When World War II comes to the Pacific, three Allied prisoners of war find themselves in an even more desperate situation than their comrades in Europe. They are put on a hell ship, where most don’t survive the voyage and those who do must deal with the brutal living conditions, disease, and lack of food that await them on their destination—a remote island off the coast of Japan, where they face slave labor at the hands of sadistic guards.
Overview About “King Rat” by “James Clavell”
King Rat is a novel written by James Clavell, published in 1962. The story takes place during WWII and follows four POWs as they are confined in a Japanese prison camp. This novel represents what would happen if there was no law and order in society, with its characters falling into one of three categories; survivalists, collaborators, and rat-men (most pitiful of all). When I first read King Rat many years ago I was struck by how realistic it was. How easy it would be for society to fall apart. For example when characters decide to stop working for their captors for no other reason than just because they can or because they think it is right.
Reviews About “King Rat” by “James Clavell”
King Rat follows Billy Lear, a young British private in WWII who’s captured and sent to a Japanese POW camp. Lear quickly rises through camp society when he strikes up an unlikely friendship with King Rat, who also happens to be one of his captors. He narrates Lear’s adventures in a way that allows readers to better understand what it was like for prisoners to live under such conditions but focuses mainly on character development. King Rat is well-written and has great characters, but isn’t as action-packed as I expected; there are some great battle scenes scattered throughout, but they’re not as plentiful as I would have liked. Still worth reading though!
About “James Clavell” the author of “King Rat”
He was a screenwriter turned author who wrote popular novels such as Shogun, Noble House, and Tai-Pan. In 1972 he was given an award for his work in modern fiction. He also wrote several successful plays but died in 1994 aged 74 before King Rat was published. He was born on November 5, 1924, and joined a patrol boat when he was 17 years old to fight against Japan during World War II. Before that, he attended exclusive Saint Ignatius College (where later fellow writer Frank Moorhouse would also attend). After returning from war at age 20, he worked at a timber yard while completing his education then becoming an advertising copywriter before going into journalism as well as being drafted into making propaganda films.
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