Under the Java Moon by Heather B. Moore

Under the Java Moon
By Heather B. Moore
Published by Shadow Mountain

Description from the publisher:
Based on a true story, this gripping WWII novel captures the resilience, hope, and courage of a Dutch family who is separated during the war when the Japanese occupy the Dutch East Indies.
Java Island, 1941
Six-year-old Rita Vischer cowers in her family’s dug-out bomb shelter, listening to the sirens and waiting for a bomb to fall. Her charmed life on Java—living with other Dutch families—had always been peaceful, but when Holland declares war on Japan and the Japanese army invades Indonesia, Rita’s family is forced to relocate to a POW camp, and Rita must help care for her little brother, Georgie.
Mary Vischer is three months pregnant when she enters the Tjident women’s camp with thousands of other women and children. Her husband, George, is somewhere on the Java Sea with the Dutch Navy, so she must care alone for her young children, Rita and Georgie, and her frail mother. The brutal conditions of the overcrowded camp make starvation, malaria, and dysentery a grim reality. Mary must do everything she can to keep her family alive.
George Vischer survives the bombing of his minesweeper but feels little hope floating on a small dinghy in the Java Sea. Reaching the northern tip of the Thousand Island would be a miracle. Focusing on the love of his life, Mary, and his two children, he battles against the sea and merciless sun. He’ll do whatever it takes to close the divide between him and his family, even if it means risking being captured by the Japanese.
Under the Java Moon highlights a little-known part of WWII history and the impact of war on Indonesia, its people, and the more than 100,000 Dutch men, women, and children who were funneled into prison camps and faced with the ultimate fight for survival.

My Review:
What a terrific book!
Interesting plot? Check.
Endearing characters? Check.
Excellent research? Check.
I love World War II books and have a read a ton of them, but I've never read one set in Indonesia, so I was super excited to read one now, particulary when I've read most of Heather B. Moore's books and know the research and details are always impeccable. That was definitely the case here; Moore brought the situations the Vischer family and others were under to life so clearly. It was so interesting to see how the Dutch in Indonesia were impacted by the war. I love the fact that this is based on a true story and that there's even an afterward from Marie (Rita) Vischer Elliott. It's an understandably somber book, as the Vischers are imprisoned in interment camps, but it also shows the resilience and kindness of so many.
4.5 stars.
I read an ARC provided by the publisher. All opinions are my own.