Field of Spears : The Last Mission of the Jordan Crew

In a??Field of Spearsa??, author Gregory Hadley explores the complex and disturbing account of one B-29 crew near the end of the Second World War, and of the villagers near Niigata who captured them when their plane was shot down on July 20, 1945.

Based upon several years of investigative research, Hadley uncovers the mystery that had surrounded this singular event in Niigataa??s history: How did the four crewmen who died that night actually perish?

What sets a??Field of Spearsa?? apart from similar books of this genre is that Hadley has interviewed eyewitnesses from both sides of this incident, both villagers and former B-29 crewmen.

He supplemented this with numerous documents and Japanese memoirs that he found in area, as well as reports that were recently declassified through the US Freedom of Information Act.

A showpiece of the book is a series of never before seen photographs taken in Niigata that reveal, in gripping and sometimes gruesome detail, the capture and lynching of several crewmen.

In a narrative style, Hadley follows the aftermath of the July 20th incident, first by detailing how villagers sought to cover up the events surrounding the crewmena??s capture, the horrific experiences of the B-29 crewmen in captivity, the tepid efforts of war crimes investigators during the Occupation, and a study of the damaging effect the incident had upon on both the crewmen and villagers, all of whom were forgotten by their respective governments once the guns had fallen silent. 'Field of Spears' is not simply a story of an incident that took place over half a century ago.

As the wheel of history turns yet again, this book offers insight into human rights issues affecting our lives today, and provides a chilling reminder of what awaits todaya??s soldiers when they fall from their positions of elevated safety into the waiting arms of an angry mob.