| Question: Deeply enjoyed your Sink the Shigure and I will read others. Some things that may help. Aide cord is an aiguillette. WWII special ops units would have been called Rangers not commandos. Tremain would have seen even the LTC as extremely young not grey headed. The Average age of MAJ and LTC in WWII was well under 35 in these units. I knew a number of people who made COL in late twenties. Two scenes with light to the West dimming this makes the Eastern sky very dark I don’t think smoking would be allowed on deck. These are small things. Your book was a great read. |
| Answer: Posted: 11/03/07 Thank you for the great comments! I’m sure you’re right about “rangers” being the correct term. I decided to use the term “commandos” since the first army ranger unit to show up in the Pacific was the 6th Ranger Battalion, which wasn’t activated until September of 1944, several months after the events in SINK THE SHIGURE. As far as the age of the gray-headed LTC goes, I have to admit I did not research age/rank statistics, but instead used my own mental imagery to come up with a character. I envisioned the LTC as a Frank Merrill type. Merrill was in his 40s when he led his “Marauders” into Burma, and must have appeared, at least to his young soldiers, very fatherly. Thanks again for the nice remarks – RCC |
