Heroes

On December 6, 1941, Frank McCoy and Stanley Summers steer their motorboat across Pearl Harbor, heading home. Both boys are 13 years old but are very different. Frank is tall and feels clumsy in his growing body. Stanley possesses a “casual confidence” that Frank envies. They are also different physically: While Frank is white and blue-eyed, Stanley is Japanese American with dark brown eyes and black hair from his white father and his Japanese American mother. Despite their differences, they are like brothers and bond over their shared love of comic books.

As Stanley steers the boat, they brainstorm ideas for the comic book superhero they want to create. Frank is the writer and Stanley is the illustrator. Frank wants to give their character many powers, like Superman. Stanley believes Superman is too overpowered and thus less interesting, and wants to make their hero more like Captain America. They also brainstorm names for their hero. Frank suggests “the Arsenal of Democracy” (4). This is inspired by something he heard President Roosevelt say on the radio; he explained that the US would remain out of the war, but would provide weapons and supplies for Allied forces. Excited by the idea, Stanley pulls pencil and paper from his pocket and draws.

Stanley stops steering and the motorboat begins to drift toward a battleship in the harbor. Frank panics, but Stanley casually suggests that he steer for a moment. Frank is horrified, having never steered before. He also fears standing in the moving boat. He cautiously steps around Stanley to take hold of the tiller, nearly tipping over the side in the process. Frank reflects that Stanley does not know the secret he has kept since he moved to Hawaii a year ago.

Frank’s secret is that he is afraid of everything, all the time. His mind constantly imagines every possible dangerous thing that could happen. For instance, just then he thinks about a “hundred ways to die at Pearl Harbor” (8), including drowning, being pulled into the outboard motor, being eaten by sharks, or being attacked by giant eels.

Frank has always been cautious, even as a small child. When he was in third grade and living in Florida, “The Incident” happened and made his fear much worse. After the Incident, he became so afraid of everything that he often hid in his room and refused to leave his house. Since moving to Hawaii, he has kept this a secret for fear that Stanley will no longer like him. The only time he feels less afraid is when they talk about comics together.

Finished with his sketch, Stanley hands the paper to Frank and takes over steering the boat again. Frank inspects the drawing: Their superhero looks Japanese American, like Stanley, and wears clothes that are a combination of styles from other superheroes.

Finally, they reach Ford Island, a small island in the middle of Pearl Harbor, which is part of the US Naval Base. The mainland of Oahu, including Honolulu, is only 10 miles west across the harbor. Both Frank’s and Stanley’s fathers work on the Naval base and their houses are next door to each other.

As they walk home, Frank and Stanley continue to brainstorm, now trying to decide on an origin story for their superhero. On the way, however, they come across Arthur and Johnny, who go to their school and are bullying a younger classmate. Immediately, Stanley jumps in to defend the boy, but Frank stands back, too afraid to join in. The bullies punch Stanley and run away. Stanley is angry that Frank did not help, and they walk home in silence.

Frank fears that he is about to lose Stanley’s friendship. He recalls that in Florida, after the Incident, his friends deserted him, and his classmates bullied him relentlessly for being a coward. Then his father was sent to Hawaii to be stationed with the US Pacific fleet and Frank worked to keep his fears a secret. Now he feels Stanley has seen “the real Frank McCoy” (18).

They walk to Stanley’s house. Inside, Frank’s mother and his older sister, Ginny, help Stanley’s mother set the table for dinner. Stanley storms up the stairs and Mrs. McCoy follows with a first-aid kit, having seen his injuries and bruised eye. Ginny asks if the two boys fought and reminds Frank that it is difficult for military children to make and keep friends. Frank does not know how to explain what happened. He walks out to the yard, where his father and Stanley’s father are grilling hamburgers, along with Brooks Leonard, a Navy seaman and Ginny’s boyfriend.

The three men argue about whether the US should join the war or not. Mr. McCoy wants to fight, but Mr. Summers believes it is none of their business. Brooks jokes that he just wants to finish his tour of duty so he can play baseball. Ginny teases him about getting married. Eventually, Frank walks back into the house where Mrs. Summers is rearranging her Japanese family heirlooms, including the family’s ancestral katana. Mrs. Summers displays these objects proudly and talks about them often.

Finally, they all sit down to dinner. Stanley still refuses to speak to Frank. Brooks offers to take both boys onto the USS Utah in the morning and give them a tour. Both boys agree. Frank tries to catch Stanley’s interest by discussing their superhero character again. Angrily, Stanley responds, “How do you think you can write about heroes if you can’t be one yourself?” (29).

In the morning, Frank and Stanley meet to go to the Utah together. A sailor takes them on a small boat up to the ship. On the way, the boys talk about their superhero character again, and Stanley pointedly comments that a “real hero steps in when they see people getting hurt, no matter what” (33). Frank fears that this is meant to be a judgment against him. He tries to explain why he froze yesterday, but before he can speak, they arrive at the ship.

Frank is impressed by the solidity of the enormous battleship, though it is old and has been decommissioned since the end of WWI. Now it is used primarily for practice drills. Frank thinks that the ship must be invincible. Brooks arrives, wearing a white baseball uniform for a game later that day. He gives them a tour of the ship, explaining that its antiaircraft guns have been covered to protect them during target practice. While they tour the ship, Frank tries to talk to Stanley. Then, suddenly everything changes.

Planes flying overhead, dozens of them in close formation over the water. The sailors on the Utah think it must be an unscheduled drill. One plane drops a bomb on the south end of Ford Island, hitting the water tower. Brooks remarks that it must be the most realistic drill he has ever seen. Frank tells Stanley that he sees a “meatball” on the plane, referring to the large red circle that forms the rising sun of the Japanese flag. They realize it is not a drill; the Japanese are attacking.