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Summary: A smear campaign
Review: Well, I'm going to be the odd man out. I found this book grated on my nerves from the very first page. The protagonist is an arrogant, pretentious, self-important prig. The main theme of the book seems to be smearing MacArthur. Indeed, in the very first chapter, the author makes reference to the phrase, "An American Caesar", which was the title of an earlier work. Caesar, assuming that refers to Julius, was a traitor to his republic. He betrayed the trust placed in him by the senate and the roman people, and used his power to make himself emperor. There is absolutely no evidence that MacArthur ever contemplated anything even remotely resembling such actions, and to even imply some connection is a base canard against a great American. But as I said earlier, the author's main thrust here seems to be defiling the memory of Douglas MacArthur. While I certainly agree that the author has most of his major historical facts straight, he also engages in an great deal of speculation and innuendo. Then again, while the author identifies himself as a "combat marine" he is also both politician and lawyer, and as such, he is obviously no stranger to perversions of the truth.
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Summary: The Emperor's General changes a world
Review: I found myself rivetted, absorbed page after page, chapter after chapter of this deeply satisfying underbelly view of great men, great cultures, great deceit & gullibility. As a naive ADC, Jay Marsh basked in the reflected glory of MacArthur's return to the Philippines & his rule over Japan. Old Jay Marsh is back in Manila to remember & atone for his cowardice when that war-torn world of treachery & arrogance opened before his young eyes. An amazing vision of the Pacific Theater recoupment is this fictional memoir of America's advance on Japan & the ensuing peacetime transformation. Splendid read!...
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Summary: Well-written historical fiction
Review: Jay Marsh is a young, idealistic, Army Captain who has been assigned to Douglas McArthur's staff. We follow him from the time of McArthur's return to liberate the Phillipines in early 1945 and through the beginning of the peacetime Japanese occupation. Jay is privy to all of McArthur's inside politics and in-fighting, and in the beginning he finds it heady stuff. However Jay finds that the power he weilds in McArthur's name soon disillusion him and threaten to ruin his future with his beautiful Filipina fiancee. Mr. Webb is an excellent writer. His sense of place is very strong and he easily convinces us we're right there as the battle for Leyte is being fought. It's also obvious he knows Japanese culture. The historical background seems to be very well done. If he's taken liberties with history I'm not aware of it. If you like historical fiction, especially as it applies to WWII I'd recommend this book. It will give you insights into an era that's usually not covered in great detail. It's also an entertaining story.
Rating: 
Summary: The Emperor's General
Review: I could not put the Emperor's General down. Japan at the end of the war was brought vividly to life, the complex character of Douglas McArthur, the politics of the surrender as well as the politics of the rebuilding of Japan. Although I have read biographies of McArthur, none of them have adequately explained his dual nature. James Webb does that. Although one may not like all that the McArthur represented, Webb gives us a clearer picture, and thus a better understanding of his motives.
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Summary: Read this book
Review: This book was extremely interesting to read as it mixed military history with insights of other cultures and several fascinating stories that run in parallell. It's always risky business to compare authors with other authors, but I dare to say that the style of this book reminds me both of the novels by authors like James Clavell and Hammond Innes (if you can imagine what that could be like...). To make a long story short; get this book and read it.
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Summary: The General's Prince
Review: Though it talks a great deal about MacArthur and the Emporer of Japan, the book is really about Jay Marsh, whom I call "The General's Prince." Set in late WWII and post-war Japan, the book looks at the inner circle of MacArthur's staff. Young Jay Marsh is a Arkansas farm kid who moved to California and learned to speak Japanese. This elevated him from an Army nobody to a trusted aide in the Supreme Commander's HQ. Too trusted, perhaps. CPT Marsh learns to work politics and the intricacies of diplomacy, where "belly talk" compliments and shaded, half-lies are the norm. He's good at it. So good, in fact that he ultimately becomes an ambassador (the reader finds that out in the first chapter.) But romance, love, passion, double-dealing, politics and a growing awareness of himself as a person bring CPT Marsh to a series of events which ends the book in a series of memorable plot twists. I highly recommend the book for any WWII enthusiast or MacArthur fan.
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Summary: Two great stories, intertwined.
Review: This book has two main stories. The first is the "inside story" of McArthur's reconstruction of Japan, as seen by a young aide. The tale told there is one of deception, betrayal and manipulation, where the "old order" in Japan emerges unscathed in the guise of the "new." The monsters that were responsible for the horros of Nanking and Manila are left untouched and an honorable man is hanged in their place. The other story is the coming of age of the young aide; his love of a woman he cannot, in the end, have; and his inner turmoil as he watches -- and participates in -- the sham that is the General's New Japan. Jay's story is made more interesting in contrast to the historical events. That his story manages to overshadow the politics of victory and occupation makes it all the more potent. A great book, highly recommended.
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Summary: A Great Work of Historical Fiction
Review: Anyone interested in how MacArthur transformed Japan at the end of WWII should read this book. The book does a great job, in the form of very readable historical fiction, of showing how MacArthur help to defeat Japan at the end of WWII and then peacefully transform it to a democratic highly industrialized friend of the US. You see that it was not an easy job and that we did have to make some sacrifices. Yes the Emperor and some of his family committed war crimes, yes The Tiger was probably innocent, but MacArthur saw the big picture and knew what had to be done to transfer the Japanese mentality of Okinawa to the mentality that allowed for a peaceful and successful occupation period. A Great read and I recommend reading it along side "Embracing Defeat."
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Summary: The general who wished he were an emperor
Review: In the Emperor's General, James Webb proves that he is as good at bringing real historical figures to life as he is in portraying the harsh life of combat from the eyes of fictional soldiers. The general in question is Douglas McArthur, great man and great ego, and the emperor is the emperor of Japan following WWII. McArthur was the military governor for the period of occupation and the history books tell us mostly that he was loved by the Japanese and brought them order, a new constitution and rights for women. What the history books (at least in schools) don't dwell on is the cost of those reforms and how they were achieved. This book does, among other themes, concern itself with the settling of blame for the war and atrocities, the struggle of the emperor and his supporters to protect him from punishment or embarrassment, and the compromises tha McArthur made in order to achieve his ends - and his 'place in history'. The most startling premise of the book is that McArthur allowed the Japanese general who commaned the last troops to surrender in the Philipines, to become the scapegoat for the empreror's (and his friends and family's) sins. This figure, presented as a noble warrior who engaged in no atrocities and fought against all odds until ordered to surrender by the emperor, is tried and condemned to death - partly to satisfy McArthur's desire for someone to punish because of the rape of he Philipines and partly to shift blame from the emperial household. Whatever one believes about the actual history involved, the picture drawn of McArthur and the other characters, is so believable and detailed, that one cannot but be moved by the story. The reader's sympathies are, at book's end, with the Japanese general and not with McArthur. This is only scratching the surface of this book. There is much more to it. It is a full and rich experience that touches on many themes. It is a thought provoking novel that tells a complex story of interesting characters - some real and some fictional. Very enjoyable. I highly recommend it.
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Summary: As always, OUTSTANDING.
Review: I really enjoyed the read. Capt. Jay Marsh and I share a lot the same thoughts and feelings. Jim has once again put real flavor in this new work, you can almost smell the destruction of Tokyo. Thanks for taking the time to write it and share it with the world. Mac
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