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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House to House: An Epic Memoir of War Review

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(More customer reviews)I want to start by saying that you need to read this book.
Until a few hours ago, I felt that Colby Buzzell's irreverent but accurate "My War" was the best micro (that is company level or below) accounting of the Iraq War by the those who fight it. SSG David Bellavia's and John Bruning's account is a no-punches-pulled, politically incorrect infantryman's eye view of the war in 2004.
My unit replaced Bellavia's in Diyala Province in 2005, several months after the Battle of Fallujah. I knew his fallen company commander, Capt. Sean Sims, when we were lieutenants together, so this memoir is something I as a military professional on my second tour here can relate to.
Bellavia's imagery and descriptions are amazing; and he deftly brings out the personalities of his comrades in arms like a master storyteller. One of the challenges in a book like this is trying to keep so many people straight as the story progresses, but he does this effectively by recounting key moments with each individual which serves to indelibly burn that person into the mind. From his fellow squad leader, mirror image and battle brother Fitts, to the hard-talking, no BS platoon sergeant, to the team leader who devoured at least three MREs at the attack position just before entering the city, Bellavia gives everyone their due diligence, yet keeps the story going.
The preface, titled "Coffins of Muqdadiyah" is as relevant to the kind of fight we're seeing in Southern Baghdad as it was more than three years ago in an area about 60 km to the northeast. From the first paragraph where he vividly establishes his setting by describing the heat and misery of "the Muq" as effectively as anyone I have ever seen write about Iraq, until the final passages where he reflects on the frustrations of fighting the Mahdi Army and its human cost when its members hide behind their own families to target US troops, you are pulled in.
From there, it is one wild ride. Bellavia writes with all of the passion and candor that is typical of many young combat arms NCOs and commissioned officers. His memoir is indeed worthy of the word "epic" and if you want a real glimpse into what the grunts like Bellavia experience over here, then you don't want to miss this.
If your tastes run more to the strategic, or "big picture" look at the war, then this is not for you. However, if you want to better understand what life is like for those who are on "the pointy end of the spear," then I'll say it again: read this book.
Baghdad
10-27-07

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