"Flags Of Our Fathers" a 'Must See' Movie, Says Author Michael Class

Author and photographer Michael S. Class has used advanced digital photography to place his twelve year-old son, Anthony, in the cockpit of the Spirit of St. Louis with Charles Lindbergh, on the moon with Neil Armstrong, in the laboratories of Thomas Edison and Jonas Salk, on Normandy beach on D-Day, and in the middle of the Battle of Iwo Jima in 1945.

"I wanted to capture the interest of today's kids," says Class, "by turning American history into a grand time travel adventure." The book, Anthony and the Magic Picture Frame, is recommended for young adults, grade 6 to grade 12. In the book, it looks like Anthony really did meet Thomas Edison, Jonas Salk, FDR, Lou Gehrig, Charles Lindbergh, and Audie Murphy. The Web site, www.MagicPictureFrame.com, displays some of the book’s amazing photographs.

In the chapter on World War II, Anthony sees six marines raise the American flag on Mount Suribachi. Their photograph was taken by Joe Rosenthal. The photograph became one of the most famous images of World War II. The photograph and the six marines are the subject of the current motion picture, Flags of Our Fathers, directed by Clint Eastwood. Class recommends that parents take their high-school-age children to see the movie because it has important lessons about heroism, duty, and the horrible costs of war.

"I highly recommend the movie," says Class. "But, there is one aspect of the movie I disagree with: the movie seems to imply that the American people were turning against the war, and that the six marines were used in an exploitative publicity campaign to promote a war that was without merit. That is simply not true. Americans did not want to withdraw from World War II - they wanted to win the war. Americans understood the importance of what they were fighting for: they knew it was a war that had to be won. But, with nearly 400,000 soldiers dead, Americans were tired of the war and wanted victory to come soon. They ached for news of victory."

Rosenthal’s photograph became one of the most famous images of World War II. The photograph was used for War Bond promotions, printed on a United States postage stamp, and became the model for the Marine Corps War Memorial in Arlington, Virginia. The six marines were: John Bradley, from Appleton, WI; Franklin Sousley, from Hilltop, KY; Harlon Block, from Rio Grande Valley, TX; Ira Hayes, from Gila River Indian Reservation, AZ; Rene Gagnon, from Manchester, NH; and, Mike Strank, from Franklin Borough, PA.

"To the people back in the United States who saw the photograph in a newspaper," explains Class, "it seemed like the moment of victory had been captured on film. But the battle wasn’t over. The brutal fighting on Iwo Jima raged for nearly a month more, as the Japanese soldiers surfaced from their underground hideouts to attack - or to die by blowing themselves up in the middle of the American soldiers."

"It was a contrast I’ll never forget," reports Anthony, the time-traveling eyewitness to history. "American soldiers on the sunny surface of the island, and Japanese soldiers below them in the dark caves. The American soldiers were fighting to survive, and the Japanese soldiers were following orders to die."

The battle of Iwo Jima ended on March 16, 1945, with twenty-four thousand American casualties, and more than six thousand Americans dead. The Japanese willingly sacrificed the lives of twenty thousand of the twenty-one thousand soldiers they had on the island. American soldiers faced the same horrifying fighting on other Pacific Islands: Victory on the island of Okinawa cost twelve thousand American lives, and the lives of more than one hundred thousand Japanese. The Japanese soldiers were under orders to fight until no one was left alive: They were trained from a young age to prefer death to surrender.

"This is why veterans say that the real heroes of Iwo Jima are still on the island," says Class.

Anthony and the Magic Picture Frame was named Outstanding Book of the Year and Most Original Concept of 2006 by Independent Publisher. It was named Reviewers Choice by Midwest Book Review, and Editor's Pick by Homefires: The Journal of Homeschooling Online. Nationally syndicated talk-show host Michael Medved calls the book "entertaining and educational." Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin says "parents and teachers will appreciate the inspiring message this unique history book holds for America's next generation. I recommend this book to all young Americans, may they take us to the stars and beyond."

Anthony and the Magic Picture Frame includes built-in tools for parents and teachers: recommendations for hundreds of books, movies, songs, and places to visit, keyed to the subjects of every chapter. For World War II, there are over 100 books, 150 movies, 30 songs, and 30 places to visit on the recommended list. For the Battle of Iwo Jima specifically, the recommendations include: Flags of our Fathers (book, written by James Bradley), The Ballad of Ira Hayes (song, performed by Johnny Cash), The Sands of Iwo Jima (movie starring John Wayne, 1949), and The Outsider (movie starring Tony Curtis, 1961). Flag raisers Ira Hayes and James Bradley appear in the 1949 movie, The Sands of Iwo Jima.

Anthony and the Magic Picture Frame (hardcover, 225 pages, $26.50) is available at www.MagicPictureFrame.com, by calling toll-free 1-800-247-6553, at select bookstores, and on www.amazon.com.

###

Note to editors and book reviewers: Author and son are available for interviews. Photographs and review copies are available.

Contact: Michael Class, 425-890-4894, class@MagicPictureFrame.com.