By Daniel James Brown

In a review for NPR, Michael Schaub describes Daniel James Brown’s book, Facing the Mountain, as “the compelling tale of the men of the 442^nd and their families, who through their actions laid bare for all the world to see what exactly it means to be an American. It’s a fascinating account of some of the bravest Americans who ever lived, and a sobering reminder of a dark chapter in American history—years of anti-Asian racism that, as we’re reminded daily, never really went away.”

Brown, who also wrote The Boys in the Boat, recounts this sobering chapter in US history by focusing mainly on four young Nisei men, three of whom enlisted in the Army and one of whom would spend the war fighting stateside for civil rights. Brown details their training, their heroics in the war, and the deeply disappointing treatment these heroes received when they came home.

Facing the Mountain, says Schaub, “is more than just the story of a group of young men whose valor helped save a country that spurned them, it’s a fascinating, expertly written look at selfless heroes who emerged from one of the darkest periods of American history—soldiers the likes of which this country may never see again.”