History Smashers: Pearl Harbor

History Smashers #3

by Kate Messner, Dylan Meconis (Illustrator)

Myths! Lies! Secrets! Uncover the hidden truth behind the infamous Pearl Harbor attack with beloved educator/author Kate Messner. The fun mix of sidebars, illustrations, photos, and graphic panels make this perfect for fans of I Survived! and Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales.On December 7, 1941, the Japanese launched a completely unpredictable attack on the U.S. Navy base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Right? Well, that's not quite the real deal. Some military experts had suggested that Pearl Harbor was a likely target. There were other warning signs, too, but nobody paid much attention. From the first wave of the Japanese bombers to the United States' internment of thousands of Japanese Americans, acclaimed author Kate Messner smashes history by exploring the little-known truths behind the story of Pearl Harbor and its aftermath.Don't miss History The Mayflower and Women's Right to Vote

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Middle Grade, Childrens, Graphic Novels, Historical, World War II

238 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 1, 2020

About the author

Kate Messner is an award-winning author, TED 2012 speaker, and former middle school English teacher. Her books for kids include THE BRILLIANT FALL OF GIANNA Z.,SUGAR AND ICE, and EYE OF THE STORM (Walker/Bloomsbury Dec. 2010) the MARTY MCGUIRE series (Scholastic), SEA MONSTER'S FIRST DAY, and OVER AND UNDER THE SNOW (Chronicle, Books). Kate also wrote SPITFIRE and CHAMPLAIN AND THE SILENT ONE, both Lake Champlain historical novels published by North Country Books.

Kate lives with her family on Lake Champlain, where she loves to read, write, hike, swing on birch trees, and eat chocolate. She also hangs out in various places online.
Visit Kate's website: http://www.katemessner.com

Find Kate on Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/KateMessner

...or follow her on Twitter - @katemessner

Reviews

[Darla · Rating 4 out of 5]

As I write this review, Pearl Harbor Day is just two days away. Each year, my husband (a former Marine) is diligent to remind our family of the significance of this "day which shall live in infamy."
This new History Smashers book will be a popular one for middle grade readers. It is a blend of facts, photos and graphics that will keep the reader engaged while they are learning. Having read a wide range of books (many historical fiction) about World War II, there was not much in this book that I was not aware of. I have also visited the memorial when we were in Oahu in 2009, but had forgotten about the oil situation. It also surprised me that Messner contends that only Japanese Americans were interned during WW II as I have read several sources regarding camps for German and Italian Americans. Two examples are 'The Diplomat's Daughter' by Karin Tanabe and 'The Last Year of the War' by Susan Meissner. The book includes a timeline, note from the author, and extensive bibliography as well as an excerpt from the first History Smashers book about the Mayflower. Hand this book to kids who love Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales and the I Survived series (novels and graphics).

Thank you to Random House Children's and NetGalley for a DRC in exchange for an honest review.

[Manybooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even though many of us would probably prefer and even desire both world and more local history to be simple and straight forward, well, this is hardly ever the case, as history generally exists with multiple and often contradictory, even competing scenarios and points of view to explore and to consider. And yes, with the third book of the History Smashers series, with Pearl Harbor (2021), Kate Messner (text) and Dylan Meconis (illustrations) offer to their readers (from the age of circa eight/nine to twelve, but frankly, Pearl Harbor is also more than suitable for older readers, for teenagers and adults as well) a vast array, a plethora of truths and facts, but also and equally very many to be shattered, to smashed and destroyed myths about the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour (Honolulu, Hawaii on December 7, 1941), weeding out and discrediting untrue or only partially true stories that may inadvertently have been absorbed and considered as being the truth through popular culture, media, innuendo and rumour.

And first and foremost, Pearl Harbor challenges and indeed then totally shreds to proverbial smithereens the belief that the attack on Pearl Harbor was somehow entirely unexpected and came out of nowhere, with Messner textually and Meconis illustratively describing and demonstrating how Japan opened up to the outside world following an 1853 confrontation with Commodore Matthew Perry of the U.S. Navy, eventually militarising and searching for more and more foreign conquests and territorial expansion, whilst at the same time, while concurrently and after years of colonialism, the United States was becoming increasingly isolationist, wary of becoming entangled in foreign countries and their conflicts and affairs, and how after the background to the Second World War on both the European and Asian fronts is depicted and briefly analysed in Pearl Harbor the attack on Pearl Harbor itself is then shown by Kate Messner's words and Dylan Meconis' artwork to have occurred after a series of miscommunications and mistaken assumptions by both the USA and Japan.

And yes, the subsequent mass imprisonment in concentration camps of Japanese Americans is also and more than adequately (and with personally appreciated author lead criticism and condemnation) addressed in Pearl Harbor, highlighting and demonstrating clearly and without lame excuses horrid and absolutely vile injustices and basic human rights violations perpetrated by the USA against their own citizens and immigrants of Japanese background (by White Anglo Saxon Protestant American politicians and also by White Anglo Saxon Protestant Americans in general) totally, absolutely because of racism, because of xenophobia, paranoia and fear (although that I as a landed immigrant to Canada do take more than a bit of umbrage at the fact that there is in Pearl Harbor neither one word penned by Kate Messner nor one image drawn by Dylan Meconis concerning the mass imprisonment of Japanese Canadians during WWII and that there is also no mention at all how Canada has not done nearly as much regarding compensation and apologising for our mass internment of Japanese Canadians as the USA has done about their mass internment of Japanese Americans, and yes, this is most definitely something that in my humble opinion does certainly and indeed need pointing out).

Generally presenting WWII history through an enlightening blend of engaging narrative, graphics, black-and-white illustrations, graphic novel interludes and photographs, Messner with Pearl Harbor explains complex issues in a way that is accessible to young readers and with Dylan Meconis' pictures providing a very nice visual mirror (although a bit too dark for my eyes and also sometimes a bit blurry) and using occasional sidebars (on subjects like the history of Hawaii, how radar works, women at war and the question of whether all of Japan supported the attack on Pearl Harbour) to provide helpful background and extra information, and not to mention that wartime contributions by African Americans, Native Americans and Japanese Americans are also described (albeit simply and not really all that intensively), and with the suggestions for further reading (both books and websites) along with the detailed sources Kate Messner provides moving my rating for Pearl Harbor to a solidly four star reading experience (and that the only reason for my rating of Pearl Harbor not being five stars is that I do definitely and sadly consider Messner not mentioning in Pearl Harbor that Japanese Canadians were also interned a rather major and also a problematic oversight and quite strange omission).

[Chan Fry · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my second History Smashers book, so I kind of knew what to expect this time. Still, it was thorough (for a children’s book), informative, and written well. Messner did a good job with this one too, though I still enjoyed Women’s Right To Vote much more.

(I wrote a longer review for my website.)

[Alex Baugh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading History Smashers: Pearl Harbor, made me realize that I've read and reviewed a lot of books about the events of December 7, 1941, but most of them were novels - good novels but fiction nevertheless. Amazingly, I've never read a nonfiction book about Pearl Harbor for this blog, so I was pleased to read this new book by Kate Messner from her series History Smashers.
Messner takes a look not only at the facts surrounding the attack on Pearl Harbor, but also looks at some of the myths and legends that have circulated ever since. And she begins at the beginning, debunking the popular idea that the attack "happened completely out of the blue, with no warning and nothing to suggest there might be trouble." By carefully and succinctly looking at Japanese history from 1853, when Commodore Matthew Perry led an expedition to try to open up isolationist Japan to trade with other countries, Messner shows how opening this small island country led to its desire for more land and more natural resources, eventually leading to the invasion of Manchuria and China in the 1930s.

Following Germany's lead, Japan also set her sites on islands in the Pacific already colonized by other nations, including the US. After Japan signed a agreement with Germany and Italy in which they promised that if one were attacked, the others would help defend them. Feeling protected and now quite militarized, Japan invaded French Indochina.

Next, Messner looks at the errors in judgement made by the United States that led to such devastation when Japan attacked Pearl Harbor. She goes back to 1924, when an army officer named William Mitchell was sent to evaluate the preparedness of US forces in the Pacific and Far East. He warned that Japan was thinking about expanding its empire, had its sites sent on Pearl Harbor and the Philippines and that that would eventually lead to war. But by 1939, Americans didn't want to go to war and so President Roosevelt tried negotiating with Japan to maintain peace. While Japan readied itself for the attack, by training pilots, redesigning torpedoes for the shallow waters where the American fleet had been moved to, mistakes, miscommunications, and incomplete intelligence gathering all led to what ultimately felt like a surprise attack to Americans, all of which Messner carefully looks at.

History Smashers: Pearl Harbor is a short but very informative, well researched look at the attack on Pearl Harbor. Not only does Messner lay out her facts and debunk the myths surrounding the attack that led America into WWII, but she takes this very complicated event and makes it accessible to young readers. Plus, she takes the narrative beyond Pearl Harbor and looks at the racist treatment and incarceration of Japanese Americans living on the West Coast of the US.

Messner includes lots of informative sidebars introducing readers to people, places, and histories, as well as lots of photographs and maps. There is extensive back matter that includes A World War II and Pearl Harbor Timeline, an Author's Note, Books, Websites and Museums to Visit for further exploration, and an excellent Bibliography.

This is a book that should be read by anyone interested in WWII. How good is it? Well, I thought I knew a lot about Pearl Harbor, but even I learned a few new facts.

This book is recommended for readers age 8+
This book was an eARC gratefully received from NetGalley

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think our kids need more History Smashers in their lives! There have been a lot of books written about World War 2 but I have found that a majority of them focus on the events in Europe during the war. I think it is incredibly valuable for kids to also learn about what happened on the Pacific Front. Through a blend of graphic novel style conversations, real-life photos, and various non-fiction text features, Messner shares the facts of what happened leading up to, during and after the attack on Pearl Harbor. All too often, my students find non-fiction to be dry and boring, but Messner has truly created an engaging series with her History Smashers books. Already looking forward to The Titanic.

With thanks to NetGalley and Random House Children's for an early copy in return for an honest review.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series, what can I say about this series. The author takes her subject and layes it out for middle-grade readers so they have the whole story. So often the story of World War II is told in short sound bites, and you dont' get the history behind it. With excerpts from interviews with survivors, this story comes alive as never before.

This covers the history of the Japanese involvement in the the Asian theatre, as well as the build up to the attack on the American fleet in Pearl Harbor.

What is great is this also follows the internment of the Japanese-Americans back on the west coast, and Hawaii. Because, really, all these things are interconnected. So we get stories of that, as well of how the Japanese-Americans, who were in prison camps, still signed up and fought for a country that had so maltreated them.

We need a book like this for every major historical even. The stuff you learn, even if you have been studying this history for a while, I was amazed.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

[Melinda · Rating 5 out of 5]

As my husband likes to point out, many of these books are not so much history SMASHERS for me as they are just…history, since I never learned much of it to begin with. Assistant football coaches serving as history teachers in 1980s Indiana for the win! I love all of the History Smashers books I’ve read, but this one in particular had some mind blowing bits. The Japanese American soldiers being used secretly to train attack dogs??? The USS Arizona memorial being designed by an Austrian immigrant who was himself held in an internment camp during the war??

[My Bookish Delights · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good one. I don't know if it's because I retained barely anything from learning about Pearl Harbor and WWII (I never enjoyed learning about wars) and so it was fascinating in that respect. However, it was also laid out and written in an interesting and engaging way.

I think it's great for its intended audience, but may be redundant for people who already know a lot about the attack. It has mentions of Japanese-American internment camps too, which I didn't know a lot about. Again, I'm not that interested in war or war stories, so this was a good fit for me since I was able to be informed, but not have to read long and boring (to me) descriptions about things.

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

First sentence: People often tell the story of Pearl Harbor as if the Japanese attack in Hawaii happened completely out of the blue, with no warning and nothing to suggest there might be trouble.

Premise/plot: What you see is what you get. This is a nonfiction book written for young readers (elementary aged) about the attack on Pearl Harbor. Yet the book doesn't just tell the story of the events of December 7, 1941. No, the book does a good job of providing context for understanding everything surrounding Pearl Harbor. What was the relationship like between Japan and the United States leading up to Pearl Harbor? Why was there tension between the two nations? Where there signs in the months leading up to the attack? What were those signs? How did everything play out on that day? (In other words, what was the timeline for everything unfolding?) It details Pearl Harbor, of course, as you'd expect. But it also shifts to the war itself. How were Japanese-Americans treated after Pearl Harbor? Towards the end, it shifts yet again to the dropping of the two atomic bombs to end the war with Japan.

My thoughts: The subject is a heavy one. But I think it is handled with respect. I would imagine that most--if not all--of these facts will be new to the intended audience. (Particularly those facts about using Japanese-American soldiers as test subjects--aka DOG BAIT--so army dogs could be trained to sniff out "the enemy" and attack to kill. If I hadn't read a YA novel about it, I wouldn't have known. I believe the project was hush-hush at the time.) As an adult who has read widely on the subject of World War II, I didn't learn anything truly new-to-me. Yet what was presented was done well. I loved the organization, layout, presentation. I loved the blend of text and graphic panels. I loved the amount of detail.

[Sierra Dertinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh how we need more History Smashers in our lives! I read this one in one sitting again and was not disappointed. I learned so much about this historical time that I am still shaking my head at. Messner does a splendid job at sharing the hard, but true facts that lead up to the event, during the event, and even the aftermath of the attack on Pearl Harbor. The blend of illustrated diagrams, real-life photos, and text features sprinkled throughout will captivate and engage readers. I will continue to highly recommend this book to history fanatics and those who want something that they will not find in other nonfiction books. Now I need to get my “hands” on the Titanic that publishes next year! Hopefully NetGalley has it real soon.

[Mary Bronson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this was a great non fiction about Pearl Harbor. What I like about Kate Messner's History Smashers is that she writes about all the information a lot of kids don't learn about K-12 here in the United States. Most people learn more about what really happened until the get older or go to college. I like how she broke down the racism that was going on in the United States military back then and how the United States gathered up all the Japanese American citizen (men women and children) took them from their homes and put them in Interment Camps for awhile during the war.

[Mrs. Mazzola · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent retelling of the events leading up to and following the attack on Pearl Harbor. The book makes this complicated history accessible to young readers who may not have been formally introduced to this in school (yet). I love the insets, comic illustrations, and photographs that enhance the text making it even more interesting for readers. Highly recommend this series for purchase and will be sharing with my 5th grade teachers as excellent curriculum supplements.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was outside of my normal reading material, but I *loved* this book. The writing and pacing was perfect. High interest, factual... I can't wait to read more in this series! Great graphic design and comics included within the book added to a fantastic text.

[Rachael · Rating 5 out of 5]

The History Smashers series is so important and incredible. I cannot recommend them enough. I adore Kate Messner books as well as her range as she has written other incredible books- especially picture books. This book was well researched, well written, and well organized. Just the right amount of information to understand what happened but not get bogged down in all the details. Lots of recommendations for additional reading. One can follow the tangents and related content easily from "History Smashers: Pearl Harbor."

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an electronic ARC from Random House Children's Publishing through NetGalley.
Messner's series continues to present balanced accounts of historic events. She shares the ugly along with the better parts of US actions and responses. Pearl Harbor is entrenched in US history and rightly so. Readers will see the complexity involved in acts of war and decisions made in the aftermath of such events. She gears the conversation to middle grade level and includes text boxes to further explain and/or define some areas. The book is designed to make readers think and make connections to their own responses while studying the historic time.

[Paula · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am SO excited about this series by Kate Messner and was thrilled by this history smash of Pearl Harbor. As author Candace Fleming writes, "Fun, fast history for kids who want the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth." Kate looks at important historical events with a perspective that strips myth and misinformation from the record and clarifies some long held misconceptions. She strikes a wonderful balance with depth and breadth of topic-giving readers a solid overview and then sharing additional resources/bibliography for those who would love to dig deeper. She and illustrator Dylan Meconis use a mix of maps, illustrations, photos, sidebars, and graphic panels to share information in an engaging variety of formats that will keep readers enthralled. Can't wait to dig into the rest of the books in this series. Smashing!

[Kathy Iwanicki · Rating 5 out of 5]

I cannot speak highly enough about this book. Thank you to @netgalley for the ARC. Kate Messner is one of my favorite authors and she completely hits it out of the park with this entire series. This is the thir book I have read from History Smashers. I will buy every book in the series for my classroom library. They are all important. This particular book focuses in on World War II and more specifically Japan and the United States. Like the two other books, History Smashers tells the untold story of what really happened during this time period. This book, and series, is a must for all classroom and public libraries. I will eagerly await books 4, 5, and 6.

[Julie Ann Cordero · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great read about an important event in our country’s history. I even learned things that I didn’t know. This would be perfect for a kid that loves history or even a reluctant reader who is as history buff.

[Carly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exceptional middle grade nonfiction. Well organized, thorough, and compelling. I previewed for my fourth graders and they didn’t want me to stop reading!

[ScoutS · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pearl Harbor: History Smashers by Kate Messener is a great read for old and young. It is an illustrated retelling of the tragedy of the Japanese inflicted attack, Pearl Harbor. The protagonist and antagonist characters of the story are The American Marines, The American sailors and the Japanese Kamikaze pilots. Prior to the pearl harbor attack and the involvement of the Americans Germany had invaded Poland in 1939 and soon after two days to be exact France and Great Britain would declare war on Germany, Japan became close allies with Germany soon after. The president at the time of 1939 was President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. He was concerned about the situation and said we would not join in on the war against germany. The main part of this book is telling little stories about what happened the night of the pearl harbor attack from different perspectives.










SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!!!!!!






One of the stories in the book starts out with a few men sleeping in the quarters of a U.S battleship. They were Waiting for the morning to come so that they could get back to their duties of being U.S sailors. until BOOM! A large crashing sound that woke them up instantly and that rocked them and the ship back and forth as if bombs were going off in the water near Them. The attack on Pearl harbor had begun. The harbor was getting bombed by the “Type 91 Model 2 torpedoes” that were meant to destroy the shallow Harbor. Then out of nowhere they were hit by a huge bomb, the “Type 99 Model 5 ordinary (anti-ship) bomb” that instantly lopsided the ship. air raid sirens were going off outside. They knew they had to get off the ship but they were stuck and the water level in the cabin was rising. The only way out was a little porthole window that was under the water so one man took a deep breath and went under the water and broke it open while they were getting bombed. Which instantly raised the water level substantially. After that most of the men had gotten out through the porthole. Until there were just two left one of them was too big to fit through the porthole and so helped the other guy out until it was just him. He stayed there going down with the ship but was never saved. If you are a fan of the History Smashers Franchise by: Kate Messener you will absolutely love this book. It's a very interesting read and goes deep into the nitty gritty details of the Pearl Harbor Attack and it's one of the best in the series I must say.

[Vonda · Rating 4 out of 5]

History Smashers is a great middle grade history series. This particular book thoroughly covers the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.. It is heavily focused on the facts about what happened. There are a few stories sprinkled throughout about people involved, but they are told in third person..

My favorite part was the information included about the key roles women played at Pearl Harbor and in the war efforts in general. Nurses saved the lives of hundreds of injured men, spending days triaging the wounded and months tending to patients long term healing. Other women filled jobs necessary to the functioning of war time America. Some learned to read radar, while others became pilots to test planes for manufacturers or to deliver supplies. Many became mechanics or code breakers. Women were invaluable.

Thankfully, no subject is avoided. The Japanese internment camps are given a fair discussion, in spite of it making the US look bad. I had never heard about the way the American military used Japanese American soldiers when they were finally allowed to join the war effort. “Years after the war, secret documents came out that show Japanese American soldiers were used in a sort of failed experiment that was meant to train dogs to attack Japanese people.” I’m thankful these ugly parts of our history aren’t neglected because we can learn from our mistakes and do better.

There are visuals, pictures, maps and timelines galore. Though the focus of the book is on the attack at Pearl Harbor, this book offers a great overview of WWII in general.

This would be a great resource for school libraries and classrooms. I received a digital arc copy of this book from netgalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest opinion.

[michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

* I received an eARC of this from NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Kate Messner hits a home run with the History Smashers series. By utilizing a number of primary resources, Messner expands the story showing that there were some warning signs that Pearl Harbor was going to be attacked, that there were conflicting viewpoints on the efficacy of the bombing in Japan, and even that the original war declaration was on all three Axis powers. Messner produces a great explanation of the devastation the bombing created and our ensuing response.

But Messner doesn't end there. What I especially appreciate about this book is that it highlights opposing viewpoints and some of the not-so-great things that America did in the wake of the bombing. There is an entire chapter focusing on Japanese internment. Messner puts it quite eloquently when she writes about the patriotism that was sparked after the bombing:

"But not everyone's help was welcome. Even as patriotism brought people together, fear, ignorance, and racism drove them apart."

We often hear that history is doomed to repeat itself if we don't learn about the rights and wrongs that happened. As we are teaching students about the past, readable books that tell a more complete story, with primary sources and a bibliography, are of great value. History Smashers looks to be a great resource for today's students. After reading this book as well as the one on Women's Rights, I can definitely say that this series is AMAZING!

[Summer Meyers · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had a really interesting conversation with a friend of mine who said she wasn't taught American history the way it actually happened. It was very much white-washed down to only the happy things. I can imagine the reason for that type of curriculum is to encourage patriotism and unity. Instead we have a growing graduating class disillusioned and less inclined to believe what the state tells them.
I grew up overseas, and I was taught about Japanese containment camps, an up close look at the bombing of Hiroshima and less than stellar examples of American colonialism throughout history. The result? I don't hate the United States. Instead I see a new nation that made classic mistakes among a larger western group who also aren't all that shiny. Japan has its own history of atrocity to live with, and I know that their classrooms tend to blend those out.

The point being this is not an American problem; this is a world wide problem.

I see what Kate Messner is trying to do with these books. She's trying to meet a need of kids who are demanding the truth about their history and heritage. I don't see anything wrong with that. I think that's how we avoid repeating mistakes. This installment of History Smashers was much better than her suffragist book. It was a interesting and engaging, embracing the truth of Pearl Harbor. I have complaints but they are minor, and I don't think worth mentioning.

I think I may use this next year for Caroline's personal reading.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another History Smashers book, this time about Pearl Harbor and World War 2.

I was wondering how this whole book would be about Pearl Harbor, but it only takes up 1/3 of the book. I was expecting more stories from those who were there and what the goings on of Navy life were at the base, etc. Instead, this book mostly focuses on all the elements of World War 2. It definitely tries to cover everything in a really short span of time. Topics such as the Holocaust, Navajo Code Talkers, D-Day, Japanese Internment camps, Battle of Stalingrad, Hiroshima and Nagasaki, etc.  I feel like the book should be advertised as a World War 2 book, not a Pearl Harbor book.

I do appreciate that this book addresses a ton of lesser known/behind the scenes stories from many infamous moments from the War. For example, how there was a ton of warning signs that a bombing at Pearl Harbor was about to happen. On the other hand, I usually really enjoy reading about World War 2, but I was bored most of time with this book.

Overall, a good history book for kids that tries to do too much, instead of just focusing on Pearl Harbor.

[Debra · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series is quite an undertaking! Focusing on facts, myths, lies, secrets, and seeking the truth of historical events in a way that will entice readers, even those who did not hear history this way in our youth, Messner has given us a gem of a series for our history buff students in middle grades and up! The book is chock full of facts and each chapter unfolds with text and support illustrations (by Dylan Meconis) and often a graphic novel section to better connect the history in a format that is quite popular in current trends. When the book includes photographs, they have captions. There is an impressive amount of back matter and non fiction text features as well as a timeline. I am simply gobsmacked by the series and have added several to my elementary libraries, though I think middle school and high school may be more apt to learn the history and explore the truths and lies as they are laid out. (My students likely just read it and explore the photographs as it is likely their first time hearing about the history.)

[Jason Eifling · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy to preview.
History Smashes has the potential to become a great historical series for students to read. Having a renowned author lead these stories is a great way to tell often complex historical stories in a way that is understandable to students (and adults too.) The illustrations do a great job adding more information or illustrating key events from the text. Pssst. The students get the information twice this way! World War II is a very complex subject but the author does a job giving important information by not getting bogged down with historical information. Although the subject matter is Pearl Harbor, much more content is covered, including more things from recent history and how this event shaped it. This is the first book I read from the series but will be adding this and the rest of the series to my school library when they are available for purchase.

[Amy Gourlay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book 5/60
I love history. Good and bad. I picked up this book in a series of history books from author Kate Messner thinking that the cover would be intriguing for students. They love cool covers. I have also had many students looking for books about World War II, but not wanting the old books we had when I was in middle school. This was a fantastic exploration into what happened on that December morning, who was involved, how it was a turning point in American history, and so much more. It described the historical significance of that day in terms that young readers will understand and wove in graphic elements to entice these same readers to learn about history. I cannot wait to share it and to read the others in this series.

[Alicia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Saved this one to read today since it's the anniversary of Pearl Harbor. I'm a fan of Messner's series and this one dispels on big rumor regarding it being a surprise attack- ultimately the US and Japan were already at odds and as World War II became increasingly spread across the European nations, it was inevitable that something was going to happen- though many in the military thought Japan would attack the Philippines.

The series provides a mix of narrative, graphic novel shorts, and images to paint a full picture of what happened during the chaotic Sunday morning and the fallout from it during the war with the internment of the Japanese, to the war effort, and the atomic bombing of two Japanese cities.

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

So can Kate Messner just write a US history textbook yet? This series is phenomenal. Informative but not dry text, eye-catching graphics, and engaging personal accounts. It is also one of the most inclusive histories I've ever encountered and doesn't shy away from the not so pleasant parts of American history. Excellent bibliography.

The first two in the series have already leapt off the middle school library shelves, so I will 100% keep buying this wonderful series. It's always nice to learn something new from a middle grade book as an adult too!

Thanks to the Publisher and Netgalley for the Advanced Reader Copy

[Cassie Reynolds · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kate Messner did it again! I have loved (and purchased) both History Smashers graphic novels, and they are so well loved in my classroom. I love that it looks at history through different perspectives and uses and critical lens that we don't normally see in our history textbooks. Pearl Harbor was no exception. Messner did such a great job explaining the entire picture of what happened with many stories that I know a lot of people are not exposed to when learning about it.

I would highly recommend upper elementary/middle school teachers to purchase this series for your classroom! I will be adding this one to our collection for sure. I cannot wait to read the next one!