Three Came Home (book)

Last updated
Three Came Home
Three Came Home cover.jpg
First edition
Author Agnes Newton Keith
IllustratorDon Johnston
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
GenreMemoir
Set inBorneo
Published1948
PublisherBoston : Little, Brown and Co.
OCLC 394895
Preceded by Land Below the Wind  
Followed by White Man Returns  

Three Came Home is a 1948 memoir written by Agnes Newton Keith, based on her experiences during the Japanese invasion of North Borneo. A film based on it was released in 1950 and featured Claudette Colbert in the lead role. [1] Initially, Olivia de Havilland was chosen for the role. [2] Originally published in 1948 by London publisher Michael Joseph, it was republished by Eland in 1985, and Eland released a new edition in 2002. [3]

Contents

Background

Keith had previously written Land Below the Wind. Her husband, Harry Keith, was Conservator of Forests and Director of Agriculture in North Borneo. [4] Their son George was born in 1940. [5] When the Keiths were living in Borneo, it was attacked by the Imperial Japanese Army and they were interned there from January 1942 to September 1945. [6] [7] During her internment at Kuching Internment camp along with her son George, Keith suffered from malaria and typhoid. [8] Her husband Harry was kept in a civilian men's camp. [9]

Summary

Women had to work very hard. When a Lt. General was to visit the camp, Commander Nekata orders the women to clear a strip of land where formerly rubber trees were grown and plant potato cuttings. They work the whole night and Nekata gets promoted when the Lt. General visited but the potato cuttings died very soon. [8] At the camp, Keith is assaulted by a guard and also tortured. This results in a twisted arm and broken ribs. [9] The Japanese are aware that she was a writer and is occasionally given a little extra food. [7] Australian soldiers interned in a nearby camp send $50 to the women's camp through a Roman Catholic priest. Though initially they did not want to take the money, they later accepted and sent a letter of thanks to them. [8] The condition of women is very poor and lack of sanitation and proper food made many of them sick. [9] When Tatsuji Suga met her, he ordered her to write The Life and Thoughts of an Internee. She agreed but titled her work Captivity. She prepared notes separately for another work in minute handwriting on margins of old newspapers, reverse of labels and Chinese tobacco papers. She hid them in George's toys, pillows, sleeping mat and also in tins. [10]

Reception

W. G. Rogers called the book "sometimes shocking and often inspiring". [7] Laura Scott Meyers wrote that the book "[was] a detailed and unvarnished account of what war was like for internees and prisoners of war". [9] It was chosen by The Book of the Month Club as its Book of the Month for April 1947. [11] [12] David Judy praised Keith's humor and wrote that the book gave "a sense of what a truly successful marriage can be like even though the worst of circumstances arise." [4] Joe Langston noted that "[Keith's] writing [was] strangely free from any hate of a particular people". [13] Dorothy Canfield Fisher praised the book by saying "To read this book is like living through an experience rather than just reading about it". [14] Joyce Nienstedt wrote that it was much more than a war book. [14] Louise Parks Banes opined that "No more gallant story has ever been written than Three Came Home. [15] According to The Gallup Independent, "[Keith's] account [was] one of the most stirring which has come out of the war". [16]

Related Research Articles

Estherville, Iowa City in Iowa, United States

Estherville is a city in Emmet County, Iowa, United States. The population was 6,360 in the 2010 census, a decline from 6,656 in the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Emmet County. Estherville is home to the main campus of Iowa Lakes Community College.

Waxahachie, Texas City in Texas, United States

Waxahachie is the county seat of Ellis County, Texas, United States, it is located just beyond the southern suburbs of Dallas and is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The population was 29,621 at the 2010 census, with an estimated population of 36,807 in 2018.

Jo-Carroll Dennison was Miss America 1942.

<i>The Daily Iowan</i>

The Daily Iowan is an independent, 8,500-circulation daily student newspaper serving Iowa City and the University of Iowa community. It has consistently won a number of collegiate journalism awards, including five National Pacemaker Awards in 2000, 2001, 2006, 2008, and 2013.

Jacqueline Beer film and TV actress

Jacqueline Beer, sometimes credited as Jacqueline Baer, is a former Hollywood film and television actress who was Miss France in the 1954 Miss Universe Pageant. She is Chair of the Board of Directors of the Thor Heyerdahl Institute, located in Larvik, Norway, birthplace of her last husband, scientist Thor Heyerdahl.

<i>Three Came Home</i> 1950 film by Jean Negulesco

Three Came Home is a 1950 American post-war film directed by Jean Negulesco, based on the memoirs of the same name by writer Agnes Newton Keith. It depicts Keith's life in North Borneo in the period immediately before the Japanese invasion in 1942, and her subsequent internment and suffering, separated from her husband Harry, and with a young son to care for. Keith was initially interned at Berhala Island near Sandakan, North Borneo but spent most of her captivity at Batu Lintang camp at Kuching, Sarawak. The camp was liberated in September 1945.

Agnes Newton Keith American novelist and memoirist

Agnes Newton Keith was an American author best known for her three autobiographical accounts of life in North Borneo before, during, and after the Second World War. The second of these, Three Came Home, tells of her time in Japanese POW and civilian internee camps in North Borneo and Sarawak, and was made into a film of the same name in 1950. She published seven books in all.

Luther Burleson American football, basketball, and baseball coach, college athletics administrator

Luther Franklin Burleson was an American football, basketball, and baseball coach. He served as the seventh head football coach at Baylor University, coaching one season in 1907 and compiling a record of 4–3–1. Burleson was also the first head basketball coach at Baylor, coaching two seasons from 1906 to 1908 and tallying a mark of 10–9. In addition, he was the head baseball coach at Baylor for three seasons, coaching from 1906 to 1908 and amassing a record of 25–34.

Gloria Blondell American actress

Gloria Blondell was an actress, known for her film work between 1938 and 1962, and was the younger sister of Joan Blondell.

Fort Defiance State Park

Fort Defiance State Park is a state park of Iowa, USA, in Emmet County. The park is 191 acres (77 ha) and sits at an elevation of 1,453 feet (443 m). The park, which was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps during the Great Depression, was opened to the public in 1930. Fort Defiance State Park is open for year-round recreation including picnicking, hiking, and camping.

The 1947 Wisconsin Badgers football team was an American football team that represented the University of Wisconsin in the 1947 Big Nine Conference football season. The team compiled a 5–3–1 record and finished in second place in the Big Nine Conference. Harry Stuhldreher was in his 12th year as Wisconsin's head coach. The team was ranked No. 9 in the AP Poll before losing to Michigan on November 15, 1947. The team averaged 280.1 yards per game of total offense, 205.9 yards per game by rushing, and 74.2 by passing.

The 1909 Baylor football team was an American football team that represented Baylor University as an independent during the 1909 college football season. In its second season under head coach Enoch J. Mills, the team compiled a 5–3 record and outscored opponent by a total of 112 to 41.

The 1947 Indiana Hoosiers football team was an American football team that represented the Indiana University in the 1947 Big Nine Conference football season. The team compiled a 5–3–1 record, and finished in tie for sixth place in the Big Ten Conference. The Hoosiers played their home games at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington, Indiana. The team was coached by Bo McMillin, in his 14th and final year as head coach of the Hoosiers. McMillin retired from his position as head coach at the end of the year.

1901 Illinois Fighting Illini football team American college football season

The 1901 Illinois Fighting Illini football team was an American football team that represented the University of Illinois during the 1901 Western Conference football season. In its first season under head coach Edgar Holt, the team compiled an 8–2 record, finished in fourth place in the Western Conference, and outscored opponents by a total of 243 to 39.

The 1947 Illinois Fighting Illini football team was an American football team that represented the University of Illinois during the 1947 Big Nine Conference football season. In their sixth year under head coach Ray Eliot, the Illini compiled a 5–3–1 record and finished in a three-way tie for third place in the Big Ten Conference. The team played #5-ranked Army to a scoreless tie and narrowly lost by a 14–7 score to undefeated national champion Michigan. End Ike Owens was selected as the team's most valuable player.

1947 Houston Cougars football team

The 1947 Houston Cougars football team was an American football team that represented the University of Houston during the 1947 college football season as a member of the Lone Star Conference (LSC). In its second season under head coach Jewell Wallace, the team compiled a 3–8 record and finished in the last place in the conference. The team played its home games at Public School Stadium in Houston.

The 1922 TCU Horned Frogs football team represented Texas Christian University (TCU) in the 1922 college football season. The Horned Frogs finished the season 2–5–3 overall. The team was coached by John McKnight in his first and only year as head coach. The Frogs played their home games at Clark Field, which was located on campus in Fort Worth, Texas.

The 1909 TCU Horned Frogs football team represented Texas Christian University (TCU) in the 1909 college football season. The Horned Frogs finished the season 5–2–1 overall. The team was coached by Jesse R. Langley in his second and final year as head coach.

The 1947 Iowa State Cyclones football team represented Iowa State College of Agricultural and Mechanic Arts in the Big Six Conference during the 1947 college football season. In their first year under head coach Abe Stuber, the Cyclones compiled a 3–6 record, finished in fifth place in the conference, and were outscored by opponents by a combined total of 141 to 111. They played their home games at Clyde Williams Field in Ames, Iowa.

Bill Logan (basketball)

William Logan was an American basketball player. He is best known for his college career at the University of Iowa.

References

  1. ↑ Corby, Jane (21 February 1950). "Screenings". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, New York. p. 6. Retrieved 12 April 2015– via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  2. ↑ Hopper, Hedda (30 October 1948). "Three Came Home is Next Olivia de Havilland film". The Evening News. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. p. 4. Retrieved 12 April 2015– via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  3. ↑ "Three Came Home". Eland Books. Retrieved 14 September 2016.
  4. 1 2 Judy, David (20 April 1947). "Book of the Week". The Times Recorder. Zanesville, Ohio. p. 16. Retrieved 12 April 2015– via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  5. ↑ Robinson, Maude (1 June 1947). "New Epic Tempts Readers". The Salt Lake Tribune. Salt Lake City, Utah. p. 41. Retrieved 12 April 2015– via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  6. ↑ "Three Came Home by Agnes Newton Keith". The Waxahachie Daily Light. Waxahachie, Texas. 6 April 1947. p. 1. Retrieved 12 April 2015– via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  7. 1 2 3 Rogers, W. G. (9 April 1947). "Literary Guidepost". Corsicana Daily Sun. Corsicana, Texas. p. 8. Retrieved 12 April 2015– via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  8. 1 2 3 McKarn, Robin (31 March 1947). "Reading & Writing". The Daily News. Huntingdon, Pennsylvania. p. 12. Retrieved 12 April 2015– via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  9. 1 2 3 4 Meyers, Laura Scott (11 April 1947). "The Book Shelf". El Paso Herald-Post. El Paso, Texas. p. 3. Retrieved 12 April 2015– via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  10. ↑ "Three Came Home". Estherville Daily News. Estherville, Iowa. 17 May 1947. p. 4. Retrieved 12 April 2015– via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  11. ↑ "Book News". The Daily News. Huntingdon, Pennsylvania. 25 January 1947. p. 5. Retrieved 12 April 2015– via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  12. ↑ "Three Came Home in Library Stacks". Joplin Globe. Joplin, Missouri. 27 April 1947. p. 19. Retrieved 12 April 2015– via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  13. ↑ Langston, Joe (26 April 1947). "Library Notes". Dixon Evening Telegraph. Dixon, Illinois. p. 8. Retrieved 12 April 2015– via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  14. 1 2 Nienstedt, Joyce (26 April 1947). "This Week At the Library". Iowa City Press-Citizen. Iowa City, Iowa. p. 3. Retrieved 12 April 2015– via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  15. ↑ Banes, Louise Parks (21 June 1947). "The Reading Hour". The Bakersfield Californian. Bakersfield, California. p. 12. Retrieved 12 April 2015– via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  16. ↑ "Three Came Home". The Gallup Independent. Gallup, New Mexico. 11 July 1947. p. 4. Retrieved 12 April 2015– via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.