In late March 1944, just before dawn, Sorry Rinamu is awakened by the roar of eight low-flying aircraft over Bikini Island. He runs outside with his family and their teacher, Tara Malolo. Other villagers emerge in terror, screaming and praying, fearing the planes will bomb the village and kill them as they circle the lagoon.

The planes fly so low Sorry can see the pilots’ heads and feel the heat from their exhausts. Two aircraft fire machine guns at the Japanese weather station north of the village. Jonjen identifies the planes as American by the white stars on their sides, and the villagers’ fear quickly shifts to relief and excitement as the pilots wave from above, and the villagers shout “Amiricaans” in celebration, welcoming what they hope is liberation.

The narrative reveals that in five days Sorry will turn fourteen and become the family alab—the household head and council representative—replacing Jonjen. Sorry observes the Japanese soldiers outside their weather station; one has been killed in the strafing. The islanders deeply hate the occupiers, who have been demanding food and threatening violence since invading in 1942, and who also pose a danger to young girls like Lokileni, whom soldiers may demand or exploit when drunk. Once, a sergeant humiliated Sorry by forcing him to bow one thousand times, and Sorry came close to attacking him with the family ax. The village elders have discussed killing the soldiers, but Chief Juda, descendant of the legendary Larkelon, forbade it, warning that the Japanese military from Kwajalein would retaliate by massacring everyone. Sorry thinks of his late father, Badina Rinamu, wishing he were alive to fight, and vows to use the ax if any soldier harms Lokileni, regardless of consequences.

During breakfast following the flyover, the narrative briefly describes the islanders’ daily life, including their communal living, their reliance on shared, simple meals from the land and sea, and the limited role of money in their society. Sorry asks why the Americans and Japanese are fighting. Jonjen responds that wars are always about land and money, reflecting the importance of land to the islanders’ sense of identity and status. When Sorry asks if the Americans will also make them captives, Jonjen gives an evasive answer. Tara says Americans are usually kind, while Ruta hopes they will bring freedom.

Jonjen tells Sorry about the island’s violent past, when their ancestors raided visiting vessels and killed outsiders who came ashore. Later, the Japanese announce a new order: a total blackout after dark, with no fires or lanterns allowed to prevent the island from being seen by invading forces, imposing further restrictions on the islanders’ daily life.

The narrative flashes back to late November 1941, when Tara Malolo gave her first lesson in the island school. She introduced herself as from Rongelap, trained at a missionary college in Majuro, and able to speak some English, enabling her to communicate with people from outside the islands. The Japanese soldiers treated her politely as a teacher, unlike other islanders. She rotated living with different families each week to avoid jealousy. The school is informal and open to the community, with no grades or homework, and adults often attend alongside the students.

Using a map, Tara explained the history of migration to Micronesia and the Marshall Islands, as well as the geography of Micronesia and the three types of islands—atolls, raised atolls, and high islands. Sorry asked if they are a cowardly people, recalling his father had said they were. Tara disagreed, calling them gentle rather than cowardly. Sorry fell in love with Tara that day. Less than two weeks after this first lesson, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, bringing war to the Pacific.

Three mornings after the flyover, Sorry spots ships in the lagoon before dawn and shouts a warning. Jonjen blows the conch shell to alert the village. Chief Juda orders all women and children to flee to the barrier beach, but Sorry stays with Jonjen. US Marines disembark from landing craft and move quickly toward the weather station. After explosions are heard, the village men briefly flee, and the sounds of fighting soon fade.

The Marines gather calmly, speaking in untroubled voices, in the village. Chief Juda welcomes the tall Marine officer, who responds with the Marshallese greeting “Yokwe-yuk,” making everyone laugh. An interpreter announces that the Japanese soldiers killed themselves in a bunker. The officer says the Marines will bury the enemy and give their supplies to the islanders. During the welcoming exchange, Ruta places a seashell necklace around the officer’s neck, and the Japanese dead are later buried without ceremony, bringing an end to the threat the soldiers posed to the villagers, especially the women.

Navy doctors examine the islanders as part of routine health checks. At sundown, the villagers thank the departing Americans and gather in church, where Juda lights his lantern and Jonjen reads from the Marshallese Bible. Carrying torches and singing hymns, they walk to the weather station to inspect the captured supplies—rice, canned goods, tools, and other items—which Juda promises to divide equally among the 11 families. The next morning, Sorry claims a thick Japanese magazine with photographs he had spotted earlier.

Sorry takes his new magazine to a secluded spot on the barrier beach and spends hours amazed by photographs of the outside world—tall buildings, massive ships, and machines on tracks—developing a strong desire to see it for himself. Nearby, his grandmother Yolo leaves offerings to the old gods and says she has heard a tree foretell that something terrible is going to happen, adding a note of unease to the otherwise quiet setting.

That afternoon, Sorry goes spearfishing at the barrier reef. His father, Badina, had gone to the reef and never returned, and Sorry believes a shark killed him, making Sorry cautious in these waters. After successfully spearing one grouper, Sorry loses a larger fish to a fast-moving mako shark. Rather than be pulled into deep water, he releases the wrist noose and swims to safety. The scene also reflects the islanders’ dependence on the sea and resources like coconuts for survival. At sunset, he shows the magazine to Jonjen, who expresses no interest in the outside world. Sorry loves his grandfather but does not want to be like him, preferring not to follow his reliance on traditional tools and practices.

Two days later, as the council prepares to meet for the first time since the Japanese occupation ended, Jonjen, Ruta, and Tara insist that Sorry must take his place as family alab when he turns fourteen. Sorry protests, fearing he will be scorned by the older council members, and proposes a compromise: He and Jonjen will serve as co-alabs, sharing one vote. Jonjen accepts with a narrow smile.