Representation: Asian main character
Trigger warnings: Explosions, suicide, racism, death of a soldier, military violence and war themes, World War Two
Update: I read Two Degrees, and it was so good.

8/10, after reading Allies, I looked for another book written by Alan Gratz and I found one in one of the libraries I go to, one of them was Grenade so I went in with high expectations considering that I enjoyed his last books and wow was it amazing since it was so immersive and filled with action so where do I even begin? It revolves around two main characters Hideki and Ray and they are on opposite sides of the war since one is American and the other is Japanese. It was kind of sad to see Ray die though and I would have loved to see Hideki and Ray meeting together at the end of the war but unfortunately, this never happened. I can't wait to read Two Degrees, by the same author, that book will be the fourth book he has made that I will read, I bet it will be just as good as this book and all the other books by him as well. ( )

Hideki Kaneshiro is an Okinawa school boy when the US military lands on the island, April 1, 1945. Conscripted by the Japanese Army to be part of the Blood Iron Student Corps which was made up of school age boys. Given two home made grenades and told to go kill an American soldier with one and himself with the other, a terrified Hideki headed out to fight. Finding his dying father and from him learning of the deaths of his mother and brother, Hideki feels he will be killed soon.

The other part of the novel follows young American Marine, Ray Majors, during the landing and subsequent battles with the Japanese for dominance of Okinawa. Majors is appalled by the use of Okinawan civilians as hostages and suicide bombers by the Japanese and the realization he must kill those hostages if he wants to survive.

Gratz tries to make the reader understand how war affects everyone and how fear will make a normally sensitive, kind individual into a murderous killer. Having read several books about the battle for Okinawa written by men who fought there, Gratz does a good job of capturing the horror and terror of the place while moderating it for young readers. ( )

MG

Publisher's blurb:
It's 1945, and the world is in the grip of war. Hideki lives with his family on the island of Okinawa, near Japan. When WWII crashes onto his shores, Hideki is drafted into the Blood and Iron Student Corps to fight for the Japanese army. He is handed a grenade and a set of instructions: Don't come back until you've killed an American soldier. Ray, a young American Marine, has just landed on Okinawa.
This is Ray's first-ever battle, and he doesn't know what to expect or if he'll make it out alive. He just knows that the enemy is everywhere, with ambushes and dangerous traps. But then the two of them collide in the middle of the battle...and choices they make in that single instant will change everything.

My comments:
Not bad. Easy to read format which constantly swaps between the two protagonists, Ending is a little out there ( no spoilers here) but it is good to see the war from different perspectives. Very interesting historically with the Okinawan's seeing themselves as very separate from the Japanese people. Boys will like as there is plenty of action. Fast-paced book for those who might get distracted with something not as fast paced in the plot. ( )

Hideki is a middle schooler in Okinawa during World War II. He finds his class conscripted to fight as the island bears up for the battle of Okinawa. The Americans are about to land on the island. After his whole class seems to be killed, he goes on the run trying to survive.
It's fast paced and brutal.
The story of Ray is also told, he's a young American soldier about to see his first action in the field.
It's a harrowing story of trying to survive when you realize your country and people are just stuck in the middle between two sides of a war. ( )