Navajo Code Talkers: Native American Heroes

School Library Journal

Gr 6 UpJones covers a little-known aspect of World War II in the Pacific, that of the Navajo (Dineh) Code Talkers of the U.S. Marine Corps. Philip Johnston, the son of missionaries, had lived among the Navajo for 22 years and originated the idea of developing a code based upon their language. The Dineh language was an unwritten one and was known fluently by only a handful of Navajos who were also able to speak English well. Johnston became a sergeant in the Marine Corps and organized the first platoon of Code Talkers/radio operators in 1942. Neither Japanese nor American cryptographers were ever able to break the code. Background information about the Navajo people is provided, as are accounts of the code's actual use during combat situations. Effective use is made of pertinent quotations from participants and other sources, and there is a selection of full-page historical photographs. Nathan Aaseng's Navajo Code Talkers (Walker, 1992) presents much of the same material.David A. Lindsey, Lakewood High and Middle School Libraries, WA