Code Talker
by Joseph Bruchac

Ned Begay is transplanted from his family’s home at the age of six, and sent to a boarding school to learn English and the American way of life. There he is given a new name and clothes and forbidden to speak his native language Navajo. When he is 16, he is recruited to join the Marines, and shortly afterwards he enlists and is sent to boot camp.

[spoiler title=”Click for More”] He discovers that his Navajo language, which he has been using only in secret for years, is the secret weapon that the U.S. is using in their war against the Japanese. As a Navajo code talker, Ned is able to use his native language to save countless American lives, and his experiences in the Pacific – from Guadalcanal to Iwo Jima to Okinawa -change him forever. [/spoiler]