Excellent history of the how bad political decisions contributed to the disaster at Pearl Harbor 12/7/1941
581238
A little known prelude to the consequences of the "expedient" political decisions that preceded the unpreparedness of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941.  The same mistakes are being committed again in 2014.  We never learn from the hard-learned lessons of history; no one pays attention until it is too late.
434664
Very detailed look at what really happened in the Pacific Theater
4956428
A troubling history of the era prior to our entry into WW II. A history of the surprising reluctance of congress and the president to prepare our country for the entry into the war that was finally precipitated by the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor. Well written with surprising details of the few heros and even more frequent goats.
1475503
Great book about a little-known piece of American history.  Well written and fun to read.  Interesting that the biggest enemy in this campaign was the weather not the Japanese.  Fascinating
3772050
The December 7, 1941, Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor had a profound impact on the lives of American men and their families, rousting them from their civilian pursuits and dreams of the future to engage in a fight of world-wide proportions to ensure their safety.

An original task force of but six Motor Torpedo Boats (PTs) was sent to New Guinea to stem the tide of Japanese aggression aimed at dominating the Southwest Pacific and  culminate with an invasion of Australia.  The effect of those six boats was expected to be of little consequence.  However, the night stalkers prevailed as they destroyed enemy encampments, sank troop-carrying barges, cut off communication and supply lines and effectively nullified the enemy effort to resupply with both men and munitions. Much has been written about the New Guinea Campaign, a long and bloody battle. But this author focuses upon the hunger, sleep deprivation, malaria, dengue fever, malnutrition, fear, loneliness and "jungle rot" which rode with those PT sailors every night. They operated with shortages of food, water, medicines, spare parts and, at one point, had no boats "war ready." They "borrowed or bartered" what they ultimately needed to survive in that lonely, far away, dank and death-ridden place.

The author presents this intensively researched and documented story of the PT sailors like no other has. It is not about any given sailor in that division, it is about all of them. He provides interesting background information on several of the officers and men and presents insight from those who operated there using commanders' documents, the sailors' personal recollections, their diaries, their scrapbooks and their photo albums. The story is almost exclusively of historical facts with extremely few editorial comments from the author. He presents maps enhanced to relate time and place and includes more than two hundred photos never published before. The book rises to historical significance and to its proper place in naval history by documenting in the greatest detail ever, the operations of Motor Torpedo Boat Division Seventeen. In doing so the author presents some very interesting artifacts pictorially. He has honored those courageous men who have by now made their "Last Patrol," thus guaranteeing their place in history for all time.

A true gold mine for historians and an excellent starting point for both casual readers and those with an interest in PT boats, this book seems to be unique in every aspect.  It is a captivating read, the photos aid greatly in supporting the presentation and I will likely revisit this book again and again.
752881
Book Review: World War II and the Delaware Coast by Michael Morgan: Evidently, if you thought WWII was only fought abroad, you were uninformed. Thanks to Mr. Morgan, I am now much better informed. This book describes the Delaware Coast during the years leading up to and during WWII. There were enemy submarines trolling along our eastern coast during that time and both Military and Civilians alike pulled together to keep watch over their own! Mr. Morgans story is not only one of military events but the strength of the American people coming together, united in a common cause. He furnishes the reader with numerous reasons as to why this generation earned the name The Greatest Generation. The book contained a wealth of insightful events and facts. Here are just a few of my favorites: 1.) By the 1930s, nearly all Lewes homes were lit by electricity, and coastal power companies were offering prizes to those residents who decorated their homes with the most dazzling display of lights to celebrate the Christmas season. [Cool!] 2.) During the first 3 months of 1942, German submarines sank over 120 vessels in American and Canadian waters. 3.) Several volunteer civilian organizations began as a result of the War. In an effort to be better prepared (before the days of radar), the US established the Aircraft Warning Service (AWS). Literally, volunteer civilians on the physical lookout for enemy aircraft. Sightings were phoned into the Air Force. As to Pearl Harbor: Even if the AWS had been on duty, the observers kept watch from 6am to 6pm daily except Sundays. The Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor early on a Sunday morning. [Coincidence?] 4.) In order to support the war effort, families at home rationed their food, bought War Bonds, and groups banded together for scrap salvaging (Boy Scouts, American Legions, Red Cross units, VFWs, Fire Departments, etc.). 5.) It is estimated that the US government spent $300 billion ($4 trillion in todays money) to fight WWII. 6.) Like the AWS, the Civil Air Patrol was a civilian based agency established just before the US entered WWII. It was staffed by volunteer pilots who failed to meet the military age or military requirements. The pilots flew to search for enemy patrols, especially surfacing submarines along the coast. Nationally, the CAP was credited with spotting 173 submarines, bombing 57 and sinking 2. It helped 91 ships in distress and helped save nearly 400 sailors. During the War, the CAP lost 90 aircraft and 26 pilots were killed.  TRULY THIS WAS THE GREATEST GENERATION
3611986
I had no idea that Alaska was invaded by the Japanese during World War II until I heard about this book.  I was aware that the weather up there is pretty harsh and just getting to some of the Aleutian Islands is a challenge.  I found the book both fascinating and heartbreaking.  Books like this are a clear reminder that humans make some really foolish decisions sometimes, like ignoring intelligence that Alaska was a target of the Japanese.  Decisions like sending the evacuees from the Aleutians to old abandoned villages that have fallen to pieces and not bothering to take care of them.  Here are some things I learned from this book:

  The value of maps (lives would have been saved if the U.S. troops had known what they were facing and where they were going)
  The value of good intelligence (if the U.S. had had better intelligence and paid better attention to the intelligence they did have the whole thing could have been prevented)
  How poorly the Aleuts were treated by both the Japanese and the United States, some of them spent three years in captivity in Japan, where over half of them died, the others were sent to old abandoned settlements that had no clean running water or electricity, where many of them got sick and died, reparations weren't made until the 1980s, to add insult to injury when some of the Aleuts got home they found their houses completely plundered by the American soldiers.

This is what good nonfiction does, opens the reader's eyes to things they didn't know or didn't fully understand.  Seiple does a great job of this while making her account clear and easy to read. I highly recommend this one.
1446787
The December 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor was hardly over before the public began to wonder how the US could have been caught so unawares.  The Roberts Commission investigation (Dec 18, 1941 to Jan 23, 1942) concluded that General Short (Army) and Admiral Kimmel (Navy) were derelict in their duty and blamed them.  But almost immediately questions arose about facts that didn't add up.  By the end of May, 1946 a total of 9 investigations had taken place with differing and alternating conclusions each time, and yet questions still abound today.

John Toland looks at each of the investigations and discusses the evidence and testimonies presented.  He focuses on a large amount of evidence that many in Washington knew beforehand that an attack was "imminent" and also that it would occur at Pearl Harbor.  Some evidence pinpointed the exact date and other evidence the location of the "missing" Japanese fleet.  He even presents communications that foreign dignitaries passed on information, and that those in top levels of American government had more than enough knowledge beforehand that could have prevented (or at least minimized) the attack.  The only ones who knew almost nothing were Short and Kimmel.

This book was originally published in 1982 so it's possible there may be newer information, and apparently it is a bit controversial in its conclusions.  Toland claims that Admiral Stark (Chief of Naval Operations) and General Marshall (War Dept. Chief of Staff) in Washington had enough corroborated information that - at a minimum - a clear warning should have been sent to the commanders in Hawaii.  He speculates that part of the reason they might not have intervened was because they didn't want the Japanese to know the US had broken their code and were reading all their messages (but he also presents evidence that the Japanese suspected as much).  And while he doesn't directly condemn President Roosevelt, he certainly casts a shadow by claiming that FDR also had access to the information.  He cites speculation that FDR allowed the attack to happen as a way to win support from the American public, over half of which opposed intervention into the war in Europe, but his criticism seems somewhat muted.

Although this book is nearly 350 pages it's a much quicker and easier read than that number might suggest.  It was also more interesting than a dry and detailed accounting of the investigations might sound.  Toland obviously places an emphasis on exonerating Kimmel and Short but does a good job piecing together the chronology of the intelligence that was gathered and known in the weeks and days leading up to the attack (he doesn't cover the attack itself).  He discusses those who changed their testimonies as well as the documents which appear to have disappeared (such as the infamous "winds" message).  For the most part Toland keeps the information from becoming overly tedious, but the main difficulty I had was with the VERY extensive "Cast of Principal Characters."  They are listed at the beginning of the book but my interest was more casual and I didn't make the effort to keep everyone as straight as I might have.  Still, I found it to be an interesting read and disappointing to know that maybe there was more "infamy" behind the scenes than we were led to believe.
2583775
A very engrossing, concise, easy to read, and intriguing account of one of the most difficult and important events in American history.  The multiple stories of actual individuals involved in the horrendous conflict with Japan during WWII help to personalize the historical events and  bring them to life.  Highly recommended, especially for high school students, and older, in order to gain an understanding of the critical role that our nation continues to play in the world.
502314
Besides bringing in depth knowledge of the tragic events of the 20th century to the reader, the greatest benefit of Niall Ferguson's War of the World is to reveal the interconnection existing between those events, and how poor decision making, and lack of courage, led to even more disaster for the western nations. Should be a must to read for any potential decider in the public sphere.
3105269
I've read a number of books on the "Pearl Harbor Conspiracy." One was so well cited it almost had me convinced. I'm also well-read on MacArthur's role in three wars---WWI, WWII and Korea. I remember how much respect I had for him when I was young. None of that is left. I also have a shelf or more on the "code wars" of World War II. So I consider myself well read in that area too.

As a result, I feel this book does an outstanding job of combining date from numerous books and reviewing what happened at Pearl Harbor and the Philippines . The author is correct in stating Admiral Kimmel and General Short were railroaded to cover up for the intelligence politics being 'waged' from Washington, and the disaster in the Philippines, which should have resulted in MacArthur's relief and court martial. But when other commanders were doing the fighting, only MacArthur's self-serving press releases were sent out. This policy lasted throughout the war in the Pacific and even into Korea.

This subject is such a sore-point with me I could write pages of indignation for this review. But I'll let you off easy and just suggest, if you are interested in the truth, then read this book.

Thousands of Americans and Filipinos died, over under horrible conditions, due to the egos and stupidity of men in higher commands, who then used Kimmel and Short as covers for their failures. Even after the war, the Army and Navy continued the cover-ups. Men who knew the truth, and could have made significant contributions to the war effort were transferred to dead-end jobs where they would, hopefully, be forgotten.

For whatever reason, the lies are still accepted today, although one Naval officer finally received the medal he deserved, but only years after his death.
3936279
Extremely well researched and very readable.  Fine disection of the Japanese errors leading to the eventual defeat.  At the very time of the Japanese confidence and high tide of power, over confidence and lack of leadership by their high command lead to their defeat.  No effort is made to belittle what either side did at battle. Just a very careful explanation of how not to run a war.
4892797
This is a wonderful first hand history of a boy living on the beach at the time of the Pearl Harbor attack in 1941. The follow up gathering of information from both the American and Japanese lends veracity to his personal theories about the motives of the mini submarine pilot he encountered on the beach at Lanakai.
1664249
excellent overview of a disaster in the making, leaving a trail of bad decisions in its wake over a twenty year period. The USA and its main allies have signed up for a front line fighter that is wickedly expensive at $ 270 million each, is ten years late in production, and still not combat -ready, is comprehensively outclassed in battle  by the modern jet fighters of other nations, and in the event an F 35 pilot is forced to bail out of a crippled F 35 he is likely to break his neck as American testing clearly shows the pilot"s helmet catches on the back of the cockpit as the pilot ejects. The F 35 is promoted by many  Governments and their militaries as the main strike fighter for the next 40 years, when the opposition aircraft are clearly superior in performance and weaponry.
2519835
Excellent recount of the final days of WWII.  Winik provides a birdseye view of what FDR was going thru and how the wonks in gov't disregarded the warning signs of the Holocaust.  Not only the US but the world.  A very disturbing account of how America failed the Jewish people. Reminescent of what is going on today with the Syrian refugees.

I enjoyed Jay Winik's style of writing that I am now reading April 1865 - Civil War, Lincoln, Grant and Lee.  So far great book.
3963750
Excellent History of the early Naval War in the Pacific starting with Pearl Harbor. Toll explains to the reader what was transpiring inside Japan and how its Military took over control of the Government. He paints the picture of the United States Navy during the early years of WWII in its struggle with Japan's powerful Naval forces.  Ian Toll's Pacific Crucible is highly recommended for those readers interested in the war in the Pacific.
4647726
I was amazed at the similarities between the 1948 election and last year's meltdown with Governor Romney.  The Democrats have been honing their campaign skills for quite a while as is evidenced in this excellent history so wonderfully brought to life by Mr. Pietrusza.  The Republicans in 1948 were just as weak and concilliatory as they are today.  The next Republican candidate must read this book to better educate him/herself on the opponent's strategy:  Victory at all costs!