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Summary: Easily the best I've read on this pivotal battle!
Review: Perhaps the definitive account of Midway. An absolutely masterful combination of historical research and gripping personal testimony. This one is made all the more interesting from its Japanese perspective. Fuchida's account of Akagi's destruction (with him on board!) reveals the horror of America's dive bombing attack and the fury of high explosives. This one is a must read! For more reviews see the "WWII Aviation Booklist" http://www.ampsc.com/~prophet/booklist.htm
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Summary: The Sleeping Giant awakens and strikes back!
Review: Reading the account of Midway through the eyes of the Japanese opponent, and a key individual at that, is truly a must read for any serious student of the Pacific war. There are many books that cover the turning of the tide against the Japanese from the US point of view and worth reading, but this is the one to have a companion to any and all of them. To hear the recounting through Japanese eyes of the initial and unsuccessful aerial assaults from Midway land-based aircraft and the torpedo squadrons from Yorktown, Enterprise and Hornet is truly captivating. To see how and why it gave rise to feeling of virtual invincibility on the part of the Japanese until the unchallenged dive bombers from Enterprise and Yorktown attacked is a fine study of Japanese tactics and dogma. The dive bombers deadly success in knocking out three of the four Japanese carriers in scant moments when they had sailed undamaged from the hail of US attacks for hours is described virtually bomb by bomb. The authors describe this from the deckplates in riveting style recounting actual conversations and feelings as the pride of the Japanese Navy was suddenly aflame and suffering death throes. I have reread this part of the book many times and been spellbound each time as the events play out. These particular passages and those describing the logic leading to delays in launching aircraft and switching of ordnance make this book unique and extremely worthwhile. The rest of the book is chockfull of key insights and details as well making it a mandatory part of any serious collection. The publishers deserve credit for realizing this and keeping it in print for so many years. One of its strengths is its readability despite those years. True, the breaking of the Imperial Navy code allowed the three US carriers to be in a position to challenge the Japanese attempt to take Midway. But no codebreaking on our part substitutes for the final critical moments when both carrier forces were aware of each other and sent their best aviators to slug it out. The fourth carrier, which survived the devastating carrier dive bomber attacks, met its end later at the hands of a second strike by US carrier aircraft, but not before the surviving Japanese aircraft heavily damaged Yorktown in their last assault. The results of this battle were kept from the Japanese public and much of the military for years. It pierced the supposed invincibility of the Samurai spirit while giving the US a turning point victory and continued possession of the vital Midway atoll. I applaud the authors for their willingness to examine the Japanese defeat in detail and make no apologies or excuses.
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Summary: Gripping account of the day the IJN died...
Review: The author actually covers much wider ground than his title suggests - before proceeding to Midway he gives a detailed account of the campaigns leading up to it, starting before Pearl Harbor. This is interesting reading in itself.His orders of battle are useful too, including the revelation that the carrier Soryu had 2 Judies aboard as fast recons, which I hadn't heard before. This is the kind of detail I like. The IJN lost 47% of its aircraft carrier tonnage at Midway, which makes it the Trafalgar of the carrier age. Fuchida still feels the pain. Definitely a recommended read, and it's well translated too. One of Fuchida's less perceptive comments does rather stick in my mind. Writing in around 1950, he comments that his country has been completely laid low by military defeat, and he is deeply pessimistic about Japan's prospects in a world dominated by the huge economic muscle of the victors. The Japanese are, after all, he muses, a nation of craftsmen and artisans - they'll never get the hang of this massive-industrial-output lark! Yeah, right! -- but fortunately his naval analysis skills are miles better than his futurology!
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Summary: It was really intreging and accurate.
Review: This book is filled with details and is accurate. I think that if anybody is interested in World War II and the way that it was changed in the battle for the Picific Ocean should read it.
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Summary: BEST BOOK ON MIDWAY FROM JAPANESE EYES!
Review: This book provides a quite open view of the battle of Midway from the Japanese viewpoint as seen after "all the facts were in." - The author seems to provide more useful information in this little paperback than do much larger hardbacks. The account is fascinating, rich in Japanese detail, well described, and goes into a what-went-wrong and why reasoning as each episode unveils itself. If you want to read about the battle of Midway in the Pacific War, this is the first book you should read.
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Summary: A different perspective on the pivotal battle.
Review: This is a first person account of the battle that turned the war in the Pacific. Fuchida details the state of mind of the Japanese Navy and how their over confidence lead to their defeat. It is well written and provides a very unique perspective on the battle.
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Summary: The Battle of Midway as seen by the Japanese--powerful!
Review: This is a splendid analysis of the Battle of Midway as seen from the Japanese side. The authors had firsthand knowledge of the plans, actions, mistakes, strengths, and weaknesses of the Imperial Japanese Navy in connection with the Battle of Midway, and they pull no punches telling us about the battle. The Battle of Midway turned the tide of the Pacific War for all time against Japan, as an outnumbered and outmatched, but plucky, U.S. Navy inflicted a devastating defeat on the greatest carrier force ever assembled up to that time. This book goes far in explaining how this miracle took place. The authors tell us about the dithering of the Japanese commander as to whether to strike Midway again, or to strike the American fleet, or do a hasty strike against the American fleet before all his planes were recovered--and how this indecision helped lose a battle that almost could not be lost. So too did the sloppiness of the deck crews, who stacked bombs and torpedos carelessly on the decks of the carriers as the Admiral kept changing his mind--this ordinance of course exploded when the American dive bombers attacked, ensuring that three Japanese carriers went to the bottom, rather than having a chance of surviving through damage control. The book is filled with excellent details like this. The authors also do a fine job explaining the motivations and outlooks of the Japanese leaders, including the great famed Admiral Yamamoto--who evidently reacted to the Doolittle Raid by pushing for the attack on Midway. This key decision signed Japan's death warrant as regards the Pacific war. Had Japan instead turned west and attacked Russia, this could have changed the entire complexion of the war, as Germany might have prevailed against Russia, forcing the US to divert even more resources in its "Germany First" policy. The authors reveal how close Japan may have been to adopting this strategy. This book impresses the reader not just with the mistakes the Japanese made, but also of the tenacity, skill, and competence of the former Japanese foe. The book was written in the early 1950s and the authors' viewpoints are somewhat overly colored by the aftermath of defeat--Japan had not yet shaken off the trauma of defeat and this pessimism about Japan's prospects is readily apparent. I trust the authors lived to see that in reality the Japanese people won, not lost, the war by becoming a prosperous and democratic economic powerhouse. Incidentally, it appeared clear to me that the movie "Battle of Midway" with Henry Fonda was essentially based on this book. This is a fine analysis of the most important battle of the Pacific War and constitutes essential reading for anyone who wishes to understand the Battle of Midway and the reasons that Japan was defeated in both the battle and the war.
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Summary: A view from the other side
Review: This is quite a short book that was written by two Japanese one who was a flyer from the Akagi. Although a book of a little over 200 pages the book describes the attack on Pearly Harbour, the cruise of the Japanese carrier fleet in the Indian Ocean and the attack on Sri Lanka, the bombing of Darwin, the battle of the Coral Sea and Midway. The facts around these battles have been explained in a range of other books so that there are no real surprises. What is of interest is the insight that the book gives into the process of Japanese decision making during the war. The authors show that following the victory at Pearl Harbour the Japanese didn't know what to do. The cruise to the Indian Ocean achieved little and used a large amount of their oil reserves. The overall command simply was not able to formulate a plan. Some groups thought of invading Darwin a plan which was shelved. In the end the attack on Midway was decided on. Such a plan put the Japanese miles from home at a considerable disadvantage. The authors go on to show how the arrogance and self-confidence in that attack doomed the Japanese fleet. The failure to properly use sighting planes, the leaving of large numbers of aircraft on deck prior to the American attack. The book is one of the most coherent attacks on the reputation of Yamamoto that I have read. For some reason Yamamoto has had a high reputation with American writers. The record shows that although Pearl Harbor went to plan it was all down hill after that. The book is readable and evokes the frustration of felt by Japanese fighting men at the shortcomings of their leaders.
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Summary: A look at the other side of this battle
Review: This was a truly good view at the other side of this battle from the viewpoint of the author. There are a lot of details given and statements made as to the competence of the upper echelon of Japanese military command. I do question the ability of this author to make this many detailed judgements. Also, there are numerous footnotes that call into question the details of the story as given by the author. All in all though, it was a good view of the battle from someone who was there. Read this book, but do so with a critical eye.
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Summary: Better to see Japanese side's story rather the US side's
Review: Why? This was a battle organized by the Japanese admirals. They chose the time & place. Yet, they suffered from a huge loss because of some false assumptions. US job was decoded the Japanese's code and planed an ambush, as Jack Flecther put it, 'Strike, repeat Strike'. The book tell the story of the whole Japanese preparation/psychology before/during/after the in a really terse and yet informative way. The reasons for a 4 stars instead of a 5 stars from me are:
1. It doesn't has as much detail map of the battle as some of the other books has. Hence, it is difficult to track what happen to different task forces.
2. It doesn't cover the Japanese naval warfare's design & tactics as detail as I hoped. Fortunely, these topics are covered by another book, Kaigun, by the same publisher, Naval Institute.
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