Book Review: The Bridges at Toko-Ri by James Michener

Published in 1953, this novella is the story of Lieutenant Harry Brubaker, a naval aviator tasked with bombing the infamous bridges at Toko-Ri during the Korean War. Brubaker must confront his personal insecurities and the danger that he’ll be killed in a war that everyone back home has forgotten about.

Author’s Background

James A. Michener served in the U.S. Navy during World War II and was posted to various assignments throughout the South Pacific, reportedly, this was because people mistakenly thought he was the son of Admiral Marc Mitscher. (Apparently, nobody looked closely enough at their last names to notice the difference.)

Michener authored over 40 books during his writing career, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning Tales of the South Pacific. Aside from The Bridges at Toko-Ri, he also wrote the epic novels Hawaii, Texas, Chesapeake, The Covenant, and Alaska. Michener received over a dozen awards and honors for his work, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1977. He passed away in 1997.

Plot

!!!FULL SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

Lieutenant Harry Brubaker is a WWII veteran and U.S. naval aviator recalled to active duty from his job as an attorney in Denver, Colorado to serve on the aircraft carrier USS Savo Island during the Korean War. Along with USS Hornet, Savo Island is operating as part of Task Force 77, under the command of Rear Admiral George Tarrant, who has taken a liking to Brubaker because he reminds him of his sons he lost in WWII.

While returning to the carrier, Brubaker is forced to ditch his F2H Banshee in the freezing Sea of Japan but is rescued by Chief Petty Officer (Naval Aviation Pilot, NAP) Mike Forney and Naval Air Crewman (NAC) Nestor Gamidge flying a rescue helicopter. Despite his effectiveness and fun-loving, irreverent attitude, Forney has upset his superiors several times before for wearing a non-regulation green top hat and scarf while flying. While debriefing with Tarrant, Brubaker voices his frustration at the fact that he was recalled to fight in Korea while other organized units were left back in the States drawing pay and that most Americans seem to be ignorant of the conflict. Tarrant laments that “every war’s the wrong one,” and that a handful of volunteers will be required to make sacrifices for many. He further appraises Brubaker about an upcoming strike on the heavily defended bridges at Toko-Ri. Finally, Tarrant gently chastises Brubaker for somehow getting his wife and two daughters to meet him in Yokosuka on their next port visit, despite Navy regulations.

After pulling into Yokosuka, Japan, Brubaker and his wife, Nancy, are relaxing at a hotel with the rest of the officers when Gamidge arrives and informs Brubaker that Forney started a brawl in Tokyo over the fact that his Japanese girlfriend left him for a sailor from USS Essex. Gamidge begs him to help get Forney out of jail, and Brubaker is forced to abruptly leave his wife and kids. Meanwhile, Tarrant informs Nancy of her husband’s earlier ditching and rescue and the upcoming mission at the bridges at Toko-Ri. He also relates the story of how he lost one of his sons at the Battle of Midway, and how his daughter-in-law and wife were never the same afterward. Therefore, he urges Nancy to accept the reality of the dangers these men face in order to prepare herself should they be killed.

After bailing Forney out and preventing him from starting another fight in a nightclub with his ex-girlfriend, Brubaker returns to the hotel late at night and tells Nancy about the bridges. After spending a day with his family in a bathhouse, he returns to the carrier to head back to Korea. After flying a photo reconnaissance mission over the bridges with “CAG” (Commander, Air Group), Brubaker suffers a crisis of confidence in his abilities, despite many lauding him as being one of the best pilots in the squadron. To steel his nerves, Brubaker goes below deck to stand in front of the catapult piston as it recoils and stops mere inches from his face. The experience gives Brubaker the courage to continue flying.

The squadron’s initial strike on the bridges is aborted due to heavy fog. Diverted to provide close-air-support for ground troops, Brubaker notices a group of Communist soldiers stand perfectly still in the open as he strafes them. Later, the aerial spotter flying an Air Force SNJ is shot down despite Brubaker’s efforts to destroy an AA gun position shooting at them. Back aboard the carrier, Tarrant confronts Brubaker about his recent jitteriness. In turn, Brubaker reassures the admiral and mentions the bravery of volunteers like CAG during his photo recon flight and the Air Force SNJ spotter killed earlier. Subsequently, Brubaker is cleared to fly the next mission against the bridges.

Despite heavy anti-aircraft fire, the mission to bomb the bridges is successful, with all four being destroyed. Still having ordnance, Brubaker attacks a supply dump, but his aircraft is hit and begins losing fuel. Unable to make it over the mountains to bail out over the sea, he crash lands in a field and takes cover in a nearby ditch while F4U Corsairs provide cover. Forney and Gamidge arrive in their rescue helicopter but are shot down by enemy troops. Gamidge is killed and Forney takes cover alongside Brubaker. The two men attempt to hold off the advancing North Korean troops, but both are overwhelmed and killed with Brubaker’s last thoughts being of his home and family.

Back on the carrier, Tarrant questions CAG as to why Brubaker was abandoned. CAG defends his actions, arguing that the mission was ultimately successful and that he lost a good man, too. While watching aircraft catapult off the flight deck to attack new targets in Korea, Tarrant muses about the bravery of America’s volunteers and ponders to himself, “Where did we get such men?”

Critical Observations

Positives

This is the first James Michener book I’ve read, and from my understanding, Michener is widely known for his long sagas containing extensive research. For example, his Tales of the South Pacific are loosely based on his experiences and collected observations as a naval officer in the Pacific Theater during WWII. (This was later adapted into the Rogers and Hammerstein musical, South Pacific.) Similarly, his book Hawaii chronicles the story of the Hawaiian Islands and their people from ancient times to when it became a state. Based on reading The Bridges at Toko-Ri, I can say that Michener’s writing is fairly good overall. The characters, setting, and conflict are all decently fleshed out, at least enough for the reader to get a clear picture of them.

Like many, I first became aware of this book after seeing the 1954 film adaptation, starring William Holden and Grace Kelly. This book is a novella; a fact I didn’t know before I picked it up. The Dial Press paperback version I read is only 83 pages long. This means that it’s a swift and easy read. I read the whole thing in two days (even when reading at a leisurely pace).

Michener is known for doing a lot of research for his books. As such, in 1951 he was an embedded reporter aboard the aircraft carriers USS Essex (CV-9) and USS Valley Forge (CV-45) which were part of Task Force 77 operating off Korea during the war. Michener based the strike on the bridges at Toko-Ri, as well as the subsequent rescue attempt of Brubaker, on several separate unrelated events during the war. He also based many of the characters in the book on actual officers and sailors he met during his time as a reporter aboard the carriers. Reportedly, one of the aviators he met was future astronaut Neil Armstrong, who flew F9F Panthers off Essex. Whether or not Michener based any of the characters in the book on Armstrong is unknown, but the latter attests to the accuracy of the former’s work.¹ This research shows in the writing because the book does a pretty good job of painting an accurate picture of carrier air operations and the experiences of U.S. naval aviators during that conflict.

Negatives

My biggest disappointment with this book is its short length. Frankly, I was expecting something longer. As a result, there’s not a lot of time to develop the characters or thematic elements beyond a superficial level. This certainly wasn’t some epic tale of the forgotten war that was Korea, but on the upshot, they did make a pretty good film of it (to be reviewed later).

One of the themes of this book seems to be that a few will be called upon to make sacrifices for many. The notion of America being far removed from the conflict in Korea, and Brubaker’s frustration with having to fight while others don’t is brought up multiple times. Furthermore, Nancy’s angst about her husband’s safety and Brubaker’s death at the end also underscore the idea that it’s never the right war at the right time, and we have to face the harsh reality of losing people we care about. While these are very powerful themes, they’re only really elucidated in conversations between characters, and not much is shown in the way of action to exemplify them. It seems like a missed opportunity for Michener to show rather than tell.

While the writing is good on the one hand, on the other, there’s nothing terribly stellar about it, either. Don’t expect a deep examination of the brutality of warfare. This isn’t a super intense book like Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness. The writing is there and it just gets the job done.

Verdict

I wouldn’t call this novella bad, but honestly, I was expecting more from it. It does what it can in less than 90 pages to introduce us to the characters, setting, and theme of sacrifice, but it all feels like it’s just going through the motions. The upshot is that Michener is a decent writer, and this book is a good introduction to his style. It’s short and very easy to read. In the end, honestly, I actually enjoy the film adaptation a bit more.

Notes

1. Richard Sisk, “Hollywood Captured Armstrong’s Korean War Missions,” Military.com, August 27, 2012, https://www.military.com/daily-news/2012/08/27/hollywood-captured-armstrongs-korean-war-missions.html?ESRC=eb.nl.