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Hi all,

Have you guys read "Midway" by Mitsuo Fuchida & Masatake Okumiya?

My friend Oleg (he is also avid UV player and posts here frequently) gave me
this book to read last week.

The authors are essentially saying that the 6 carrier force after Pearl
harbour was never properly used and that this was the greatest mistake Japan
ever made (after foolishly entering the war in the first place).


In "Authors Preface" of that book Masatake Okumiya writes:

"I am firmly convinced that the Pacific War was started by men who did not
understand the sea, and fought by men who did not understand the air. Had
there been better understanding of the sea and air, Japan would have pondered
more carefully the wisdom of going to war. And even if she had then decided
that no other course was possible, many of the blunders she made could have
been avoided. Because she judged the sea by land standards and applied to air
warfare the concepts of sea fighting Japan's tragic fate was foreordained."


IMHO, this brilliantly catches the true essence of WitP...



Leo "Apollo11"

Sounds like an interesting book.

Another good (but long..1100 pgs) book is John Toland's "The Rising Sun". For those here that haven't read it, it was written in 1970. The author has a Japanese wife and the book covers the period from the 1930's through 1945 from a Japanese perspective. He based much of the book on testimony of hundred's of soldier/sailor/flyers who survived the war and first hand accounts of the people and events of the period.
I think he made it clear that the Navy was against going to war with the US.

genda

Genda wrote:Sounds like an interesting book.

Another good (but long..1100 pgs) book is John Toland's "The Rising Sun". For those here that haven't read it, it was written in 1970. The author has a Japanese wife and the book covers the period from the 1930's through 1945 from a Japanese perspective. He based much of the book on testimony of hundred's of soldier/sailor/flyers who survived the war and first hand accounts of the people and events of the period.
I think he made it clear that the Navy was against going to war with the US.

genda

I read this book in a very short time...I was so darn good. One of the best books I've ever read.

Hi all,

Genda wrote:Sounds like an interesting book.

Another good (but long..1100 pgs) book is John Toland's "The Rising Sun". For those here that haven't read it, it was written in 1970. The author has a Japanese wife and the book covers the period from the 1930's through 1945 from a Japanese perspective. He based much of the book on testimony of hundred's of soldier/sailor/flyers who survived the war and first hand accounts of the people and events of the period.
I think he made it clear that the Navy was against going to war with the US.

genda

I read this book as well (few years ago).

It's great insight into Japanese side of the WitP and has good background
(especially good to learn all those things that happened in 1930's and were
true prelude to war)...

I, same as Dan "U2", consider this book very very good!


Leo "Apollo11"