Iris Chang’s book is gripping and worth the read. My dad’s cousin survived Nanking as a child but seldom talked about it. As a person of Chinese descent, I think the book overly generalizes Japanese culture vs. the Japanese military because there was a popular democratic movement within Japan during the 1920s.
All in all, though, the book was a good reminder of what happened during the Japanese occupation of China, which many conveniently forgot. My mom was fortunate to live in a part of Shanghai that was controlled by a Japanese officer who was educated in the West; it made all the difference in how her family and neighbors were treated. For the liberals who kneel at the altar of multiculturalism, that wartime experience of my mom’s is an important reminder of the importance of Western culture and why it should not be suppressed in the name of ‘multi-culti’.
Blessings on your family who survived the occupation.