WITHOUT SEEING THE DAWN

A disturbing book, because it might have been so much better than it is. Ably written, a worthwhile story, extremely vivid in spots, though slow and even dull in the overall- this has the elements of a powerful story, but would have benefitted by judicious pruning. The time is before and during the war; the place the Philippines; the story tells of a young Filipino farmer, his hardships and poverty before the war, his slow emergence into a bitter, vengeful guerrilla fighter when he finds that his wife has been raped by a Japanese soldier and is pregnant. From the first page one has a depressing sense of impending tragedy; Carding and his wife lose harvests, farms, children, family, friends, and faith in their love for each other. The most effective part of the book tells of the Japanese conquest and occupation- of atrocities, hatred and bitter guerrilla warfare. Here lies the real tragedy and power of the book, when the tragedy of the Filipinos as a people grips you.