Combined Fleet Decoded: The Secret History of American Intelligence and the Japanese Navy in World War II Review

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(More customer reviews)The detail in examining all aspects of intelligence in the Japanese and American navies during WWII -- from fleet recognition, to traffic analysis, to wartime production information, to the role of Ultra and decryption -- make Prados' book an excellent study. Those familiar with WWII issues will find lots of fresh material.
Prados is wise enough to limit the topic to just naval intelligence issues, but still fills 735 pages with detail and skill. The pleasant surprise is that it's so well-written, building each issue to its climax in the wartime theater. And, with 50+ years of perspective, you can feel the tide of the war shift after Guadalcanal.
The art of intelligence-gathering increased dramatically during this war because of radio intercepts, so Prados covers the topic chronologically. He has an excellent analysis of Japanese Naval strategy at Pearl Harbor, during the Pacific conquest period, and the shift to a "defensive" strategy of the homelands.
Prados does an excellent job comparing the structure of Japanese and American intelligence-gathering; also in indicating both opportunities and limitations of intelligence in war-time. The reader also sees the dramatic impact that war-time propaganda has in mis-leading military leaders.
Surprisingly low-tech intelligence issues are important at various points during the war: such as the absence of photo-reconnaissance early in the war for Americans. For the Japanese navy, poor ship-recognition skills by Japanese pilots and skippers leads to assumptions that American carriers present no threat because they've been reported as sunk -- or that destroyers were cruisers or even battleships.
The book is closed by an excellent post-war period which does two things: follows the careers of major intelligence participants and discusses social aspects of military training.

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War in the Pacific 1941-1945 (General Military) Review

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(More customer reviews)In March, 2010 HBO is airing the new mini-series, The Pacific, produced by Tom Hanks & Stephen Spielberg. The program is sure to spark a wave of new interest in America's Pacific campaign during WWII. History enthusiasts looking for an introduction to this subject will be well served by this new coffee table book from Osprey Publishing. Those already familiar with the history will enjoy the many photographs, historic objects, and the book's easy-reference organization of info. War in the Pacific, by Richard Overy offers a compact history in an engaging design.
The text has a scrapbook (or maybe government file) quality with color maps, photos, and historic objects to illustrate the story. Each military operation receives a two page spread. There are four or five paragraphs of descriptive text and about seven photos with descriptive captions. Mini biographies of military commanders stand out from the main text, appearing as if they are on cards with paper clipped portraits.
I am especially impressed by the inclusion of facsimiles of period documents and publications. Having read the military records of my grandfather's WWII Army battalion, I can say there is something uniquely immediate and enlightening about reading such primary source material. The book is bound with three pockets holding copies of telling documents such as: a December 8, 1941 telegram from the US Commander-in-Chief Pacific Area warning naval units of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, FDR's notes for his speech to Congress, pages from several battle reports, radio message transcripts, a letter from General MacArthur, and the Japanese Instrument of surrender which ended the war.
Also included is a full copy of the March 9, 1944 issue of Yank Magazine, a propaganda poster, a big pull-out map of the Battle of Midway, and a pocket guide to Australia which was issued to US forces to familiarize them with their allies.
Table of Contents:
Operations Map: Japanese Expansion
Imperial Japan
Pearl Harbor
Blitzkrieg in Asia
Corregidor: Fall of the Philippines
Battle of Coral Sea
Battle of Midway
Battle for the Solomons
Guadalcanal
Operations Map 1943
Operation "Cartwheel": War for New Guinea
Island Hopping in the Pacific: Gilbert and Marshall Islands
Operations Map 1944
Marianas: Defiance to the Death
Battle of the Philippine Sea
Battle of Peleliu
Recapture of the Philippines
Battle of Leyte Gulf
Operations Map 1945
Iwo Jima
Firebombing of Tokyo
Okinawa
The Atomic Bombs
Japanese Surrender
Index

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You don't have anything like this yet!Check your collections. Never before has such a unique assembly of rare documents been available. WAR IN THE PACIFIC brings to life the story of the heroic actions of the men who fought the relentless war against Japan in World War II. Includes recorded memories, photographs, maps, and actual reproductions of 20 rare key documents and memorabilia: the dispatch to General MacArthur to abandon the Philippines, the "Pocket Guide to Australia" issued to US army and navy forces in 1942, and much more!WAR IN THE PACIFIC is being released to coincide with the much-anticipated 10-part mini-series coming from HBO in March.War In The Pacific 1941-1945 looks at the relentless war against Japan in the Pacific Islands which formed an integral part of eventual Allied victory in World War II. Setting the scene with the unprovoked Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and the almost simultaneous attack on US bases on Guam and Wake Island, it then goes on to document the bloody battles fought in the jungle islands of Guadalcanal and the Philippines and the seas of the Pacific.As fortunes turned in 1942 the Allies fought hard to regain lost ground and the intensity of battle did not waver. It tells the story of the heroic actions of the men who toiled on the islands, the names of which have now become synonymous with bloodshed, hardship and unstoppable spirit which eventually resulted in victory for the Allies: Guadalcanal, Tarawa, Rabaul, Guam, Iwo Jima and finally Okinawa.This fascinating and heart-wrenching story is brought to life by the addition of 20 carefully selected facsimile pieces of memorabilia ranging from military orders to propaganda leaflets dropped by the Japanese on US troops to the personal diaries and letters home of both generals, officers and ordinary soldiers.

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World War II: The Pacific Review

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(More customer reviews)This book on tape was well done and informative. Using personal accounts as well as historical record, it gives the listener or reader a relavent glimpse into what it took to win World War II. Those of us born after truly do not have an accurate understanding of what happened during that time. This will help the reader begin to comprehend. The stories move smoothly and effectively convey the information in such a way as to hold the readers interest. Riveting, compelling and heartbreaking.

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Miracle at Midway Review

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(More customer reviews)Just how fortunate the United States was in winning the closely contested navy engagement at Midway in the central Pacific in mid 1942 is evident to any reader ofthis very well documented and quite balanced account of one of the largest and most famous exchanges between the US navy and their Japanese counterparts during the course of World War Two. By using extensive inputs from both Japanese and American participants and observers of the sea battle, the authors thread together a memorable and engaging narrative of the events leading up to and involving both sides during the summer months of that fateful year. It was one for the record books, and one that demonstrated conclusively that the rules of war at sea had changed forever from one dominated by capital ships like battleships and cruisers to one dominated by aircraft carriers and attack airplanes.
In the devastating aftermath of Pearl Harbor, the American Navy was looking for an opportunity to engage the Japanese in a "mano-a-mano" confrontation, hoping to even the odds and shorten the war by using what we felt would be surprise and tactics to overcome the numerical advantage the Japanese enjoyed in numbers of both ships (especially in terms of aircraft carriers) and launchable aircraft. Even though the Japanese had blundered badly at the battle of the Coral Sea, they left the scene believing the fracas had been won, and that they had further damaged the American fleet by sinking three carriers. And though the U.S. Navy did in fact limp away having lost some of its few carriers either through sinking or damage, in actuality they had inflicted more damage than they had incurred. Furthermore, soon one of the badly damaged U. S. Navy carriers (the Yorktown) would be repaired and ready to sail in support of the Midway engagement.
Also, by cracking certain aspects of the Japanese Navy's wireless communication codes, the Americans were able to determine not only what the Japanese were ostensibly planning in terms of a strategy to take Midway, but also what the specific positioning and disposition of the various aspects of the Japanese naval force would be. Obviously, this information added to the element of surprise gave the Americans a huge tactical advantage, and made victory much more possible. Yet it did not guarantee anything. It was the tactical brilliance and contemporaneous innovation of the on-site commanders in the American force that won the day. In a series of engagements that did not change the course of the battle until the last few remaining waves of American aircraft suddenly sank or damaged the majority of the Japanese carriers, the Americans succeeded both through their own daring and a few fatal tactical errors on the part of the Japanese commanders.
The results were devastating for the Japanese, who never again could muster the kind of raw carrier power, or just as importantly, ever replace the huge number of experienced carrier-based aircraft pilots needed to successfully engage and threaten the expanding American task forces that within another 12 to 18 months would virtually transform the character of the war in the Pacific, leading the Japanese into waging an almost suicidal war of attrition which they had no chance to win. This is a well-written, well-documented, and entertaining book that helps the reader to understand just how critical to both the Americans and the Japanese the fateful naval engagement at Midway was, and how the results determined the course of the rest of the war in the Pacific. Enjoy!

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Here is the definitive history of the battle of Midway, an American victory that marked the turning point of the war in the Pacific during World War II. Told with the same stylistic flair and attention to detail as the bestselling At Dawn We Slept, Miracle at Midway brings together eyewitness accounts from the men who commanded and fought on both sides. The sweeping narrative takes readers into the thick of the action and shows exactly how American strategies and decisions led to the triumphant victory that paved the way for the defeat of Japan. "A stirring, even suspenseful narrative . . . The clearest and most complete account so far." (Newsday) "Something special among war histories . . . No other gives both sides of the battle in as detailed and telling a manner."(Chicago Sun-Times) "A gripping and convincing account." (The Philadelphia Inquirer)

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The Pacific War: The Strategy, Politics, and Players that Won the War Review

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(More customer reviews)Hopkins has assembled a commendable work that links the most important battles of the Pacific with the US strategy, the politics, and the personalities that shaped the Pacific theater. He provides the backgrounds for each major step and takes you through the events at a level sufficient to put it into the broader perspective.
You won't find content regarding technology or the tactics of specific battles. Hopkins puts a timeline to these seemingly disparate events of this theater to give the reader appreciation for the decisions of MacArthur, Nimitz, Halsey, Marshall, and Roosevelt. But he does it in a very readable way. The many maps help as well. I also enjoyed the brief descriptions of the smaller battles which haven't yet warranted their own books (which made me feel sorry for the many who perished fighting these battles without any real historical recognition).
Having read individual personal recounts of individual battles or campaigns in the Pacific, I was pleased that Hopkins has delivered a very readable history that brings it all together. I'm not a historian who remembers each fact, so I can't comment on Hopkin's accuracy. But its sufficient for a reader to "get" the US Pacific strategy and timeline, and to enjoy doing so.
I've avoided other books spanning the Pacific theater that are tomes with small print and too much detail, or those which seem to have the authors political slant. "Retribution" comes to mind. If you've enjoyed reading books about Tarawa, Guadacanal, Peleliu, Okinawa, Iwo, then you'll appreciate what Hopkins has accomplished.

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Once the stories have been told of battles won and lost, most of what happens in a war remains a mystery. So it has been with accounts of World War II in the Pacific, a conflict whose nature is only obscured by the linear narrative. In this book, a veteran and respected military author opens the story of the Pacific War to a broader and deeper view.

Going beyond the usual accounting, William B. Hopkins investigates the strategies, politics, and personalities that shaped the conduct of the war. His regional approach to this complex war conducted on land, sea (and significantly by America, undersea), and air offers a more realistic perspective on how this multifaceted conflict unfolded--in many ways, and on many fronts. As expansive as the immense reaches of the Pacific, and as focused as the most intensive pinpoint attack on a strategic island, this account offers a whole new way of understanding the hows--and more significantly, the whys, of the Pacific War.

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One Square Mile of Hell: The Battle for Tarawa Review

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(More customer reviews)
Most of us live 76 hours with little thoughts of danger, but as readers of this book will quickly find out, the 3 days the U.S. Marine 2nd Division spent on Tarawa atol, and especially Betio, was just about the most dangerous place a person could ever be.
Several people have said, including the two commanding generals of this operation, that next to Iwo Jima, Betio was the most fortified war zone they had ever seen. In fact General Smith said he had never experienced anything in WWI to compare to how the Japanese had fortified the island. The commanding Japanese Admiral Shibasaki, later killed in the battle, expressed his opinion just prior to the battle that "A million men cannot take Tarawa in a hundred years." Several thousand Marines from the 2nd Division at great cost would soon prove the Japanese admiral wrong.
The U.S. Navy bombarded the island prior to the landings, but not as much as the Marine generals would have liked. However, after the battle, it would be seen that no amount of shelling would have been able to destroy the defending Japanese troops, they were just too well fortified. In the end, it took the combined efforts of the U.S. Marines, U.S. Navy, and the air force to take and hold, as Robert Sherrod said, an island no larger than 1 square mile.
I served with the Navy & USMC so this book immediately caught my attention, though I have two others on the subject, also. My opinion after reading this heart rending book is that it very well may be the best of recent times, and may be the best of any future books on the subject. The author has written a very readable book, whereas some books of military subjects are not; and he has built his book not only on individuals that were there, but also on their statements today, 60 plus years after the battle. And as anyone who has read this book can testify, two of the main characters in the drama: the activities of Gene Seng and Charles Montague may never be forgotten. Along with Stanley Bowen, Norman Hatch, William Hawkins, and William Chamberlin, among many others, their heroics will be forever burned into one's mind.
Out of the thousands of Japanese who defended Tarawa, only 17 lived past the battle; while the American losses were 1,027 killed, 2,292 wounded, and 88 recorded as missing. On Tarawa's D-Day the losses of the Marines were close to the 30% range, out of 5000 landed, the losses were 1500.
This Central Pacific island saw much hand-to-hand fighting with bayonet, KaBar knife, and close in shooting. The only way to dislodge the Japanese from their spider webs and pill boxes was with explosives and flame throwers. Snipers existed all thoughout the battle, and even after the island was considered 'secure' fatalities from snipers still occurred by the burial details. The Marines were at times very surprised to see Japanese standing well over 6 feet in height, for these Japanese were special naval landing forces much on a par with our Marines. There was no where to run, no where to hide, and for a large part of the battle we were at times close to being thrown back into the sea. It got so bad that towards the end no prisoners were taken.
Much went right by training and luck, and more went wrong; with both the Navy and Marines learning from this battle. Since it differed from the earlier Guadalcanal fighting both USN/USMC were surprised at it ferocity and casualties. One of the main issues during the critical hours of the battle was logistics: supplies, especially ammo could not reach the Marines due to tides and reef. Later when such a necessary item as water made it ashore in 55 gallon drums, it was discovered that the drums, used prior for gasoline storage, were not properly cleansed so the water both tasted and smelled of gasoline.
This is such a fact filled book that a reviewer could almost seemingly go on forever, but this review is long enough. I give this book a high rating where military and line of departure books are concerned. One doesn't have to have served to read this book and come away with a feeling what it was like to be on Tarawa for three days in November, 1943. And sadly the American public of that time was kept in the dark about the battle and did not find out what WWII island fighting would be like until weeks after the battle.
Semper Fi.

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In Bitter Tempest: The Biography of Admiral Frank Jack Fletcher Review

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(More customer reviews)The author, Stephen Regan, has done an excellent job of summing the book. Admiral Frank Jack Fletcher is a an integral figure in the Pacific War, WW II and has received much harsh criticism, relegating him to the category of mediocrity at best. Other authors have not investigated the facts as has Mr. Regan. In my opinion, This book is essential to those studying the naval war with Japan. The book explains much beyond just the admiral's personal situation, too, including naval politics of the day, an essential element of the picture.

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How They Won the War in the Pacific: Nimitz and His Admirals Review

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(More customer reviews)After the Pearl Harbor disaster, President Roosevelt decided to relieve Admiral Husband Kimmel of his Pacific Fleet command. Many thought that Kimmel was made out to be a scapegoat and did not deserve to be relieved, but Roosevelt felt that a new commander was needed to lift America out of the ashes of Pearl harbor and begin the road to ultimate victory. The man chosen for the task was Admiral Chester W. Nimitz.
Nimitz was chosen over many higher-ranking officers, but in the end, Nimitz proved to be the perfect choice to lead the American Navy. Blessed with a keen sense of fairness to his fellow man, this fine book examines Nimitz and his admirals and how they ultimately won the war in the Pacific.
Although Nimitz was considered a "calm tower of strength" and the principal architect of victory in the Pacific, he could not have accomplished this feat alone. His choices of supporting staff members and Admirals are the ones who, in the end, helped win the war for the United States.
This book examines many of Nimitz' Admirals, but four really stand out above the rest: Ray Spruance, Bill Halsey, Kelly Turner, and Marc Mitscher. Halsey was the fire and brimstone commander who fearlessly took on the Japanese in the early days of the war. He also said that after he was finished, the only place where the Japanese language would be spoken was in hell. Spruance was the antithesis of Halsey. Calm and cerebral, Spruance endeared himself to Nimitz with his careful consideration of the task at hand. It was said that Halsey could win a battle, but Spruance could win a campaign. Turner was cut from the same mold as Halsey. Fearless and intimidating, even to a fault, Turner was the architect of the brilliant amphibious landings of the war. Meanwhile, Mitscher was in charge of the fast carriers and endeared himself to his fliers by lighting up his entire force's lights to help bring the boys home after a nighttime raid against the Japanese. In the end, it was Nimitz' use of these important men that ultimately won the war for the United States.
This book, written by historian Edwin P. Hoyt, does a fine job of explaining the transition of the U.S. Navy from a weakened and busted fleet early in the war to the offensive juggernaut that it became by the time of Japan's surrender. Each important naval battle is discussed, and the role of Nimitz and his commanders is explained. Form the dark days of January 1942 to the ultimate victory in September 1945, Nimitz' navy fought the Japanese tooth and nail, and, more often than not, came out on top. The book also discusses the inter-service rivalries that existed between the Army and Navy, as well as the rise of the "young turks", or the Naval Aviator Flag Officers. I recommend this book very highly. It does a very good job of explaining Nimitz' role in the Pacific war, as well as that of his commanders. Read it and learn about one of the greatest commanders and leaders our country has ever had.

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A meticulous study of Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, the principal architect of victory in the Pacific during World War II.

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America's Fighting Admirals: Winning the War at Sea in World War II Review

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(More customer reviews)The American naval actions of the second world war were some of the most dramatic in the history of sea warfare, taking place over the Atlantic and Pacific oceans alike with an admiral overseeing each action and battle. The battles are here described from the perspective of American admirals who fought them and comes from a World War II navy veteran who not only covers all major campaigns and admiral leaders, but analyzes strategy and decision-making challenges during battle. Serious World War II military collections, particularly those with strong naval history sections, need AMERICA'S FIGHTING ADMIRALS: WINNING THE WAR AT SEA IN WORLD WAR II.

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Eagle Against the Sun: The American War With Japan Review

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(More customer reviews)Good books devoting themselves to the overall scope and breadth of Pacific campaign against the Japanese during World War Two are hard to find, but this book solves the reader's problem nicely. It is a comprehensive, entertaining, and fair-minded book that careful details both Japanese and Allied perspectives before, during, and at the conclusion of the war. This book is truly a carefully constructed, exhaustively researched and quite well documented one-volume history that everyone should love. I first discovered it on the syllabus of a graduate-level Harvard history course, and have had it on my shelf ever since. Written in a very accessible style that allows the reader to stream through as though one is reading a novel, and it is filled with interesting anecdotes and new insights that keep the reader entertained and interested throughout the nearly 600 pages of the book. My own personal favorite was an actual complaint filed immediately after the attack at Pearl Harbor by a Hawaiian resident of a dog who was allegedly barking in Morse code to the Japanese ships offshore. It is also offers a number of new thought provoking and intriguing ideas about aspects of the war against Japan for the reader.
The author engages in an active reinterpretation of the war based on declassified intelligence files, archival material, Japanese documents and an impressive collection of interviews with principals involved in the almost five year struggle to defeat the Japanese after the events at Pearl Harbor. It is interesting to learn that the U.S. planned to wage a wide-ranging campaign of submarine attacks against enemy shipping even before the start of the war, and also indicates that MacArthur was lucky not to be unceremoniously dumped after his bad bungling of the defense of the Philippines and also because of his active disregard for a number of important intercepts of Japanese messages that could have saved literally thousands of American and other lives. Spector also reveals that U.S. decisions were often more influenced by the nature of our stormy relationship with our British allies and our own inter-service rivalries than by strategic concerns.
The author vividly conjures up accurate and spell-binding accounts of the major battles of the war, and provides a number of intriguing descriptions of lesser known aspects of the Pacific campaign, as well. He takes the reader on a fascinating whirlwind tour of the war, leaping from details of critical meetings between war planners in the Pentagon to social, economic, and political aspects of the engagement to excellent on-the-scene coverage of the battlegrounds. He shows us how the war against the Japanese was different from that being waged in Europe, and how this intensely naval type of conflict was in a number of ways much more risky and innovative on our part than its European counterpart. I was particularly fascinated by his interesting argument that the most critical Japanese mistake of the war was in allowing itself to be drawn into fighting the war of attrition we had always preferred to wage based on its defeat at Midway. This is an important, magisterial, and comprehensive book that is undoubtedly the single best one-volume treatment of the war against Japan and it belongs on every serious World War Two student's bookshelf. Enjoy!

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Air Raid, Pearl Harbor. This Is Not Drill Review

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(More customer reviews)I have used this map in my 7th grade social studies classroom, and it proved very helpful in preparing my students for the presentation by a Pearl Harbor survivor(USS Tennessee). It is beautifully drawn, and clearly labeled. An ideal map.

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This map is the most accurate map of Pearl Harbor the dayof the bombing on Dec. 7, 1941.Map Side 1 shows location of allships and vessels at Pearl Harbor that day.Map Side 2 has photos andhistory pertaining to the events and the Battleships moored at PearlHarbor.Very extensive.

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Pearl Harbor Story: Authentic information and pictures of the attack on Pear Harbor December 7, 1941 Review

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(More customer reviews)For the men who died in the service of our country on December 7, 1941, Pearl Harbor and the Arizona Memorial are today beloved shrines in their memory


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The Pacific Campaign in World War II: From Pearl Harbor to Guadalcanal (Naval Policy and History) (Cass Series: Naval Policy and History) Review

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(More customer reviews)This is a taut, well-written and non-sentimental account of an early US victory in World War II that, together with the battle at Midway Island, turned the tide of the war in our favor.
While deeply researched, it's nonetheless a compelling read and incorporates a good balance of personal and professional stories.
Highly recommended.

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This is a fascinating new account of how diplomacy and politics gave way to military strategy and warfare in the Pacific.Presenting previously unpublished photographs, interviews with veterans, newly commissioned maps and new translations of Japanese sources, this book freshly examines the key events in the fight for the Pacific. Detailing the background to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor it shows how the decision-makers in Washington, following consultation with the leaders of Britain, Australia and New Zealand, moved to stop Japan from its drive toward Australia by initiating a counterthrust in the Solomon Islands. It also shows how qualities and character of leadership are crucial to winning wars, detailing how Admiral Ernest J. King managed to commit the Marine Corps to ground action in the South Pacific six months earlier than originally planned, by ignoring the Roosevelt's commitment to defeat Germany prior to fighting Japan, and by outmaneuvering Gen. Douglas MacArthur for leadership. It also explains how Marines under Maj. Gen. A.A. Vandegrift, despite inadequate logistical support, managed to prevail in the Americans' first ground campaign of World War II, making Japan's ultimate defeat inevitable.In addition to recounting these key events, it traces how censorship and patriotism influenced the reporting of the conflict in America, how Hollywood films further shaped public opinion by portraying the significant events in particular ways, and how certain crucial decisions such as the early bombing raid of Tokyo, and giving Douglas MacArthur command of the war effort in Australia, were "political" rather than "strategic," and were made to foster morale rather than to gain any military advantage.This book will be of great interest to all students and scholars of Military History, and to allreaders with a general interest in World War II, particularly in the conflicts of the Pacific, Pearl Harbor and Guadalcanal.

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But Not in Shame: The Six Months After Pearl Harbor Review

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(More customer reviews)John Toland's book proves to be well written and covered the period right before Pearl Harbor to the Battle of Midway. The book is written with certain amount of balance in presenting both sides of the fence, the clarity of text is clear and it appears to be well researched.
The book explains why the Allies suffered from series of military defeats during the first six months of the war which ended ironically with the Battle of Midway which sealed the fate of the Japanese effort to win the war. The book goes into details of the Allied defeats. While it does covered the entire Pacific area in general, the American efforts are presented here in greater details. The Philippines Campaign for example, got a lot of attention compared to the Singapore Campaign. In the typical Toland's style, the narratives were taken from individuals which were then woven into the general history format.
I found the book to be interesting and informative. Only real deficit appears to be that the book was published in 1961 and some of the information presented may be old news to veteran military readers. But for newcomers to the field, this would be a great introduction to the subject matter at hand.

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The Eagle and the Rising Sun: The Japanese-American War, 1941-1943: Pearl Harbor through Guadalcanal Review

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(More customer reviews)Having read extensively on the subject matter within this book previously, it was nice to read a build up to Pearl Harbor (making the subtitle of the book somewhat of a misnomer) and not just diving into the war in the first chapter. I had read the history of SE Asia preceeding WWII in bits and pieces mainly, but had never read anything where the author skillfully and successfully put it all into a compelling narrative before.
Additionally, the author frequently added small biographies of many important historical figures. Some last less than a page, others up to five pages of information (like McArthur). Regardless, these are revealing and convey excellent information to the reader regarding motivations, personalities, and mannerisms.
In several cases the author presents evidence about such historical figures in a somewhat objective manner and lets the reader form their own opinion before either lambasting or praising the actions of such figures. Never over the top however.
Largely, the author doesn't get into much minutiae regarding combat operations and instead concentrates on policy decisions and operational history and the people that made or reacted to these events. That's not to say there aren't any reference to combat and it's impact, however it's just not a history intended to be that detailed in this regard. Regardless, it is still compelling and highly informative about the personages and policies of the period in question.
Overall, a highly regarded operational history with detailed information on the people who made the deicions at the time. Maps are decent, but not detailed and the bibliography is well documented as well. Not an unflawed history by any means, but certainly full of relevant and detailed information in the areas specified earlier.

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Eyewitness Pacific Theater: Firsthand Accounts of the War in the Pacific from Pearl Harbor to the Atomic Bombs Review

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(More customer reviews)This is a relatively large book at 11 in by 9 in with 272 pages. Along with the photos is a running dialog giving a brief summary of the key engagements. Nestled in the dialog are many firsthand accounts of the sailors, soldiers or marines that were there. Though this album is predominately American oriented, a few Japanese give testimony as well. The coverage starts with Pearl Harbor and ends with the bombing of Hiroshima and the Indianapolis incident. A few paragraphs discuss Operation Downfall. After extensive coverage of Pearl harbor, Coral Sea, Midway, Bataan, Guadalcanal, island hopping in the Central Pacific, Mariana Turkey Shoot, the Philippines, Iwo Jima and Okinawa and more is presented. Most of the key engagements and key people like Nimitz, Halsey, MacArthur, King, Spruance etc are included so the book would be a good training aid for a new student. Most pages have photos; they're good photos, some even spectacular but many can be seen in other albums. And the dialog is similar to those other photo albums.
While Mr Kuehn claims to be critical even reversionary in his dialog, I saw only modest evidence of it. I would have been more critical for the intelligence and communication gaffs before December 7th, obstinately choosing to invade Peleliu and Luzon, or Halsey's poor judgment at Leyte, the conflicts between King, Nimitz, FDR and MacArthur, the conflicts between Army and Marines or a dozen other situations.
A CD is included if you would like to listen to other first hand experiences which is a nice extra. A Bibliography and Index completes the book.
If you're looking for your first album or are still eager to add to your collection, this one is worth your consideration.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Eyewitness Pacific Theater: Firsthand Accounts of the War in the Pacific from Pearl Harbor to the Atomic Bombs

Eyewitness Pacific Theater tells the remarkable story of U.S. operations in the Pacific during World War II by documenting the experiences of the men and women who were stationed there. Written by award-winning author D.M. Giangreco and venerable Commander John T. Kuehn, this volume is illustrated with hundreds of contemporary photos, including wartime pictures of the veterans themselves. Bringing the full force of personal recollections home to the reader, Eyewitness Pacific Theater is accompanied by a full-length compact disc of interviews produced by Emmy Award-winning historical documentarians Rob Lihani and Rob Kirk in collaboration with First Person Productions. Listen to dramatic tales in the voices of the Allied soldiers, sailors, airmen, and medical personnel as they recount the tragedies and triumphs of life during wartime in the Pacific Theater.

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And I Was There : Breaking the Secrets - Pearl Harbor and Midway Review

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(More customer reviews)This was one of the best analytical war books that I have ever read. First, I was impressed with the product. I ordered a used book, and it arrived perfect, like new. Beyond expectations. Second, I was familiar with Axis and Allied Intelligence, but this book was like a training manual in code breaking and code writing on both sides. My best friends liked the insights into the jealousies between branches of the services in consolidating and sharing in intelligence data, but my fascination was how advanced and secret were the facts that we knew about what the Germans and Japanese were doing and planning, and what they knew about what we were doing too...until the Navajo Code Talkers. A fascinating read. Essential for a total comprehension of what went on behind the scenes of all the planning and execution of the Super Powers involved. Perhaps the most challenging question raised was whether the Russians knew about the whereabouts of the Japanese fleet while on its way to Pearl Harbor? Especially, since the Kremlin had made a deal to have one of their boats pass the Japanese fleet safely in the Pacific without interruption and in clear sight of what was happening. This is a book that a serious scholar can't put down.

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Click here for more information about And I Was There : Breaking the Secrets - Pearl Harbor and Midway

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