This is an amazing read. Melville and Annalee Jacoby are 25-year-old journalists who will stop at nothing to tell the store of the war in the Pacific in the early days of World War II. Part biography, part war story, part travelogue, Eve of a Hundred Midnights is a rare combination that I could hardly set down once I'd begun to read.
Initially interested in China, and the plight of the Chinese as Japan intensifies its multi-year war against them, Mel Jacoby narrowly escapes the Japanese first in China and then in Indochina before settling into Manila on the eve of the Pearl Harbor (and SE Asia) bombardments. He and his bride of just a few weeks take what is literally the last boat out of Manila and join MacArthur and his troops at Corregidor, from whence they must again make a harrowing escape.
What I loved about this book is that not only was it well-written, and not only did it tell a compelling story about the Jacobys, but also Bill Lascher has done a phenomenal job of making sense of the war in China, as well as the early days of the war in the Pacific. From the invasion of Manchuria to the incident at the Marco Polo bridge, and then certainly the events in Indochina and beyond, these were great, complicated geopolitical events that too many authors choose to gloss over for the sake of not dragging readers too deep into the weeds. (James Bradley's Flyboys is similarly in-depth, and came to mind many times as I read Lascher's work.) I also appreciated the nuanced way in which he captured the zeitgeist in Manila, which was so conflicted between anger at the U.S. over delayed independence and pride, for lack of a better term, in being a protectorate. And their faith, oh the misplaced faith that so tore at Melville and Annalee...
Eve of a Hundred Midnights is a fascinating portrait of World War II journalism and journalists. It also has the rare quality of reading like travel writing, so that the reader is whisked through Asia and the South Pacific alongside the Jacobys.
Hey, Sarah,
ReplyDeleteThis post just recently came across my transom as I was preparing to do some promotion for the paperback release of Eve. I really appreciate the praise for Eve of a Hundred Midnights. Obviously, as an author it's nice to see anyone enjoying one's book. In this case, I'm particularly moved that you welcomed my attempt to make sense of the war in China. It was a challenge for me to simultaneously not get too deep in the weeds on that and to provide adequate context for Mel's career (and Annalee's, when she entered the picture). I felt like it was crucial to provide that context because it was so important to Mel and Annalee that what was happening in China be taken seriously, carefully, and accurately. I still worry I didn't quite capture it (It was quite complex!) but I'm glad I was able to keep you reading and interested.
Thanks again for writing about the book and sharing your thoughts about it.
-Bill Lascher
Thank you, Bill, for taking the time to comment on my review. As I wrote, I especially appreciated your handling of big, messy geopolitical events about which far too few people are knowledgeable. (I teach a college course on Japanese history and culture, and it's always a shock to my students to learn about the Sino-Japanese conflict!)
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