Pacific Express: The Critical Role of Military Logistics in World War II, Vol. III (Amphibious Operations in the South Pacific in WWII series)
From the Foreword "As the grandson of three World War II veterans, read this book and you will understand what it took to win this war and why the men and women who made it happen are called the Greatest Generation." --Dennis R. Blocker II, National LCI Association Historian, Pacific WarReviews for the SeriesMarine Corps LeagueOne real-life incident during World War II was the inspiration for the box office success Saving Private Ryan ....However, there is enough gripping drama, heroism, and heartbreak in McGee's almost encyclopedicThe Solomons Campaignsto supply Hollywood with material for a century....It is difficult to select what to excerpt from McGee s narrative, because his spare but effective style is as precise and economical as a Mickey Spillane novel....His narrative is copiously supplemented with photographs, tables, stats, command lists, and even official critiques of operations and lessons learned. He drew extensively on a variety of sources to tell the whole tale: records of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Navy, Marine, Army and Army Air Corps archives, Japanese records, veterans accounts, memoirs, and other histories of the campaigns. And, as with a good Spillane novel, his tale bears repeated readings. Edward ClineLibrary JournalMcGee has written the second of a three-volume set that will form a definitive account of naval, sea, and land operations in the South Pacific, where America s response to Pearl Harbor began.McGee's narrative coverage in this second volume is encyclopedic, providing concise details of operations, often on a daily basis. His introductory essay is an informative summary of events from 1931 to 1941 that illustrates how these events led up to World War II. An exhaustive list of sources and notes creates a solid background for a detailed but readable text. In addition to battle history, the book discusses logistics, tactics, and the deployment of forces. Most useful is the author s analysis of the campaigns ("Lessons Learned in the Solomons"). Numerous interviews and recollections of veterans bring in the war s human side, and a long list of military abbreviations and designations aids the reader, as do photos, maps, and charts.This work is a thoroughgoing historical record and analysis that historians and scholars will find invaluable.Recommended for academic and large public libraries and for specialized collections. David M. AlpersteinMidwest Book ReviewAmphibians Are Coming!is a deeply engaging biographical history of World War II ship-to-shore landing craft and their crews....A welcome and informative addition to personal, academic, and community library World War II history and reference collections.Leatherneck, Magazine of the MarinesAuthor William L. McGee's work [The Solomon's Campaigns] is intended to accomplish a mighty task: to encompass the entire Solomons campaigns in a single, detailed study.The result is a masterpiece. The indexes and appendices are the book's crown jewels.A great read worthy of any Marine s time and efforts. Capt. Scott E. UkeileyWWII HistoryThe Solomons Campaignsis a broad-ranging and informative study,a masterwork of extensive research, brisk prose, and convincing analysis.Sea ClassicsMcGee is no novice when it comes to writing. He has lived much of what he writes. Certainly one of the longest of the hard-fought Pacific battles, the six month campaign to secure these islands fills Volume II withenough dynamic action, derring-do, brutal horror and conflict to keep one on the edge of his chair for days on end.--Editorial Reviews