Soldiers in Hiding

Japanese-American jazz musician Teddy Maki, now a star on Japanese TV, has been carrying a heavy burden of guilt since World War II. He and a fellow musician, Jimmy Yakamoto, had been trapped in Japan after the bombing of Pearl Harbor and forced to join the Japanese army, although they were still loyal to America. Jimmy had been killed by ruthless Major Nakamura for refusing to shoot an American prisoner, and Teddy had then carried out the very command his friend had died defying. He has never been able to confide these details to his wife or sonbecause she was Jimmy's widow and their son is actually Jimmy's child. A chance sighting of the major offers Teddy the prospect of revenge and redemption, but it seems the major has likewise been waiting all these years for a similar encounter. Wiley's first novel is a work of exceptional power and imagination, especially in his portrayal of his protagonist's ""listless remorse'' and cross-cultural alienation. Although the weight given Teddy's living hell is disproportionate to that given his eventual resurrection from it, Wiley's debut is an auspicious one nonetheless. February 14