Mass Suicides on Saipan and Tinian 1944

<p> When the Americans invaded the Japanese-controlled islands of Saipan and Tinian in 1944 civilians and combatants committed mass suicide to avoid being captured. Though these mass suicides have been mentioned in documentary films they have received scant scholarly attention. This book draws on United States National Archives documents and photographs as well as veteran and survivor testimonies to provide readers with a better understanding of what happened on the two islands and why. The author details the experiences of the people of the islands from prehistoric times to the present with an emphasis on the Japanese Okinawan Korean Chamorro and Carolinian civilians during invasion and occupation.</p>