On April 1, 1945 with the battle of Okinawa beginning, fourteen-year-old native Okinawan Hideki, drafted into the Blood and Iron Student Corps, is handed two grenades and told to go kill American soldiers; small for his age Hideki does not really want to kill anyone, he just wants to find his family, and his struggle across the island will finally bring him face-to-face with Ray, a marine in his very first battle and the choice he makes then will change his life forever.
Featured in WOW Review Volume XI, Issue 2.
- ISBN: 9781338245691
- Published: 2018 , Scholastic
- Themes: Effects of war, Soldiers and the military, violence, World War II
- Descriptors: Asia, Historical Fiction, Intermediate (ages 9-14), Japan
- No. of pages: 288