Read and Cook with Robbie Cheadle – To Wake the Giant: A Novel of Pearl Harbor and American Crabcakes #bookreview #cooking #crabcakes
Posted: November 13, 2024 Filed under: Books, cooking, Read and Cook, Recipes, Review | Tags: American Crabcakes, Jeff Shaara, Read and Cook, Robbie Cheadle, To Wake the Giant, Writing to be Read 47 Comments
November 11 is Remembrance Day or Poppy Day, a memorial day observed in Commonwealth member states to honour armed forces members who have died in the line of duty. With this in mind, and to feed my growing interest in USA history, I selected To Wake the Giant: A Novel of Pearl Harbor by Jeff Shaara for this month’s book review. Last month, the month of Halloween, I reviewed Interview with a Vampire by Anne Rice. If you missed that post, you can read it here: https://writingtoberead.com/2024/10/09/read-and-cook-with-robbie-cheadle-interview-with-a-vampire-by-anne-rice-and-new-orleans-gumbo-bookreview-recipe-readandcook/?_gl=1*akw5pe*_gcl_au*MjgyNDk3NjkzLjE3Mjg3OTgxMTQ.
Are you noticing the book choices are themed? They are, to the extent possible, and next month is Christmas. I’ve got a treat in mind for you …
To Wake the Giant: A Novel of Pearl Harbor by Jeff Shaara
I have read a few of Jeff Shaara’s books and they have all be entertaining, informative, and well researched. My historical knowledge of both WW1 and WW2 is much greater as it relates to events in Europe and from a British, Dutch, French, and Polish perspective. I have been making a point of learning more about WW2 from an American perspective and this book did not disappoint. It provided copious detail about the events leading up to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour and the USA’s entrance into a war they fought on two fronts, in an interesting and relatable way.
The author tells his story through the eyes of three main characters, two of whom are real historical people and one who appears based on a real person but whose life would have been more fictionalised for purposes of this book. These main characters are as follows:
Cordell Hull is President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Secretary of State and the real historical figure who tried to negotiate for continued peace with the Japanese through Ambassador Admiral Kichisaburo Nomura and Special Envoy, Saburo Kurusu. He failed and the Japanese launched their attack on Pearl Harbour on Sunday, 7 December 1941, marking the USA’s terrible and spectacular entrance into WW2. Cordell tells the story from the US government’s point of view and perspective.
Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto is the force behind the attack on Pearl Harbour. A real historical figure, he understood that war was inevitable and planned for an early victory and delay tactic for an American response by destroying the United States Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbour in a preventive strike. Yamamoto believed that aviation was the way forward and opposed the building of the battleships, Yamoto and Mushashi, proposing investment in a strong Japanese arial force instead. Yamamoto tells the story from the Japanese perspective.
Seaman Tommy Biggs is an ordinary nineteen-year-old from a small town in Florida. Having finished school, he is faced with no job opportunities as a result of the Depression. When his best friend decides to join the Navy, Tommy is convinced to sign up too. Tommy has aspirations to work in the military hospital service and, after successfully completing boot camp, manages to get assigned to the USS Arizona as a hospital apprentice.
Seaman Biggs’ role in this book is the one that interested me the most as he represented the ordinary seaman. The reader learns about his life on the USS Arizona and the abuse he suffers at the hands of the military system which allowed senior personnel to bully junior staff. Through his eyes, I experienced daily life aboard the ship which was repetitive and boring, and off short time in the town. Most of the seamen spent their time ashore drinking cheap booze and making use of prostitutes. The boredom of the life on board ship, eroded alertness and interest and, in my opinion, helped set the stage for an attack that was such a complete and utter surprise.
This book is fascinating and shares details of the historical event in a heart rending and personable way. The descriptions of the event of the day were a shock to me, I didn’t know about the terrible fires and the oil the water that burned and horribly maimed many of the seamen. Having read this book, I understood the mindset of the American people and how the events that followed came to unfold the way they did.
If you are interested in books about and like to learn and expand your knowledge in a fascinating and compelling way, this book is for you.
You can purchase To Wake the Giant: A Novel of Pearl Harbor here: https://www.amazon.com/Wake-Giant-Novel-Pearl-Harbor-ebook/dp/B07X8D1B1Y
Quotes from To Wake the Giant: A Novel of Pearl Harbor
“We believed we knew everything they were thinking. Those Magic intercepts made us feel invulnerable. No, a better word is cocky. Their diplomats are chatting back and forth with Tokyo about the weather or color of their new Cadillacs while their military put a plan together to kick us in the teeth. We thought we knew everything. We didn’t.
-President Franklin Delano Roosevelt”
“All I propose is an attack that will paralyze the Americans, for perhaps six months. This attack is not about victory, about winning a war…It is about delaying them, keeping them back, damaging their military might and pride.
-Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto”
“How were we taken so by surprise? Everything we have gone through at the State Department, for most of the past year has pointed unmistakably to Japanese aggression, to their deceitfulness, duplicity, and backdoor actions. We knew exactly what they were doing in Southeast Asia in the Netherlands East Indies in China. We had access to their diplomatic communications we have outstanding people in our intelligence offices, both army and navy. How could this have happened?
-Former US Secretary of State, Cordell Hull”
THIS IS A SMASHING BOOK. IF YOU HAVEN’T READ IT, YOU REALLY MUST!
And now, on to the recipe. I made three dishes for this post and I loved them all. I decided to share the crabcakes recipe today and will keep the others for another post.
Robbie’s version of American Crabcakes
Ingredients
2 large eggs
90 ml mayonnaise
2 Tbspns (30 ml) onions grated
120 ml lemon juice
10 ml dried tarragon
2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
500 grams uncooked crab meat
30 ml melted butter
1 1/2 cups (750 ml) crushed melba toast slices (you can use any plain savoury biscuit)
Method
Mix the eggs, mayonnaise, onions, lemon juice, tarragon and pepper flakes together in a mixing bowl. In a frying pan on a medium heat, cook the crabmeat in the butter. Add the crabmeat to the egg mixture and combine. Add the crushed melba toast and ensure everything is properly mixed together. I always use my hands.
Shape the mixture into cakes and fry in a little olive oil until nicely browned. We enjoyed the crabcakes with rice and Greek lemon roasted vegetables.
About Robbie Cheadle
South African author and illustrator, Robbie Cheadle, has written and illustrated seventeen children’s books, illustrated a further three children’s books, and written and illustrated three poetry books. Her work has also appeared in poetry and short story anthologies.
Robbie also has two novels and a collection of short stories published under the name of Roberta Eaton Cheadle and has horror, paranormal, and fantasy short stories featured in several anthologies under this name.
You can find Robbie Cheadle’s artwork, fondant and cake artwork, and all her books on her website here: https://www.robbiecheadle.co.za/
________________________________________
Want to be sure not to miss any of Robbie’s “Read and Cook” segments? Subscribe to Writing to be Read for e-mail notifications whenever new content is posted or follow WtbR on WordPress. If you found it interesting or entertaining, please share.
_________________________________________
This segment of “Read and Cook” with Robbie Cheadle is sponsored by The Women in the West Adventure Series and WordCrafter Press.
Historical Women’s Fiction
Get Your Copy Today!
Delilah: https://books2read.com/DelilahWiW1
Sarah: https://books2read.com/Sarah-Women-in-the-West
Marta: Coming in 2025
Discover more from Writing to be Read
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
The crab cakes looks delicious. A great book review as well. Thanks!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thank you, Darlene. Do you eat seafood?
LikeLiked by 2 people
I do eat seafood and especially like shell fish from time to time.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Fantastic review, Robbie!
(Herman Wouk’s historical novel “The Winds of War” also includes compelling material on Pearl Harbor, though the attack is only one part of that book.)
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thanks for that recommendation, Dave. This was a hefty book, as Jeff Shasta’s tend to be. Have you read this one?
LikeLiked by 2 people
I haven’t read “To Wake the Giant,” Robbie, but it’s now on my list. 🙂
LikeLiked by 2 people
It’s a great book.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Great review, Robbie. I don’t usually read war stories, but this sounds compelling.
I love crab cakes. I have a cookbook from Hilton Head, South Carolina (I collect cookbooks, especially from places I’ve traveled when possible), and that’s where I got my recipe for them. Nice to see you feature them here.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Hi Staci, crab cakes was a complete experiment for me. They were very nice. This book was incredibly informative and compelling.
LikeLiked by 2 people
It’s been a while since I made them. I think my recipe called for cracker crumbs instead of bread crumbs and had diced peppers and possibly celery in it? Now I want to dig out that book and take a look. 🙂
So glad you enjoyed yours. I love that food can bridge even a vast ocean.
LikeLiked by 2 people
The original recipes I looked at all used cracker crumbs. I always make changes 🤣😂
LikeLiked by 2 people
My daughter and I talk about that all the time. I usually try a recipe as-is the first time, hoping the creator did the hard work of perfecting it. Then, when I discover it’s not “perfected” (at least to my family’s preferences), I begin tweaking it.
She tends to skip the first step and tweaks right away. As long as we all get where we want in the end, right?
I’m loving your food-and-book posts.
LikeLiked by 2 people
I am just like your daughter 😁. I am really pleased you like these posts 🌞
LikeLiked by 2 people
Great review, Robbie. You intrigued me and I picked up a copy. I love crab cakes and would like to try to make them modified for my dietary needs.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Hi Denise, I changed this recipe as I saw fit so you will be able to adjust it for your needs. This is a fantastic book. Very insightful, well researched and interesting.
LikeLiked by 1 person
A super review, Robbie. I love crab cakes and yours look delicious.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Hi John, I thought they came out very well for a first attempt. Jeff Shaara is a fantastic writer.
LikeLiked by 2 people
😊
LikeLiked by 2 people
The book and the crab cakes sound great!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thank you, Annette 😀
LikeLiked by 2 people
When I worked at a senior center for a couple of years in the 1990s, I met a woman had been a Navy wife in Hawaii on when the Japanese attacked. She had written a memoir piece about that day. When she read it to me, what made the biggest impression on me was the sense of disbelief and confusion in the military wives community and, later, fear that their husband had been injured or killed.
I’ve had restaurant crabcakes several times, and they tasted good, but each time I got a piece of shell, which ruined it for me. There must be some trick to getting the meat out of the shells without bringing bits of shell along with it.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Hi Liz, I picked that up from this novel too. The attack, despite the many warning signs, came as a huge shock. Many of those women did lose their husbands or they were horribly burned and injured. There was no shell in the crabmeat I used. I can’t say I loved them but raw crab does look rather yucky 😉
LikeLiked by 2 people
It sounds like an excellent book Robbie. I believe our policy of wearing blinders in the face of world events will only increase under the Trump administration, unfortunately, none of whose members seem to have ever even read a fictionalized history. Their unawareness knows no bounds.
Any one who admires dictators who would destroy us is no friend of America, and that is what we elected. It does not bode well for the rest of the world, either. (K)
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi Kerfe, this was an excellent book, very revealing about the US government at the time. Hopefully things will unfold better than expected. Life often throws curveballs we have to react to. 🌹🤗
LikeLiked by 2 people
Well, appointing a Fox News broadcaster as Secretary of Defense is not an auspicious start…not to mention nominating a child molester as Attorney General.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I don’t know these sort of details. There was a time when politicians had to be model citizens ☹️
LikeLiked by 2 people
Not so long ago either. But Trump is intent on destroying the government. He thinks it will make him rich, but if the country is not functioning, his money will mean nothing.
LikeLiked by 1 person
☹️
LikeLiked by 2 people
Michael Shaara is one of my favourite writers on the subject of the American Civil War for his book ‘The Killer Angels’. It was adapated into the major feature film, ‘Gettysburg’. The second and third books in the trilogy were written by his son, Jeff, who you feature here. Shared both posts on Twitter, Robbie.
Best wishes, Pete.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Hi Pete, thank you for sharing. I haven’t read Michael Shasta’s books but I’ll take a look for them. I’ve read several of Jeff’s books and they’ve all been terrific.
LikeLiked by 2 people
[…] https://writingtoberead.com/2024/11/13/read-and-cook-with-robbie-cheadle-to-wake-the-giant-a-novel-o… […]
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m trying to remember if Jeff Shaara has written anything I didn’t love. Don’t think so. He has a deep understanding on this particular war.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Hi Jacqui, I also admire Jeff Shasta’s writing and research. His book on the First World War is also exceptional.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Compelling and great review Robbie! Oooh the crab cakes look terrific. Crab’s gotten so pricey but I’m going to give them a try, thanks💓
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thank you, Cindy. Crab cakes are a delicious treat.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That does sound like an excellent book, Robbie. Thanks for the review and the recipe!
Thank you for hosting, Kaye Lynne!
LikeLiked by 2 people
🤗 My pleasure, Resa.
LikeLiked by 2 people
😊
LikeLiked by 2 people
My pleasure, Resa. I really enjoy this author although his books are door stoppers 😀
LikeLiked by 2 people
😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks for the wonderful review, Robbie, and your crab cakes look delicious! 😁
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thank you, Lauren. This is an excellent book 💜
LikeLiked by 1 person
Your book review is excellent, Robbie. Pearl Harbor is a day every American will never forget. Like you, I’m learning more about the events of the World Wars that occurred ‘across the pond’. Your crab cakes look so good!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Hi Jennie, it is good to have a more holistic understanding of history. It provides for greater empathy too. I was shocked at how terrible the events of that day at Pearl Harbour were. I certainly gave me more insight into how Americans felt about the war in the Pacific and why certain situations unfolded the way they did.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Well said, Robbie. History can teach us so much, including understanding and greater empathy. Pearl Harbor was a horrible day.
LikeLiked by 2 people
A very terrible day 🙏🩵
LikeLiked by 2 people
Yes.
LikeLiked by 2 people