Skeeter Beaters: Memories of the South Pacific, 1941-1945

by Dennis Cline

Throughout the course of the Second World War in the Pacific, one hundred times as many U.S. servicemen were disabled by disease rather than as a result of hostile action with the Japanese. One of the deadliest diseases encountered was malaria--a vector borne disease that even today kills as many as 3 million people worldwide every year. It is the war against malaria, along with the impact it had on military operations and personnel, that provides the backdrop for the story of Bob Michel and his time with the "Skeeter Beaters"--a small unit of U.S. Navy entomologists, doctors, and Pharmacist Mates whose efforts directly impacted the outcome of the war in the Pacific. This is the war in the South Pacific as it really happened--the day-to-day struggles with disease, twelve-inch poisonous centipedes, poisonous snakes, starvation and the unrelenting Japanese forces. With a renewed interest in the Second World War and the 60th Anniversary of the Guadalcanal campaign, "Skeeter Beaters" provides a unique look at a small piece of our history heretofore never detailed. After experiencing the Pacific War of Bob Michel and the Skeeter Beaters, one may likely say, "I never knew that before?."

360 pages, Paperback

First published December 15, 2002

Reviews

[Erin Lonneman · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting read that any WWII buff would probably enjoy. Learning about how malaria effected troops in the war, and what they did to combat it was fascinating. I enjoyed that many different peoples perspectives was included. The first half of the book was harder for me to get into, it was slower, but did do a decent job setting everything up

[Sandra (FL) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book by accident. I saw the cover and recognized the picture from my father's WWII memorabilia. He's in the cover photo, so I am biased. The Skeeter Beaters are unsung heroes -- the war in the Pacific would have had far more casualties without them. Author Dennis Cline was so moved by the story, he created a malaria-relief organization in their name. Much of the information is anecdotal, and memories differ, but all in all, it is an excellent snapshot of a very important time in our history.

[Jwt Jan50 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written, well researched and well interviewed. My father in law spent most of a year on Guadalcanal flying B-24s and I've read a fair amount of the historical/personal literature. Lots of good detail here for those looking to know what day to day existence was like there. I use to play bridge with another B-24 aircrewman who eventually got invalided home because of the malaria. Anybody out there who knows when we actually started airborne spraying of the DDT, especially in the Southwest Pacific Theater, I'd appreciate the reference.