In his novel Broken Jewel, David Robbins tells the story of Los Banos prison, a camp near Manila that held civilian internees during World War II. Remy Tuck and his son Talbot are forced to march from Manila and build their own prison camp, along with 2,000 others from all walks of life. The story follows their lives and the hardships and abuse they are forced to endure at the hands of the Japanese soldiers. Finally, after 2 years, American planes fly overhead and the prisoners begin to hope that they will survive their ordeal. Remy and Tal risk their lives to become involved with the operation by American forces to rescue those in the camp before they are executed by the Japanese. Author Robbins has created a multi-faceted novel–a love story, a suspenseful war story and a story of family, hardship, hope and the will to survive. Carmen is one of the “comfort women”, a Filipina teen kidnapped by the Japanese and forced into relations with the Japanese soldiers, suffering brutality and degradation at their hands. Her character offers insight into the Japanese attitudes towards the war and her compassion and hope, even after the suffering she has encountered, is uplifting. The book is based on fact and the author’s thorough research is evident in his annotations, which give names and dates of the actual people and events involved. The rescue of the prisoners at Los Banos by the American military was an operation that included Philippine guerilla units, and the description of the daring operation is based on factual accounts. This is a book that, although at times is difficult to read, conveys through it’s characters the spirit that helped them to survive unbelievable hardships but still retain the hope that allowed them to survive and move forward with their lives.