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To the Bitter End: The Japanese Defeat at Buna and Gona, 1942-43
All Australians have heard of Kokoda – but the battles of Buna and Gona, which immediately followed that campaign, were equally as bloody and important.
They were fought on coastal plains rather than in the mountains – but the Japanese had had time to fortify their positions, and the swamps were an additional formidable obstacle to the Australians.
The Australians bore the brunt of the fighting on the ground: in fact, Blamey refused MacArthur's offer of more US troops, saying he wanted Australians, as he knew they would fight. Serious questions are raised over the efficiency of the US air power – the Japanese were still able to run convoys out of Rabaul, despite the US claims.
By the end of the campaign, the Japanese had either fled or been killed, and the Australians were absolutely at the end of their reserves. There are tales of great heroism – on both sides. And there are stories of blunders and inefficiencies on the allied side, and barbarism on the part of some Japanese.
'To the Bitter End is a great book from an author already distinguished for an attention to detail which gives this work a freshness which belies that it is half a century since the awful days of which he writes'
Canberra Times
They were fought on coastal plains rather than in the mountains – but the Japanese had had time to fortify their positions, and the swamps were an additional formidable obstacle to the Australians.
The Australians bore the brunt of the fighting on the ground: in fact, Blamey refused MacArthur's offer of more US troops, saying he wanted Australians, as he knew they would fight. Serious questions are raised over the efficiency of the US air power – the Japanese were still able to run convoys out of Rabaul, despite the US claims.
By the end of the campaign, the Japanese had either fled or been killed, and the Australians were absolutely at the end of their reserves. There are tales of great heroism – on both sides. And there are stories of blunders and inefficiencies on the allied side, and barbarism on the part of some Japanese.
'To the Bitter End is a great book from an author already distinguished for an attention to detail which gives this work a freshness which belies that it is half a century since the awful days of which he writes'
Canberra Times
327 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1992
22 people want to read
About the author
Lex McAulay
88 books4 followersAlexander "Lex" Hugh David McAulay was an Australian Army serviceman and veteran of the Vietnam War. He authored a dozen books, including six on World War II.
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March 12, 2014
Absolutely brilliant! Covers a very important gap in Australian military history and puts the importance of the beach head battles into context. They were amongst the bloodiest fought during WW2 and Lex MacAulay's writing really goes along way towards understanding the grittiness and horror of these battles.
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