The Forgotten War: A World War II Battle on American Soil

From highly acclaimed, award-winning author Candace Fleming comes a thrilling, evocative, and shockingly personal examination of a forgotten corner of World War II history: the invasion and occupation of Alaska's Attu Island by Imperial Japanese Armed Forces and the ensuing battle to reclaim it.

Charlie Groth has just been drafted into the US Army's 7th Infantry as a litter bearer in October 1942 when he boards a ship bound for remote parts of Alaska. Japanese forces have invaded mere months after their deadly attack on Pearl Harbor and are occupying two of the Aleutian islands. Yet Charlie and his fellow soldiers have been assured it's bound to be an easy fight and a quick victory. The boys will be home with their families for the holidays.

It will be three years before Charlie sees his family again.

Paul Nobuo Tatsuguchi is a physician in the Imperial Japanese Armed Forces with a penchant for journaling, a way to distract himself from how much he misses his wife and young daughters. As Charlie and his troops make their way to Attu Island, Paul and his troops construct foxholes, field hospitals, and trenches in preparation for the vicious battle to come.

When the two armies meet amid the fog and freezing rain, neither side is ready for the desperate fight that will become the second bloodiest battle in the Pacific after Iwo Jima. And neither is prepared for the price that patriotism and loyalty will demand.

Following two parallel stories from opposite sides of the conflict and capturing the war through first-person accounts and archival photographs, acclaimed author Candace Fleming brings this history to life with a thrilling, movingly personal, and fast-paced examination of the little-known World War II campaign that unfolded on American soil and wound up playing an essential role in the ultimate defeat of the Japanese Admiralty in the Pacific.

Scholastic Focus is the premier home of thoroughly researched, beautifully written, and thoughtfully designed works of narrative nonfiction aimed at middle-grade and young adult readers. These books help readers learn about the world in which they live and develop their critical thinking skills, so that they may become dynamic citizens who are able to analyze and understand our past, participate in essential discussions about our present, and work to grow and build our future.

Author: Candace Fleming
Publisher: Scholastic Focus
Published: 09/01/2026
Pages: 272
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.90lbs
Size: 8.50h x 5.90w x 1.20d
ISBN: 9798225004361
Audience: Ages 9-12


Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 06/15/2026
Publishers Weekly 06/15/2026
Bulletin of Ctr for Child Bks 07/01/2026
School Library Journal 07/01/2026 pg. 114
Horn Book Magazine 09/01/2026 pg. 86
Booklist 09/01/2026

About the Author
Candace Fleming is the award-winning and highly acclaimed author of more than twenty books for children and young adults, including Is It Real? The Loch Ness Monster; Crash from Outer Space: Unraveling the Mystery of Flying Saucers, Alien Beings, and Roswell; The Curse of the Mummy: Uncovering Tutankhamun's Tomb; Sibert Honor Book The Enigma Girls: How Ten Teenagers Broke Ciphers, Kept Secrets, and Helped Win World War II; The Rise and Fall of Charles Lindbergh, winner of the YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults Award; the Sibert Award winner Honeybee: The Busy Life of Apis Mellifera and the Los Angeles Times Book Prize winner and Sibert Honor Book The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion, and the Fall of the Russian Empire, among many others. Candace received the American Library Association's Margaret A. Edwards and Children's Literature Legacy Awards in 2026. She lives outside of Chicago, and you can visit her online at candacefleming.com.