Based on the author’s life experience, the short stories in this collection narrate the despair, confusion, and mental angst felt by so many of the Taiwanese compelled to fight in the jungles of Southeast Asia as part of the Imperial Japanese Army.

Hunting Captive Women, written by Chen Qian-Wu, an author best known for his works of poetry, owns a special place in Taiwan literary history because of its semi-autobiographical descriptions of the author’s lived experiences as an Imperial Serviceman fighting for Japan in Southeast Asia during the Pacific War.

Protagonist Lin Yi-Ping’s background as a high-school graduate initially serving as a private 1st class and later as a lance corporal in a heavy artillery unit mirrors that of the author’s. In addition to the sixteen discrete stories surrounding Yi-Ping, Hunting Captive Women includes five additional stories centered on war and the anti-colonial struggle that also capture true elements and aspects of the author’s life.

The stories of Yi-Ping begin with “Semaphore”, a chapter on the new recruit’s boot camp experiences in Taiwan and end with “Summary Sketch”, a chapter that revolves around the disposition and self-discipline of soldiers after Japan’s unconditional surrender. Stories plumb Yi-Ping’s thoughts on life and death, the absurdity of war, and the role of personal identity in mechanized warfare. The narrative also takes on the indelible sense of remorse felt by Yi-Ping for participating at the order of special attack units in the abduction of women from Japanese-occupied islands for enforced servitude as military “comfort women”.

The narrative captures in relationships between people and things the complex face of human nature and of lust and also highlights the dignity and confusion surrounding Taiwanese identity. But the suffering and ambivalence of these characters thrown into conflict reflect a universality that, despite their discomforting textures, must be a part of any reflection on the true cost of war.