Midway 1942: Turning Point in the Pacific

Osprey Campaign #30

by Mark Healy

Osprey's Campaign title for one of the most important naval battles in the history of World War II (1939-1945), Midway, which was fought barely six months after the devastating Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. The badly damaged USS Yorktown was repaired in just 48 hours and with Enterprise and Hornet set out to meet the Japanese. In a battle marked by great heroism on both sides the United States dealt a devastating blow to the Imperial Japanese Fleet sinking four of her most powerful carriers. In this superbly illustrated volume Mark Healy tells the whole story; espionage, daring, luck and extreme heroism. A fascinating read supplemented by genuine photographs of the battle in progress.

Genres: History, World War II, Military History

96 pages, Hardcover

First published January 27, 1993

Reviews

[Dimitri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Exactly the lightweight you need before watching the new Midway movie in theatres... But dated now that Graig Symonds' Shattered Sword dominates the field.

P.S. Anti CGI reviewers begone, this film is awesome! We even get a better Pearl Harbour in 15 minutes than Michael Bay managed to fill 2.5 hours with!

[Anibal · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book provides one of the best introductions to the Battle of Midway. Although it is slightly dated, it effectively covers the main details of the strategy behind the battle, the Japanese attack on Midway and the diversionary attack on the Aleutian Islands, how the battle was fought, and its consequences. The writing style is slightly pro-American, which was typical in the nineties, but this does not affect the book's academic significance.

The importance of the Doolittle raid, and the limited Japanese manpower forced the Japanese to take immediate action, leading to a strategy that failed in most of its assumptions. The book details the leaders and their initial strategies, the Intelligence and communication advantages by the US, the reconnaissance phase, the engagement itself, and the consequences of the battle. The author acknowledges the frailties of the Japanese training system, where all experienced pilots were on the battle front, and the catastrophic loss of almost all pilots from the Akagi, Kaga, Soryu, and Hiryu, which changed the Japanese offensive war to a defensive one.

The book is heavily illustrated with art and pictures, including useful maps and bird's eye views of the engagement (attack on Midway, sinking of the Akagi, sinking of the Yorktown). Although it does not include the double-page artworks typically found in Osprey's Campaign series, it still provides a comprehensive overview of the battle.

[Feiraco · Rating 4 out of 5]

This Osprey 'Campaign' book does what it usally does: providing a great, compact (about 90 pages) description of a battle. The one in 1942 around Midway in this case. There is the usual build-up, the commanders, the plans, the arms, etc. All accompanied by many pictures and some great maps. I always use a Osprey book as top-down approach to learn more about a certain event along the way. And that always serves the case. The first edition was printed in 1993 and mine in 2009/2010, but it does not always feel very up-to-date and does have it flaws. Statistics and time stamps of certain events are mentioned several times in the book but sometimes differ. There were many different small sorties of mainly US planes which sometimes combined with others to make an attack. It's sometimes difficult to follow which group was were at what moment. Overall the editing could have been better as some content is repeated two or three times in the book. There are great drawings of the area, the carriers, and the planes, but many pictures could have been presented in a more modern style. At the conclusion I find the author a bit pro-American near the end although I think he is British. He describes the Japanese basically as 'naive' and the Americans as 'brave', while referring to the popular term 'Pearl'. Overall, a great book to start to learn about the battle. But it could use an update.

[Hunter Ross · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent summary of one of the world's greatest military victories. What the US did with Yorktown, how fast they repaired it, got it ready to fight and then again at Midway was insane. The use of intelligence and radar trumped the much better equipped and more experienced Japanese. Brilliant victory.

[Frances · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent concise view of the battle. Ninety pages of very detailed information. It presents the Japanese side as well as the American. Loaded with photos and diagrams. An excellent guide to the battle.

[Andres · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book as an intro to the battle at Midway. For being just under 100 pages of text, pictures, and illustrations, it gives you a great overview of the events and players involved. I guess I'm really a fat book kind of guy because while I learned a lot, I know lots of details were left out and I'm eager to read a couple of door-stoppers to fill in all the gaps.

[Rick Parent · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this was the one I read way back when - a good read about the strategy and tactics of a critical sea encounter

[Teufel Wolf · Rating 4 out of 5]

The earlier books and movies on midway don't really get into how the IJN carriers turned into floating crematoriums after being hit by dive bombers.