Ian W. Toll

A great conclusion to the Pacific War Trilogy, this book covers just a year of time but is the longest of the books- Toll explains in his Forward that he wanted to get in material he had left out of the previous books, focused on things like the home front, politics in the US and Japan, the submarine actions of the war, etc.

Toll is a great writer, with the perfect blend of flowery prose and precise explication for a popular work of non-fiction. I rate this book a half star below the other two just because this volume seems a bit bloated- it seems like every time the battleships bombard an island prior to an amphibious invasion, he hauls out a slightly different version of the same observation, that "it's hard to imagine how anyone could survive such an awesome display of power". And there's time spent on unnecessary detail- I don't think we need to know where everyone stood for the signing ceremony ending the war.

But overall it's great, and a fast read in spite of it's length. Highly recommended (but read the first two books first)… (més)

Read this book every morning during the summer of 2023 during our epic move in the camper. Part 2 of 3 of the trilogy following Pacific Crucible. Excellent account and thoroughly enjoyable read about America's conquest across the Pacific. Detailed individual accounts on the ground and on ship mixed in with thorough details of strategy in Washington and Pearl Harbor and in Tokyo. Thorough research was conducted on both sides to show how the US's advance in the Pacific demoralized the Japanese forces and the civilians at home on the main land. Does a great job explaining the crucial role of logistics and its obvious impact on the ultimate outcome of the wary. Highly recommend this trilogy to anyone interested in the Pacific theater of WWII.… (més)

Book 2 of the Pacific War Trilogy- just as great as book 1. This covers the period from Guadalcanal to the Battle of the Philippine Sea. At the start, the US has already had its great victory at Midway, but has yet to start taking back any territory captured by Japan in the first weeks of the war.
Guadalcanal is in the Solomon Islands, and the key airfield there was taken by the US rather easily, but the ensuing months were a lengthy battle to hold it against Japanese air strikes, naval barrages, and troops from elsewhere on the island. The US troops were inadequately supplied and the outcome was very much in doubt.

That was mid to late 1942. By 1944, though, the US war machine is at full throttle and the die is fully cast- Japan can't keep up and its position is more and more hopeless with each passing month.

Toll does a great job explaining the details. I wouldn't have minded more maps though. Looking forward to book 3 next.… (més)