Samurai is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. The word samurai is derived from the archaic Japanese verb samorau, changed to saburau, meaning "to serve"; thus, a samurai is a servant, i.e. the servant of a lord.

Written by Martin Caidin from Saburo Sakai's own memoirs and journalist Fred Saito's extensive interviews with the fighter pilot, Samurai! vividly documents the chivalry and valor of Saburo Sakai, the combat aviator who time after time fought American fighter pilots and, with 64 kills, would survive the war as Japan's greatest living ace.

Here are the harrowing experiences of one of Japan's greatest aces: from fighter pilot school—where the harsh training expelled over half of his class—to the thrilling early Japanese victories; from his incredible six hundred mile fight for life from Guadalcanal to his base in Rabaul, to the poignant story of the now-handicapped veteran's return to the air during the final months of World War II.