Comments on: The Notes of a Japanese prisoner in the USSR

The Notes of a Japanese prisoner in the USSR

tellurian — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 19:54:12 -0800

Kiuchi Nobuo - a Japanese airman in World War II, was captured and sent to a prison camp in the Ukraine. He tells his story with drawings.

By: George_Spiggott

George_Spiggott — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 20:04:39 -0800

Fantastic. The sketchy English somehow adds to it. When he refers to "Moon Blindness", I assume he's referring to night blindness induced by vitamin deficiency?

By: steef

steef — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 20:09:06 -0800

Beautiful, funny, and really touching in places. "We don't know their language and we can't speak the language of words, but we all understand the language of music." Good find.

By: awfurby

awfurby — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 20:14:18 -0800

Great series - I like the cultural observations as he encounters POWs and soldiers from other countries. Interesting how a number of the drawings are devoted to going to the toilet. Also, does this girl look pregnant?

By: pravit

pravit — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 20:17:36 -0800

I loved this! Thanks for the post! Interestingly enough, the site reads better in Russian than in English.

By: Abiezer

Abiezer — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 20:47:44 -0800

This is wonderful tellurian. I found this one immensely touching and cheering.

By: vorfeed

vorfeed — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 20:59:53 -0800

Thanks! Imagine, 600 thousand POWs, their story almost entirely forgotten these days... what a great link.

By: maxwelton

maxwelton — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 21:23:30 -0800

This is amazing. What a gracious man.

By: tellurian

tellurian — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 21:35:11 -0800

The link is from the Wikipedia entry on Japanese POWs in the Soviet Union. There is also a small gallery at the Maizuru Repatriation Memorial Museum [Japanese].

By: exlotuseater

exlotuseater — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 21:46:27 -0800

thanks for this; beautiful in its simplicity and earnest tone.

By: dydecker

dydecker — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 21:53:11 -0800

very cool

By: Xere

Xere — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 22:17:00 -0800

Really nice. He actually manages to make war look charming - which it isn't, but you know what I mean.

By: greycap

greycap — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 22:42:44 -0800

Fantastic post - what a wonderful site.

By: nickyskye

nickyskye — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 22:52:28 -0800

An awesome and illuminating discovery tellurian. His images and story read like a movie storyboard. I hope it is turned into a film. What a wonderful and moving narration he created. Loved the Japanglish used as well. Poignant. By the end of World War II about 600 thousand Japanese soldiers and officers have been held captive in thousands of prison camps on a territory, stretched from Kamchatka in the East, across Urals to European part of USSR in the West and Yenisei Basin in the North. The History Chapters not only hold Japanese Army sound victories but also atrocities of defeat that I intend to tell about to the new generation. I decided to draw these pictures in memory of those of my comrades-in-arms, who were not destined to return home. Kiuchi Nobuo, retired Air Corps I had no idea. His story and artwork remind me of those done by Eufrosinia Kersnovskaya and The Gulag Collection: Paintings of the Soviet Penal System by Former Prisoner Nikolai Getman. Important to remember, especially in these times as the so-called Patriot Act etc spiral out of control, what unthinkable suffering can happen, under whatever flag the atrocities are committed, caused when leaders and those who support them blindly gain fascist power.

By: Rumple

Rumple — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 23:44:40 -0800

What a great post. Very very best of the web. Thanks.

By: Skygazer

Skygazer — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 23:53:39 -0800

The site is fantastic. It's ironic how such beautiful and humble drawings make unreal suffering and hardship imaginable.

By: XMLicious

XMLicious — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 03:52:23 -0800

Totally awesome.

By: The Monkey

The Monkey — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 04:28:24 -0800

Great post.

By: tehloki

tehloki — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 06:14:36 -0800

What

By: bullitt 5

bullitt 5 — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 07:51:33 -0800

Nice :)

By: crunch buttsteak

crunch buttsteak — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 08:13:47 -0800

Really touching to someone in the military, especially. Capture is one of those things about which we say, "oh, never happen to me." So to hear about real experiences as a POW is always humbling.

By: googly

googly — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 08:20:25 -0800

Fantastic. Thanks.

By: Harald74

Harald74 — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 06:12:46 -0800

That was very interesting! Great find!

By: QueSeraSera

QueSeraSera — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 04:17:43 -0800

Loved this. My own grandfather was captured and taken to a Siberian work camp. He eventually made it home but passed away before I was born so I never got to know him... This post brought tears to my eyes. Thank you.