Ghosts of Honolulu: A Japanese Spy, A Japanese American Spy Hunter, and the Untold Story of Pearl Harbor

Content Warning: When appropriate in historical context and in support of the book’s larger themes, this section refers to outdated derogatory language for Japanese Americans. The book covers a violent military attack on Pearl Harbor, and subsequent counterattacks in Japan, which contain some graphic details of war.

Douglas Wada, of the Office of Naval Intelligence, is fishing with two friends from his Japanese American neighborhood in Honolulu when he spots smoke on the morning of December 7, 1941. Wada’s background is in surveilling Japanese newspapers, radio transmissions, documents interception, and interrogations using his native Japanese. While out in their boat, the Diamond Head Lighthouse keeper runs toward them, yelling, “Don’t you people know we’re at war?” (xi). The keeper quickly explains to the shocked ONI agent that Pearl Harbor is under attack by the Japanese.

Douglas Wada was born in Hawaii to Japanese immigrant parents. His father is a Shinto shrine builder, and his mother tends a shop on their family plot in a Japanese-dominated area of Honolulu. His older brother dies in a tragic accident at age 14, leaving Wada and his two sisters with grieving parents. He is fascinated with American culture, especially baseball, Boy Scouts, and cars.