Cathy C. (cathyskye) -
Robert Mrazek's compelling book opens the door to Florence Finch's life. From her childhood in the Philippines where she grew up on a plantation run by her eccentric American World War I veteran father to her dealings with bigotry as a mestiza in a boarding school in Manila, Florence learned resilience and resourcefulness. Her intelligence and compassion were innate.
After a brief marriage to an American serviceman, Florence was widowed. As the Japanese took control of the Philippines and life became increasingly dangerous for all Filipinos, Florence took an important job with the company supplying the Japanese fighting forces with fuel-- all the while trying to rein in a spoiled teenage niece who couldn't understand why she shouldn't go out any time she felt like it to be with her friends. (I still want to shake some sense into that girl!)
Florence was an incredible person. While most people would be content with staying out of trouble and finding enough food to put on the table, Florence wanted to help. She devised ways to divert fuel from the Japanese to sell on the black market, which not only aided the Filipino Resistance but was also used to help as many prisoners of war as she possibly could, supplying them with desperately needed food and medicine. (The Japanese didn't acknowledge the Geneva Convention concerning the humane treatment of prisoners of war.) And all the time, Japan's grip on her country was tightening. All the time, they were closing in on what Florence was doing.
Mrazek had access to primary source materials (including taped interviews) that bring the time period and Florence's activities right out of the shadows and into the blazing sun where they belong. I was familiar with American military experiences in that part of the world for two reasons. During his service in the U.S. Navy during World War II, my grandfather spent a lot of time sailing in and out of the Philippines. Some of the mementos he brought home include items from the occupying Japanese forces. In addition, a man from the little farm town where I grew up actually survived the Bataan Death March. But my attention had focused almost entirely on the experiences of the military. What Mrazek brought to horrifying life for me was what the people of the Philippines-- of Manila-- went through, especially when the Japanese began to leave. I was sickened... and it made me hold Florence Finch in even higher regard. This woman epitomizes the strength and resiliency and beauty of the human spirit, and she deserves to be much better known than she is.
The Indomitable Florence Finch may not be the easiest book to read, but it's a book that should be read, and I'm glad I did. We all need to know that wonderful human beings like her can and do exist.
After a brief marriage to an American serviceman, Florence was widowed. As the Japanese took control of the Philippines and life became increasingly dangerous for all Filipinos, Florence took an important job with the company supplying the Japanese fighting forces with fuel-- all the while trying to rein in a spoiled teenage niece who couldn't understand why she shouldn't go out any time she felt like it to be with her friends. (I still want to shake some sense into that girl!)
Florence was an incredible person. While most people would be content with staying out of trouble and finding enough food to put on the table, Florence wanted to help. She devised ways to divert fuel from the Japanese to sell on the black market, which not only aided the Filipino Resistance but was also used to help as many prisoners of war as she possibly could, supplying them with desperately needed food and medicine. (The Japanese didn't acknowledge the Geneva Convention concerning the humane treatment of prisoners of war.) And all the time, Japan's grip on her country was tightening. All the time, they were closing in on what Florence was doing.
Mrazek had access to primary source materials (including taped interviews) that bring the time period and Florence's activities right out of the shadows and into the blazing sun where they belong. I was familiar with American military experiences in that part of the world for two reasons. During his service in the U.S. Navy during World War II, my grandfather spent a lot of time sailing in and out of the Philippines. Some of the mementos he brought home include items from the occupying Japanese forces. In addition, a man from the little farm town where I grew up actually survived the Bataan Death March. But my attention had focused almost entirely on the experiences of the military. What Mrazek brought to horrifying life for me was what the people of the Philippines-- of Manila-- went through, especially when the Japanese began to leave. I was sickened... and it made me hold Florence Finch in even higher regard. This woman epitomizes the strength and resiliency and beauty of the human spirit, and she deserves to be much better known than she is.
The Indomitable Florence Finch may not be the easiest book to read, but it's a book that should be read, and I'm glad I did. We all need to know that wonderful human beings like her can and do exist.
