AT LAST SHE STOOD

A recipient of the Medal of Freedom, Josefina Guerrero (1917-1996) was a war hero and “a symbol for hope and greater courage.”

In opening and closing notes, Kelly explains that despite thorough efforts, she encountered gaps while researching her subject. Still, she writes, “the pieces [Josefina] left behind are enough to leave us in wonder,” and a compelling portrait of a brave and resolute woman emerges. Born in 1917 in Lucban, Philippines, imaginative young Josefina—called Joey—was a devout Catholic who longed to hear the voice of God, like her idol, Joan of Arc. Her adult life with her husband and daughter was upended when she developed Hansen’s disease, also known as leprosy. Due to social stigma, she and her family hid her condition until 1941, when Japan bombed first Pearl Harbor and then an American military base on Manila Bay. After Joey’s status was reported to the authorities, she fled, eventually serving as a guerilla fighter and delivering a map that allowed U.S. troops to liberate those imprisoned at the Santo Tomas camp. Later, she relocated to the Tala Leprosarium, where she advocated for better treatment for those with Hansen’s disease and secured increased funding for the leprosarium. Prose written in the present tense lends the narrative immediacy, while informative and deftly interspersed photos, captions, and sidebars provide context to the cultural and historical climate.

An intriguing, well-told account of an extraordinary life.