Every Shape, Every Shadow: A Novel of Guadalcanal

 Author's Summary

It is 1942 and the Japanese have overrun Southeast Asia and most of the Pacific islands. They have to be stopped somewhere or Australia could fall. That somewhere is a place called Guadalcanal. Every Shape, Every Shadow is Roger L. Conlee's fictionalized account of one of the epic battles in American history. Guadalcanal was where the Japanese were finally stopped and the Americans could start on the road to Tokyo and victory.

The story is told mostly through the eyes of a frightened, lonely young Marine.

MWSA Review

MWSA 2006 Bronze Medal for Fiction, Historical

Historic WWII novel that reads like a non-fiction! Author Roger Conlee is an avid historian, an excellent researcher and a gifted writer and he combines all his talents into producing a WWII classic story called “Every Shape, Every Shadow – A Novel of Guadalcanal.” There are few war novels that rise to this level of expertise. He writes as if he were there among the men who lived and fought there. Not only that but he gives the reader views of the battle from both sides allowing us to learn something about the Japanese commanders as well.  We even get to listen to Tokyo Rose broadcasting her propaganda to the troops about ready to do battle.

Conlee captures the feelings and sense of the battle that those who were there might have felt. He shares both some real and fictional letters home that give a more personal insight to those men and adds another layer of emotions to his story. The book feels like non-fiction and reads like a thrilling action adventure tale of war. His use of dialogs helps us to get a better sense of who each character in the story is; and it carries the plot along effortlessly. His descriptions of the battle and inner sense of what happened there makes for riveting good reading. This is a page turner; you will not want to put it down until you have finished the book even if it well past your bed time.

There have been some really great books written about the heroics of WWII and now you can now add this one to that list. It is that good! 

Reviewed by: Bill McDonald (2006)