Iwo Jima: World War II Veterans Remember the Greatest Battle of the Pacific

by Larry Smith

On February 19, 1945, nearly 70,000 American soldiers invaded a tiny volcanic island in the Pacific. Over the next 35 days, approximately 28,000 soldiers died, including nearly 22,000 Japanese and 6,821 Americans, making Iwo Jima one of the costliest battles of World War II. Best-selling oral historian Larry Smith dug deep for exclusive stories from Iwo Jima veterans, including the last surviving flag raiser on Mount Suribachi, a Navajo "code talker", a retired general, two Medal of Honor recipients, B-29 flyers, and other die-hard Marines who secured the island.

Along the way, Smith investigates the controversy surrounding the famous photograph by Joe Rosenthal and presents the groundbreaking story of Japanese General Tadamichi Kuribayashi, rumored to have committed suicide rather than submit to capture.

Iwo Jima is an unprecedented look at this pivotal battle and an inspiring study in courage, perseverance, and humanity.

Genres: History, World War II, Nonfiction, Military Fiction, War, Military History, Historical

Audible Audio

First published May 17, 2008

About the author

Larry Smith grew up on a farm south of Charlevoix near the area that became the setting for Smith's 1972 novel, The Original. After graduation from the University of Michigan with a degree in English in 1962, Smith began his newspaper career with The Wyoming Eagle in Cheyenne. He subsequently worked as a reporter and editor with five newspapers, including The New York Daily News and The New York Times. Smith says he was fortunate to discover the newspaper business at an early age because he was totally unsuited for anything else. He joined Parade Magazine in 1981, serving as managing editor there for 19 years before retiring in January 2001, when the magazine's circulation exceeded 32 million. His July 4, 2000 Parade article featuring nine Medal of Honor recipients led to Beyond Glory - Medal of Honor Heroes in Their Own Words, published by W.W. Norton, in 2002. The book features first-person accounts by six Medal of Honor recipients from World War II, seven from Korea and 11 from Vietnam, including Senator Daniel Inouye of Hawaii, Admiral James Stockdale and former Senator Bob Kerrey of Nebraska. The book led to his collaboration with Stephen Lang, and the rest is history. It was followed by From the Sands of two Jima to the Deserts of Iraq: The Few and The Proud - Marine Corps Drill Instructors in Their Own Words, a best-seller published in May of 2006 by W.W. Norton. Smith followed that with two Jima - World War Two Veterans Remember the Greatest Battle of the Pacific, published in 2008, which was also well received. Smith has run the New York City Marathon four times and climbed Mt. McKinley in Alaska and Mont Blanc in France, among other summits. He is a member of the Explorer's Club, and a former president of the Overseas Press Club of America. He and his wife Dorothea live on Block Island off the coast of Rhode Island. They have two daughters, Stacey and Jennifer.

Reviews

[Timothy Coplin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating firsthand recollections from the ranks, and all walks of civilian life. This has helped build an understanding of a portion of my grandfather's life, a man I never knew, through his service on Iwo with 3/21 Third Marine Division.

[Robert F. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I grew up surrounded by WW2 Marine Corps veterans. That is because my father was an active duty Marine aviator who led a squadron in the Solomons Campaign and continued on the staff of General Geiger, running the air campaign into the northern Solomon’s. I was steeped in the culture. I knew what it meant.

The personal stories of individual Marines, and others, in this book, are compelling, grafic and sometimes horrifying. The nature of the Pacific war was different than the European conflict in that it was a war of murderous attrition, fought for the most part in locations devoid of civilians until Okinawa. “Kill ‘em all” was the order of the day for both sides and both sides pursued that with abandon. It is hard to read this for long periods of time because the horror of it gets hard to take, much like WW1 details.

As a teenager, I sailed with an Iwo Jima vet years ago, one of only three men in his unit to survive unwounded or killed. I asked him late one night what it was like. As he told me things, I saw him transform before me to the young marine with the thousand yard stare as the memories came out, an experience I have never forgotten. This book mirrors that experience. Hard to read, but necessary if you want to know the truth of war and its’ horrors.

[John Sokolowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was stationed on LST 758 USS DUVAL COUNTY from 1966-1968. LST 758 was one of the landing ships used at Iwo Jima. Being a WW2 history buff and my Dad being a Navy PT Boat Veteran of the Mediterranean it draws me to these landings. This book did not fail my interest, it was wonderful because actual survivor stories fill the pages, Medal of Honor winners, Silver Star, Chaplains, private’s, etc. participated in the book.

[Jeff Launiere · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. Unfortunately, I never spoke to my dad about Iwo Jima. He never seemed to want to talk about his service, and I never brought it up. It was not until his death and during his celebration of life three marines showed up. Two came all the way from California, and not sure where the other came from. One was not happy that we did not have a real funeral for him, but he only wanted a celebration of life with family and friends. I spent a bit of time with them, but not what I wished due to having to spend time with everyone. They did go on to tell me that your dad was a real hero, with one saying your dad saved my life. I never found out what he did as I had to greet more people coming in, and did not get to speak to them again before they left. My dad Ray Launiere dropped out of high school to join the Marines during WW II, and landed on Iwo Jima on his 19th birthday. Quite a birthday party the marines gave him. I have recently had a real interest in Iwo Jima and have started reading many books. I picked up this one and found a chapter with Domenick Tutalo and realized that was a friend of my father who he fought with in Iwo Jima. I tried to find him in NJ, but found he had passed away several years ago. This book gave me at least an idea of what my dad went through as a demolitions man blowing up caves and pillboxes. It and other books have made me want to go to Iwo Jima. Loved this book, but painful for me to read. My mother said that during an Iwo Jima movie my dad balled, and now I understand why. These young men saw more and went through more than anyone should.

[Mark Mortensen · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book covers short chapters of 21 veterans, who fought and served on Iwo Jima. I wish the word Marine was always capitalized, however the testimony and bravery of all serves as important history to be preserved and never forgotten.

The summary chapter was written by Colonel John W. Ripley USMC (ret). Ripley did not serve at Iwo Jima but the decorated Vietnam combat Marine once served as Director of History and Museums, Marine Corps Iwo Jima, Then and Now. His final assessment and words are so bold and parotitic that I will never forget Ripley.

[Paul Kinzer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting first hand accounts of what happened on Iwo Jima in WWII, gives a real sense of what "ordinary" soldiers went through. This book is hard to rate, as there isn't much literary about them. It doesn't read with any flow, so must be read more in chunks. 2 stars for readability, 4 stars for content, so 3 stars average.

[Sophie Beth Pettigrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent interviews with clear reporting.

[Gerry Boocock · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good Historical source

Got rather lengthy, leaving one wondering about the value of some later chapters. Should have stuck with the marines who fought there.

[Julia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating, emotional.

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audiobook was a great listen!

[Kurtbg · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book follows the interview format often used by Stephen Ambrose.
The author collected first-hand accounts from survivors who served in
various capacities including infantry, gunners, medic, chaplain, and naval. The overlapping accounts from different positions provides a very helpful aid in weaving together the events that took place. I felt reading this gave me a good overall picture of Iwo Jima.

February 19, 194. The US assaulted a little island in the asia pacific held by the japanese. The importance of the isle for the US was to provide a safe landing for aircraft making runs to mainland Japan. Japan knew the isle could not be held, but that didn't stop them from fortifying the island against assault.

The japanese built caves & bunkers interconnected by tunnels throughout the isle. The uS bombed for seventy days with little affect.

The US landed and assaulted the isle with a force of 30,000 predominantly comprised of Marines. The marines hold this action as the definition of their raw courage and tenacity. The defenders
had bracketed the beach head and waited until a majority of attackers landed and then opened fire. The tunnels allowed the Japanese to flank and often get behind the attackers inflicting more damage.
The bunkers enabled them to drop out of sight when bombarded and pop up to attack. The US attackers had to adopt a door-to-door action taking on bunkers, caves, tunnels & nests with flamethrowers, grenades, bullets and sweat.

Much has been written about this event. The isle was volcanic and hot. Many Marines would heat rations and water by digging a shallow hole and letting them be naturally heated.

The fact that there were two flags raised is not often told.
The second was the one that provided the famous picture.

There were also interesting tidbits included about the head Japanese defender, Kuribayashi.

Twenty three years later in 1968 the isle was given back to Japan.
Many marines thought this was a dishonor to the nearly 28,000 allied
casualties, mostly US, who gave their lives to gain the island.

[Vishal · Rating 2 out of 5]

Iwo Jima: World War II Veterans the Greatest Battle of the Pacific, by Larry Smith, was a very unique book. Rather than having one person narrating the entire story, this book involves numerous accounts of war veterans discussing the Battle of Iwo Jima. It is very hard to judge this book because there were many different accounts in the book. Some of the stories were amazing, but others were a dry read.

I recommend this book to anyone who is really looking forward to learn more about the Pacific War and the Battle of Iwo JIma. This book provides with an abundance of information. I would like to point out that there are different views of the battle, but all of them have the same factual information. Overall, I enjoyed reading some of the stories in this book, but this isn't the most interesting book to read.

[Mick · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you enjoy reading about World War II and the fighting on Iwo Jima, this book is filled with interviews how veterans remember it. There are two reasons why Iwo was important. The main reason for the invasion was to provide emergency landing strips for the thousands of planes flyng the three thousand miles round trip from Tinian and Saipan.

The other reason for the invasion was to stop the radio transmission warning Tokyo that the bombers were coming. But was the loss of twenty-two thousand Japanese & seven thousand marines worth it? The author reports that prior to the seizure of Ito, seventy-seven B-29 Superfortresses were lost and that this number dropped off drastically once Iwo was captured.

[Louis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Early in the 21st century, when the veterans of World War II started to die in large numbers, Larry Smith met and interviewed several veterans of the Iwo Jima campaign for this enjoyable book. The subjects speak of their combat experience without adornment; while they do not regret anything, one of them says "it's nothing to brag about, taking a man's life." What these men did with their lives after the war is also interesting. The book loses a bit of its impact toward the end when it veers away from the veterans to talk about the island now. Otherwise, an excellent read for those of us who like reading about World War II.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

It takes a careful historian to put together a book like this; Larry Smith had the grace to "step out of the way" and let the Iwo veterans tell the story in their own words. Their numbers are dwindling, and memories are fading, which makes this collection of recollections so important.

Iwo Jima deserves a place on the book shelves of all Marines, and anyone else with a sincere interest in World War II.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very clinical look at a battle that rocked the U.S. The first hand accounts by survivors of Iwo Jima, are stories that should be read by anyone who wants some idea of just how the fog of war works. The only problem I had with the book was that aside from one very brief mention of atrocities being committed by American forces, all 'illegal' activities (when mentioned) are consigned to the Japanese forces.

[Sammy Duncan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I hoped this book was going to be an oral history in the van of Stephen Ambrose's "Band of Brothers" rather than a series of separate interviews. I must give it three stars, as the interviews were incredible and add to the history of the Battle of Iwo Jima but I believe the veterans would have been better served to have their stories told as a narrative of the battle. This is my opinion and we all know about opinions.

[Sherrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an excellent oral history of the battle of Iwo Jima. It features interviews with nearly two dozen former soldiers, exploring every aspect of the battle. This is the 5th book that I've read about the battle, and I found it to be outstanding, second only to Bradley's "Flags of our Fathers".

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love oral history. There's nothing like listening to war stories from those that were really there. This book on Iwo Jima is a series of interviews with vets from that horrible battle in 1945. Many can not believe we turned the island back over to the Japanese. So many stories of heroism on the Sulfur Island....you wonder how men can summon such courage.

[Marci · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a collection of stories from men who participated in the battle of Iwo Jima. There were some really interesting and riveting stories and some that I couldn't wait to get through. The author's comments were often insightful but also frequently pointless.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book contains in-depth stories told to the author by men and women who were there and actively involved in the action one way or another. I love World War II history and this book was no disappointment.

[Lucas · Rating 3 out of 5]

The narrator takes on different speaking styles for each section which is something I haven't encountered before. I'm not sure if there is any real connection to how the sources spoke, but some of the voices get repeated a few times through after he runs out of characterizations.

[Maureen]

A really wonderful account with interviews of 22 surviving Marines who fought there. 28,000 Marines lost their lives in 36 days of intense fighting - almost 1/3 of all Marines lost in WWII died on Iwo Jima.

For history buffs this is well worth reading.

[Doug · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an interesting collection of interviews with the men who fought on Iwo Jima and the pilots who benefited from the battle's result. There is little about planning or strategy other than what was seen by these individuals. Still an interesting set of recollections.

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reflections from interviews with some of the remaining survivors of the assault on Iwo Jima. Fascinating and amazing. I don't think that I could have ever done that. The heroism of the common soldier is simply incomprehensible.

[Jeff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well presented set of personal accounts by Marines who fought on Iwo Jima. Definitely helps put a lot of what went on into perspective, especially all the controversy about the flag raising. Worth the read.

[Heather Southard · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can't put it down... first-hand accounts bring it home and to the heart.

[Shelby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Factually informative and compelling first-person narratives from combat veterans. Only ding is the lack of overall narrative inherent with an oral histories.

[Del · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent compilation of first hand accounts of the battle for the island of Iwo Jima. Painful to read, yet so inspiring as well.

Listened to the unabridged audiobook on Audible.com.

[Justin Askins · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book had some great stories told by a veteran who fought in iwo jima.
But i didnt finish the book .