The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of World War II
In December 1937, one of the most brutal massacres in the long annals of wartime barbarity occurred in the capital of China. The Japanese army swept into Nanking and not only looted and burned the defenseless city but systematically raped, tortured, and murdered half of the city’s remaining population, some 300,000 Chinese civilians. Amazingly, the account of this atrocity was denied by the Japanese government.
The Rape of Nanking tells the story from three perspectives: that of the Japanese soldiers who performed it, that of the Chinese civilians who endured it, and finally, that of a group of Europeans and Americans who refused to abandon the city and were able to create a safety zone that saved almost 300,000 Chinese. Among these was John Rabe, the tireless German leader of the rescue effort, whom Iris Chang called the “Oskar Schindler of China.”
- Pages
- 290
- First published
- 1998
- ISBN
- 9780140277449
Shelved by 2 Litcadians
Reviews
Finished November 12, 2024
"The veneer of civilization seems to be exceedingly thin.." "As the Nobel laureate Elie Wiesel warned years ago, to forget a holocaust is to kill twice." Reading this book was an experience I won’t forget anytime soon. It was my first time learning about the horrors of Nanking, and it left me both stunned and deeply saddened. This isn’t an easy book to get through - it’s graphic, heart-wrenching, and at times overwhelming - but it’s also incredibly important. Chang’s bravery in uncovering and publishing the truth about an atrocity that many tried to keep hidden is remarkable. Her storytelling doesn’t flinch from the brutal details, and while that made it hard to read, it also made me appreciate the weight of this history even more. It’s one of those books that’s hard to say you’re “glad” you read because the content is so devastating, but I am grateful for the perspective it gave me. It’s changed me, and I don’t think I’ll ever be the same.