Another Man's War: The Story Of A Burma Boy In Britain's Forgotten Army
by Barnaby Phillips
Buy on AmazonIn December 1941 the Japanese invaded Burma. For the British, the longest land campaign of the Second World War had begun. 100,000 African soldiers were taken from Britain’s colonies to fight the Japanese in the Burmese jungles. They performed heroically in one of the most brutal theatres of war, yet their contribution has been largely ignored. Isaac Fadoyebo was one of those ‘Burma Boys’. At the age of sixteen he ran away from his Nigerian village to join the British Army. Sent to Burma, he was attacked and left for dead in the jungle by the Japanese. Sheltered by courageous local rice farmers, Isaac spent nine months in hiding before his eventual rescue. He returned to Nigeria a hero, but his story was soon forgotten.…
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"Another Man’s War is riveting. It’s an extraordinary story, well-researched and beautifully told — but not about the World War II you might know. Barnaby Phillips writes about humanity and compassion from the perspective of a Nigerian soldier whose forgotten colonial unit fought for the British Empire in then-Burma. Sixteen-year-old Isaac Fadoyebo is one of the “Burma Boys” who found themselves battling determined Japanese soldiers far away from home. Wounded and left for dead in the jungle, Isaac and Sierra Leonean David Kargbo survive only thanks to the goodness of a local villager, Shuyiman, and his family. Phillips delves deep into relationships, identity and much more in this stunning book. I couldn’t put it down."
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