WARRIORS: Navaho Code Talkers by Kenji...

WARRIORS: Navaho Code Talkers by Kenji Kawano (Northland: $24.95, illustrated). The early stages of the American offensive in the Pacific during World War II were hampered by the Japanese ability to crack the most secret U.S. codes. Philip Johnston, a missionary’s son and one of the few white men able to speak Navaho, convinced the U.S. Marine Corps that using the language could guarantee communications security: Navaho was virtually unknown outside the reservations, and no written symbols or alphabet for it existed at the time. When initial tests proved successful, the Marines began recruiting “code-talkers” in late 1942. They served throughout the Pacific and, as Johnston predicted, their “code” proved uncrackable. Kenji Kawano’s striking black-and-white photographs capture the quiet dignity of the surviving veterans as they recall their actions. David E. Patterson, who served in the Roi Atoll, Marshal Islands and Kwajalein Atoll campaigns sums up their attitude: “When I was inducted into the service, one of the commitments I made was that I was willing to die for my country--the U.S., the Navaho Nation, and my family. My (native) language was my weapon.”

SHOCKPROOF SYDNEY SKATE by Marijane Meaker (Plume: $8.95). The inclusion of openly lesbian characters sparked a minor scandal when this novel first appeared in 1973, and has given it an underground cult status. The title character, a singularly uninteresting teen-age boy, and his divorced, lesbian mother vie for the affections of a vapid, rich ingenue in an effortfully hip tale that technically qualifies as a romantic triangle, although it’s difficult to imagine prose this limp having sides and angles. “Shockproof” is basically another poor-little-rich-boy-in-New York story, replete with swanky Upper East Side addresses, restaurants, perfumes and clothes; much of it reads like an old Bloomingdale’s catalogue.

THE STORY OF THE ODYSSEY by Stephen V. Tracy (Princeton: $9.95). A professor of classics at Ohio State University, Stephen Tracy offers a book-by-book, line- by-line analysis of Homer’s epic poem. Tracy ignores the scholarly debates that contribute nothing to the average reader’s appreciation (the authorship of the Odyssey has been as widely--and inconclusively--debated as that of Shakespeare’s plays), and concentrates on conveying an understanding of the actions in the poem and the artistry they reveal. An excellent guide to read in conjunction with Richard Lattimore’s classic translation.

CAT SCRATCH FEVER by Robert Kelly (McPherson: $10). Robert Kelly’s exultation in the beauties of the English language fill these very short stories--some only a few paragraphs long--with a burnished glow. In “The Scribe,” Kelly juxtaposes rapturous descriptions of an icy winter dawn with the bleak existence of a scholarly monk who knows no one will ever read the obscure commentary that constitutes his life’s work. The post-apocalyptic medievalism of “The Scribe” contrasts sharply with the sweatily sensual depiction of adolescent lust in the title story. In “Murmuring,” the rich, susurrant language of an ancient Tibetan prayer cycle reveals the emptiness of the lives of a pair of bourgeois American lovers who have taken up Buddhist sutras instead of health food or power walking. A noteworthy collection from an exceptionally talented and prolific writer.

OUR NATIVE FISHES by John R. Quinn (The Countryman Press: $14.95, illustrated) . A concise, practical guide to collecting and keeping the more common North American fresh and salt-water fish in home aquaria. (More than 3,200 marine and 800 fresh-water species inhabit the continental waters, not counting those considered endangered or threatened.) John Quinn’s straightforward approach to his subject obviously is based on first-hand experience: He explains what kind of tank environment each fish requires, what it will eat and how it interacts with other fish (black bass, he cautions, “are not fish for the casual hobbyist or one who doesn’t like the sight of blood or one animal eating another”). Quinn also stresses the need for ecological good sense, which extends beyond obeying state and federal regulations and includes recognizing that some fish should be kept for a short time only, then released to breed in the wild. A worthwhile book at a time when the business of supplying aquarium fanciers has put an increasing strain on the fish populations in some regions of the tropics.

THE LAST UNICORN by Peter S. Beagle, illustrated by Mel Grant (Roc: $6.95) . This popular fantasy stands out as an example of the simple-minded drivel that cheered readers during the late ‘60s and early ‘70s, when “Jonathan Livingston Seagull” was considered profound and “Listen to the Warm” passed for poetry. Peter Beagle attempts to flesh out his straightforward Redeemer myth (the Last Unicorn must free her imprisoned people) with subplots, side characters, poetry and prophecies. But the subplots go nowhere, the minor characters do little more than introduce self-conscious anachronisms, the poetry doesn’t scan and the prophecies remain unfulfilled. The climactic confrontation between Good and Evil peters out when the monstrous Red Bull that has terrorized everyone and everything for decades swims out to sea rather than face the bland title character (whom he bested in an earlier encounter). Like the reader, the bull probably decided to quit the story out of boredom.

TRAVELS WITH DR. DEATH: And Other Unusual Investigations by Ron Rosenbaum (Penguin: $$9.95) . Journalist Ron Rosenbaum has a flair for mysteries and scandals, and he probes a number of famous ones in this highly readable anthology. In an article on the Iran-Contra affair, Rosenbaum interviews Gen. Richard Secord and Ted Shackley, the elusive “blond ghost” of the CIA who has been described as the godfather of that unwholesome mess. A survey of the changing image of the Watergate scandal focuses on Richard Nixon’s continuing disinformation campaign to excuse his role in the nastiest political debacle in American history. It’s a highly biased and thoroughly entertaining piece, unlike the depressing study of the questions surrounding the murder of Mary Meyer, the socially prominent artist who reportedly was the mistress of President John Kennedy. The most unsettling section of the book focuses on “Dr. Death”--notorious forensic psychiatrist James Grigson. Grigson has persuaded the jurors in hundreds of murder cases to condemn criminals to death by predicting their future behavior--without examining the defendants. (Grigson still maintains that Randall Dale Adams “will kill again,” despite his absolution after the documentary “The Thin Blue Line” established his innocence.) As truth is invariably stranger than fiction, “Travels” is more intriguing than most political thrillers.