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Rating: 
Summary: Naval and Military History of the Highest Quality
Review: ...
For a multitude of reasons, this book can be considered the best of the 15 volumes in this series - and that's high praise considering the quality of research and writing throughout Morison's masterpiece. A prior reviewer stated a number of sound reasons why such an assessment should be accepted, and I will not reiterate them. If the student of military history is interested in understanding why the war in the Pacific has been correctly described as having been fought "on a shoestring" in terms of men and materiel, however, no single text in my memory brings the subject home with greater eloquence, or provides such a wealth of depth and detail, than does this volume of Morison's. Before the Pacific Fleet could roll across the watery eastern boundaries of the Greater East Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere, and stand on the Japanese doorstep with Operation Downfall in train, the enemy's offensive operations had to be decisively broken. Here we see a superb and economical detailing of the ways in which limited resources were matched against strategic exigencies by commanders whose work can only be described as plain damned operational genius. Here you will find the turning point of World War II in the Pacific. The battles of Coral Sea and Midway were wholly defensive in nature, as was the Guadalcanal campaign. It was only in the breaking of the Bismarks Barrier that the United States and our allies truly went over to the offensive, ensuring not only that Imperial Japan could not win the war but that the Empire's defeat was absolutely inevitable. No one has yet done a better job of making this picture plain than has Morison's research and writing team, and here you will find the finest single example of their work.
Rating: 
Summary: The Island Hopping Campaign Begins
Review: After the successful capture of Guadalcanal, the United States forces began to drive up the Solomon chain and into the Bismarcks. Rather than attacking each island individually, it became the policy of the United States to "hop" over some of the islands, thus leaving the defending Japanese to "wither on the vine". In effect, they were completely cut off from reinforcement and resupply. An excellent example of this tactic was employed against the great Japanese base at Rabaul. With over 100,000 Japanese troops defending the area, the Americans simply captured the islands surrounding Rabaul and strangled it to death. This excellent work by Samuel Eliot Morison tells the heroic tale of the battles fought in and around the Bismarcks. Some of these battles included the battle of the Bismarck Sea, where the Japanese lost a dozen ships, thousands of men, and a large amount of aircraft, while the Americans lost only 5 planes. Admiral Yamamoto's last flight is told in vivid detail, and the other invasions are brought to life, as well. Interestingly, this campaign was fought largely without aircraft carriers. Destroyers, Cruisers, and PT boats helped win the day for the Americans. As with other volumes in this series, this book contains helpful charts and maps to help the reader. I knew very little about this particular area of the Pacific campaign, but Morison's book opened a new chapter in the Pacific for me. I highly recommend this book. Its very helpful in describing the beginning of the long road toward Tokyo and final victory.
Rating:
Summary: The Island Hopping Campaign Begins
Review: After the successful capture of Guadalcanal, the United States forces began to drive up the Solomon chain and into the Bismarcks. Rather than attacking each island individually, it became the policy of the United States to "hop" over some of the islands, thus leaving the defending Japanese to "wither on the vine". In effect, they were completely cut off from reinforcement and resupply. An excellent example of this tactic was employed against the great Japanese base at Rabaul. With over 100,000 Japanese troops defending the area, the Americans simply captured the islands surrounding Rabaul and strangled it to death. This excellent work by Samuel Eliot Morison tells the heroic tale of the battles fought in and around the Bismarcks. Some of these battles included the battle of the Bismarck Sea, where the Japanese lost a dozen ships, thousands of men, and a large amount of aircraft, while the Americans lost only 5 planes. Admiral Yamamoto's last flight is told in vivid detail, and the other invasions are brought to life, as well. Interestingly, this campaign was fought largely without aircraft carriers. Destroyers, Cruisers, and PT boats helped win the day for the Americans. As with other volumes in this series, this book contains helpful charts and maps to help the reader. I knew very little about this particular area of the Pacific campaign, but Morison's book opened a new chapter in the Pacific for me. I highly recommend this book. Its very helpful in describing the beginning of the long road toward Tokyo and final victory.
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