added to my understanding of the bigger picture, while it also offers an insight into Japanese society of the era.

[Timo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Worth reading even if just to get an idea of the level of cultural differences between Japan and Western nations. Would have been interesting to get to know Sakai's personal opinions regarding the war against China and later against other nations, but those are not brought up. Maybe the indoctrination was so heavy that nobody questioned anything.

[W E Wertenberger · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best WW 2 biographies I've ever read. The detailed description of air combat was thrilling and the first hand account of how brutal the training, discipline and overall conditions of Japanese personnel disturbing. A constant push and pull narrative that drew me in and held my focus throughout.

[Hobart · Rating 4 out of 5]

★ ★ ★ 1/2 (rounded up)
This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.
---

In the Imperial Japanese Navy I learned only one trade—how to man a fighter plane and how to kill enemies of my country. This I did for nearly five years, in China and across the Pacific. I knew no other life; I was a warrior of the air.

WHAT'S SAMURAI! ABOUT?
The inside page of my edition puts it this way, and I can't do much better (although I might tone down the language a bit, but it's not bad for the late 70's)

The Outcast Who Became Emperor of the Skies

He was a school dropout, juvenile delinquent, and family disgrace—until he first stepped into an airplane. From that moment he soared into legend as Japan’s deadliest ace, and the most feared pilot of World War I.

SAMURAI! is the unforgettable saga of Saburo Sakai—a story of explosive action, violent victory, and personal agony that is absolutely true and vividly real . . . from the roaring of winged cannons in aerial combat, to the anguish of a defeated nation.

THE FOREWORD ALONE
The foreword to the book gives an abbreviated biography of Sakai and is the only point that Caidan and Saito are mentioned, to emphasize the "autobiographical" nature of the book*. It also describes some of the research that went into the book.

Honestly, you don't have to read the whole book to get the idea that Sakai is an impressive figure. Just read the foreword. His post-ward activities alone are pretty impressive—possibly more so than the feats during the war, given the context.

If you're at all curious about the book, read the foreword. If you're still curious—dive in. If you decide, "I'm good," at that point, you probably are. (Although you might want to take a glance at chapters 2 and 3 to see what his military training was like. If you're similar to me, you'll think that Full Metal Jacket's Gny. Sgt. Hartman wasn't so bad after all.)

* There might be one or two mentions of Saito's research in footnotes, but I'm pretty sure Caidin isn't mentioned again. Like a good ghostwriter, he disappears.

INCREDIBLY TRUE
The back cover of my edition claims that this is "an incredibly true, powerfully moving story of glory, defeat, and ultimate victory—told by the man who lived it."

Maybe it's just me, but anytime you put a qualifier on "true," my skepticism kicks in a little. I'd prefer something "credibly true" any day. Yes, this is an incredible story. And yes, I think it's based on truth. Probably truth that's grown a little in the telling.

Is this just fallible memory? Is it the story of someone whose accomplishments get embellished by himself/others a little over time to the extent they don't remember the actual details? Is this the case of a ghostwriter goosing the facts to make for a better, more exciting read in the States? Possibly all of the above—I lean toward a combination of the latter two (my instinct to favor the third option is helped by the fact that this book wasn't published in Japan).

It should be stated that the foreword claims that in addition to the hours and hours of interviews with Sakai that Fred Saito, an Associated Press correspondent, researched military archives (from multiple nations) and interviewed associates to authenticate this. How much of that ended up in the final product is beyond my ability to state.

The text points out some places where there are discrepancies between official records and witnesses and what the text states happened. So, it's not like Caidin and Saito are unaware of some discrepancies.

ON THE OTHER HAND...

In April of 1944...With the secret reports available to me as an officer, I had been able to maintain a true appraisal of the war. The secret documents were a far cry from the drivel shouted over the radios to the unsuspecting populace. Everywhere in the Pacific our units were being forced back. Incredibly powerful American task forces, fleet units the size of which staggered the imagination, roamed the Pacific almost at will.

... We were still hanging on at Rabaul, but no longer did that once-mighty bastion threaten Moresby and the enemy’s other bases. Rabaul suffered in more ways than one. The Americans were using it for bombing practice, to break in their new replacements.

From the war in China, the reports internal to the Japanese military, what the civilians heard, and what American military/news reported, one thing that Sakai is clear about for almost the entire book—everyone was lying, exaggerating, hiding, and spinning facts.

So it's no wonder at all that it's hard to document or "prove" all of what he says. Probably everything we read about the War in the Pacific should have an asterisk following it, not just this book.

SAKAI'S MISTAKES AND INJURIES

No longer was I myself inviolate. It had been the enemy’s turn then, and no less than a miracle had brought me here on this train as it swayed along the tracks leading to Sasebo. A man sees the war differently after the doctors have scraped away rotten flesh from his skull, have dug jagged steel splinters from his body, and comforted him with the staggering living-death sentence, “It is not so bad, Sakai, you will be only half blind.” Only half blind!

Sakai is pretty upfront with mistakes, blunders, and times that his ego led him and others into trouble (although he was rarely alone in letting ego get the best of him). His first arial combat was just...ugly, and he got chewed out for it—as he should've, from what I can tell.

He sustained his share of injuries throughout the conflicts he was in—obviously, the worst was the injury that cost him most of the sight from his right eye. I'm not going to go into details about that incident—you really want to read about it yourself, even more than the hint you get in the Foreword.

But when you read about the medical care he received, you have to wonder a little bit what 2025 doctors would do differently. It's not quite as bad as reading about Civil War surgeons dealing with injuries—but it's not unlike it, either.

Still, that he came back from that at all to take to the air again says a lot about him. It probably also says a lot about how Japan was doing in the War at that time, and how much they needed pilots.

SO, WHAT DID I THINK ABOUT SAMURAI!

But to fly is just like swimming. You do not forget easily. I have been on the ground for more than ten years. If I close my eyes, however, I can again feel the stick in my right hand, the throttle in my left, the rudder bar beneath my feet. I can sense the freedom and the cleanliness and all the things which a pilot knows.

It's easy to think of this—in part, anyway—as Sakai telling stories that make him look good (with a few exceptions for the sake of true or perceived humility). But he's quick—and consistent—to praise others. He makes some of these other pilots sound really amazing, and I appreciated Sakai singing their praises and lamenting their deaths (as appropriate).

Like any good narrative about war*, Sakai does wonder about the costs to both sides.

...that night, for the first time, I thought of the enemy pilots I had shot down as other human beings like myself, instead of unknown entities in their planes. It was a strange and depressing feeling, but, as with every other facet of war, it was kill or be killed.

He doesn't forget that—but in kill or be killed, survival comes to the forefront.

More than once, I realized that when I was pleased to hear about a close escape, or a great victory for him, that I was cheering against the U.S. in the War. And that feels more than a little strange, I have to say. It's one thing in a work of fiction to get invested enough to cheer for an enemy or opponent. But in non-fiction?

I didn't even get into the strange but sweet love story about Sakai's first wife, and wish I knew more about what happened to her after the War, although it's clear it's not a happy story for anyone.

From his horrific days in training; through the combat in China; through hearing about how Dec. 7, 1941 could have had more infamy to live in; through his injuries and triumphs; through the end of the war—this was a riveting read. Yes, I have many questions about some of the details—but as a reader, not a professional historian, I can let those go and appreciate what we have.

I recommend this book, with some obvious caveats. But as someone rapidly approaching the time in life when I'm legally obligated to read WWII histories and watch hours of documentaries about it a week, this is a decent place to start. Fellow Gen Xers approaching the same deadlines would do well to give this a glance.

People who just love an exciting first-person account should do that, too.

* Maybe that's my personal preference shining through.

[Jonathan Gillespie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Piloting a Mitsubishi A6M "Zero" was hair-raising enough, with its notorious lack of armor and self-sealing fuel tanks, but flying one while bleeding to death, down one eye, and fading in and out of consciousness is the kind of experience Saburo Sakai, legendary Japanese fighter ace, places the reader in through his autobiography and memoir, Samurai! (with additional credit to Martin Caidin and Fred Saito), first published way back in 1957.

World War II is one of those conflicts shrouded in reverence, and almost mythic levels of regard, where larger-than-life change agents like Hitler, Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin commanded implacable generals whose very names were given to colorful labels -- like "The Desert Fox", and "Old Blood and Guts". In the shadows of these titans were regular servicemen (and women), who were often pressed into circumstances far beyond their background or expectation. The leaders in this conflict gave us history -- but the soldiers gave us stories we would do well never to forget. And Saburo Sakai tells quite a story.

Continue reading the review on my website.