The Riveter
Josiah Chang grows up felling lumber in western Canada. He never knew his mother and works on a two-man crew with his father. Six months after Pearl Harbor, a lumber accident kills his father. This impels Josiah to try to enlist, but the Canadian army does not allow men of Chinese heritage to serve. Josiah finds employment as a riveter in a shipyard. Strong, handsome, and smart, he soon wins the respect of most around him, especially office worker Poppy Miller. Head-turner Poppy is also a talented nightclub singer. Josiah and Poppy fall rapturously in love, but the law forbids white Canadians to marry those of Asian descent. Poppy’s father, a lawyer, refuses to let them marry, even in secret. After hearing of some Asians now serving in the Canadian military, Josiah flees the shipyard and Poppy. He works his way into an elite paratroop unit that joins the Normandy invasion. The unit fights through France, Belgium, Holland and into Germany. Every moment he strives to do what’s right—for Poppy, her parents, and for himself.
In often lyrical literary prose, Wang has created two captivating main characters challenged by racism and harsh circumstances. He has rendered honest, gut-wrenching scenes of training and war. Night parachute jumps into strange lands and close combat, as well as times of numbing tedium for soldiers itching to fight, all come alive. Wang superbly portrays the two lovers, always unsure about each other and then not knowing whether they will see each other again. For long stretches they communicate only by letters that are weeks, even months, outdated. No one can remain unchanged by years of intense, soul-crushing war and separation. How Josiah and Poppy emerge is both heart-tugging and true to life. Highly recommended.
