Battle of Midway

by Ira Peck

War news from the Pacific the summer of 1942 was not good. Less than six months after Pearl Harbor, Corregidor, the last U.S. stronghold in the Philippines, surrendered to the enemy. Now the Japanese navy dominated the seas from the western Pacific to the Indian Ocean. When would they attack California or Oregon or Washington? And while we waited and worried, the Japanese were secretly mounting the most powerful naval force in history. Their not the West Coast, but Midway, a small U.S. naval base far out in the Pacific. Why did the Japanese want it so badly? And what could the U.S. do, with their Pacific fleet, to keep strategic Midway out of enemy hands?

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Naval History

151 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1976

Reviews

[Jeffrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short book, read it for fun after watching the new Midway movie.

[Andy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was the first history book I ever read of my own choosing. I think my brother bought it at a book fair when I was in fourth grade. I must have read this book three or four times, and afterwards I spent my time in the WWII section of our library instead of in the children's section. It would be hard to review the book after 35 years, but I do remember how vividly he described the battle scenes. The Japanese Zeros swarming and chasing the unescorted American torpedo bombers was frightening to read as you knew what would inevitably occur. Of course the battle concluded as a rousing victory for the American navy and a turning point in the War in the Pacific. But what truly makes this book so great is the path it put me on towards loving good history.

[Ken · Rating 3 out of 5]

The most fascinating part of this book was when the Japanese leadership en route to Midway were playing war games to determine what the outcome might be. They picked a scenario in which the US knew that they were coming, rolled the dice and found that they would take massive losses, and decided to ignore this result.

[Sean · Rating 4 out of 5]

I purchased this when I was in grade-school, back when I was a war-nerd and I really liked the cover art.

I think I still have this one, tucked away in a box in the loft.

From what I can remember, it's a pretty good overview of that historic battle between the U.S. Navy and the Japanese forces. I'll have to read it again, as I've forgot a lot of the details now.

[Cws]

WW2-Pec