Bataan!

I struggled with the title of my new WWII book for a long time and finally decided on, Tark’s Ticks. I’m not going to explain the title, it’s pretty obvious when you read the book, but it’s unlike my previous titles, which were more crafted, I guess you’d say. Tark’s Ticks is crude and kind of nasty and very much in line with the plot of the book.

Indeed, the battle of the Bataan Penninsula was crude and as nasty as they come. When I was researching what I’d write next, I was struck by how little has actually been written about the battle leading up to the Bataan death march. There’s a ton written on the death march, as there should be, but very little about the battle itself, and even less historical fiction.

New cover

I think the reason behind this lies with Americans not liking to lose. We lost that battle, badly. However, the failure had nothing to do with the bravery of the soldiers. Indeed the Filipinos and Americans held out from December 8th all the way to April, without a shred of support from the mainland, which was reeling after Pearl Harbor.

They had no air support, most of the allied planes were destroyed on the ground at Clark Field only hours after the war started. The ammo and food supplies they had at the start were not replenished and quickly diminished.

On the other hand, the Japanese had everything they needed, including air power and endless ammo. The troops were hardened veterans with years of combat experience. They had everything going for them, yet the stalwart defense slowed their progress in the Philippines and tied up valuable troops that were needed elsewhere.

That battle is what my new book is about. It’s fiction. I want to stress that, but it’s based on the battle which ultimately led to the Bataan death march.