The Leper Spy: The Story of an Unlikely Hero of World War II
By: Ben Montgomery / Narrated By: Joe Barrett
Length: 7 hrs and 14 mins
Wait, I know there’s a story in here SOMEwhere…!
It is with a graaaaavely heavy heart that I say The Leper Spy was a grand disappointment. I know, I feel bad for saying that because it is, ostensibly, about a true hero of the war in the Philippines during WWII. It opens with the death of little Joey, and how her death and her life go pretty much unnoticed. It is here that author and noted journalist Ben Montgomery is to enlighten us as to what a brave and true heroine Joey was.
Alas, ‘tis not. Mostly this is a narrative about the Philippines with a huuuuge amount of MacArthur worshipping thrown in. Now, whenst I was but in Junior High, I had a history teacher who regaled us with the man and let it be known of his dash, vigor, and heroism. This teacher loudly proclaimed the whole, “I shall return!” and “I have returned!” declarations, voice booming in the classroom, causing chills: What a Hero MacArthur was.
Uhm, welllll, that was waaaaay before I got into studying WWII m’self. Cuz when you get down to it? The man was a jerk and a loudmouth. Even Montgomery says as much when he says returning to the Philippines (After aBANdoning everyone! Yeh yeh yeh, Roosevelt requested it, but when on EARTH did MacArthur ever care what his president wanted? See: Truman?!) was about MacArthur’s “honor”; as in: It was NEVER about the people he left behind to suffer and die.
Does this seem like I’m off on a tangent? I assure you I am not as this whole audiobook chronicles guerrilla warfare, tactics, life in the Philippines under Japanese occupation, the Santo Tomas Internment Camp, Japanese atrocities. And oh, Joey’s wartime doings get a weeeee bit o’ airtime. For the most part, if you scan the Publisher’s Summary where it lists her actions, you’ve pretty much learned, in as many sentences, what Montgomery writes. He fairly glides right through them, barely adding that Joey’s leprosy made her an Untouchable, not apt to get strip-searched. That food and medicine, much needed meds which could’ve held Joey’s leprosy at bay, were in short supply? Tragic in the extreme, and it was also maybe one sentence stated before going onto telling us about MacArthur and his heroic wife and child.
Boooooo!!!!
Then we get to after the war, and I pretty much consoled myself that, at least, we’d get to learn the whole of Joey’s life; after all, she didn’t stop existing after all (The few sentences) the excitement, right? Okay, so we go to how she was exiled to a colony for lepers (Which is a hated word, by the way, but it describes what she was up against) and what wretched, wretched conditions they all lived in. It shows us how Joey then began as an advocate for others like her at the colony and then onto advocating for herself, requesting permission to seek more advanced treatment in the US. There’s quite a bit written of the stigma attached to Hansen’s disease, the fear of contagion, the disgust at disfigurement, etc. etc. and precious little of Joey. Indeed, soon Montgomery has us off with OTHER people who played roles in getting Joey to the US, who played roles in educating a reluctant public.
Where’s Joey? Yup, there’s a quickie divorce for her to be followed by a quickie marriage, possibly for citizenship. And boy is there a LOT about how her daughter felt abandoned and oh soooo angry, didn’t see her mother as a heroine at all. But really, I so very much was hoping for “The Leper Spy” with all sorts of bravery and derring do. I held my breath as Joey traveled faaaaar to get information to the right people; I was awed as she walked upright and courageous as bullets flew past, even as soldiers cowered or called for help. Unfortunately, there was precious little of any of that to be had.
Joe Barrett did what he could with the material. I do so like him. He has such a warm voice, and he made Joey seem precious when her story was told. But I have to ding him for the rousing tones he had when he spoke of MacArthur as I looooooathe that General and could’ve done with a bit of reality thrown in. Guerrillas as heroes? Yesssss, thank you, Mr. Barrett! Jonathan Wainwright weeping tears of shame that he surrendered “MacArthur’s” men to the Japanese? Booooo, no Joe, let’s not go there!
Still, love Joe Barrett and am looking forward to more audiobooks as he adds a wonderfully human element to Military History.
So ANYway…!
Not much here if you’re looking for The Fightin’ Tales of Josefina Guerrero. Nope, hit Wikipedia instead. I did and got as much as the book, unfortunately without Joe Barrett, but fortunately withOUT MacArthur!
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