Bibliography
Bruchac, J. (2006). Code talker: A novel about the Navajo Marines of World War Two. Speak, an imprint of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
Plot Summary
Based on real events during World War II, Ned Begay tells the story of how he and his comrades served in the military as the Navajo Code Talkers. From their Navajo language, once unvalued and shamed, they created and used a code to send important messages to and from military leaders during World War II.
Critical Analysis
Written as an oral storytelling by a Grandfather to his grandchildren, the structure of Code Talker is unique. Each chapter occurs as a story told. While the stories sometimes stray from chronological order, mentioning things from the present time or jumping to later parts of the story, each chapter moves in chronological order. As the narrator states in the book, “a story is better if you have to wait a little bit for it to be spun out”.
The characters include Navajo people, white people, or bilagáanaas, and people from the variety of places that the Navajo code talkers traveled to during WWII. In the beginning of the book, the main character and storyteller, Ned Begay, is sent to boarding school where he is forced to change his name, cut his hair, stop speaking his Navajo language, and assimilate into white culture. Teachers would make comments such as “Neddie, you are almost as bright as a little white child”. Customary signs of respect for Navajos such as looking down when an elder is speaking to you were seen as disrespectful and quickly punished, and speaking Navajo language at any time was unacceptable. Despite this experience, years down the line, Ned Begay was enthusiastic about joining the military and fighting for the land on which he grew up. Although he was not old enough to legally join the army, Ned enlisted with the support of his parents, a “blessingway”, a protection ceremony, is performed by people in his family and community, and his service begins. After finishing boot camp, where all of the Navajo enlistees train with more ease and resilience than their white counterparts, Ned is sent with many of his fellow Navajo marines to begin training as a code talker. The book describes the process of learning and then using this Navajo code to send secret messages through the military that the Japanese cannot decipher. Ned enjoys the importance of his task and the fact that it uses the language he loves. What was once punished at boarding school is integral to the success of the U.S. military. Even after noble service to the country, Ned still experiences racism unconsciously from his friends, like the one who calls him “chief”, and the conscious and purposeful exclusion and hate from people in civilian society as well.
This book is an incredible historical account of the Navajo code talkers as well as a story with characters to fall in love with.
Review Excerpts and Awards
From School Library Journal: “In the measured tones of a Native American storyteller, Bruchac assumes the persona of a Navajo grandfather telling his grandchildren about his World War II experiences...Bruchac's gentle prose presents a clear historical picture of young men in wartime, island hopping across the Pacific, waging war in the hells of Guadalcanal, Bougainville, and Iwo Jima.”
From Kirkus Review: “Telling his story to his grandchildren, Ned relates his experiences in school, military training, and across the Pacific, on Guadalcanal, Bougainville, Guam, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa. With its multicultural themes and well-told WWII history, this will appeal to a wide audience.”
Connections
Watch this interview with author Joseph Bruchac https://www.scholastic.com/teacher/videos/teacher-videos.htm#3193529731001/1688365625
See the Native 360 Smithsonian resources including these images of Navajo artifacts https://americanindian.si.edu/collections-search/search?edan_q=code+talkers
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