2025 - Feb. - Pacific Theatre 1945 (land, air or sea) > Likes and Comments

The February 2025 theme read is any book or books of your choice that covers the Pacific Theatre during 1945 (land, air or sea).

I'm thinking of reading "Hell to Pay: Operation Downfall and the Invasion of Japan, 1945-1947" for this month's theme read.

Hell to Pay: Operation Downfall and the Invasion of Japan, 1945-1947 by D.M. Giangreco

I'm going to start off with this one:

Nightfighter: Radar Intercept Killer

Can I suggest my novel THE CORYDON SNOW?

Just knocked off Yukikaze's War: The Unsinkable Japanese Destroyer and World War II in the Pacific.

This book looks fantastic, so it will be my choice for the Feb/March 2025 group read:


Ghost Soldiers: The Epic Account of World War II's Greatest Rescue Mission

Time for me to finish Shattered Sword!

Would a Pow focused book be okay? I started “Conduct Under Fire” a few years ago and never finished ( I was able to purchase a bunch of books from an Army/Navy surplus store that was closing and I excitedly started reading way too many books at once )

BA wrote: "This book looks fantastic, so it will be my choice for the Feb/March 2025 group read:


[book:Ghost Soldi..."

This is the book that got me reading this author. It is a great book.

I have selected the following fiction for FEB-MARCH group reading

I will start with The Mighty Moo: The USS Cowpens and Her Epic World War II Journey from Jinx Ship to the Navy’s First Carrier into Tokyo Bay
Completed February 21, 2025.

I will also complete War on Our Doorstep: The Unknown Campaign on North America's West Coast
Completed Feb. 6, 2025

I also have The Japanese Home Front 1937–45 lined up for this month.

Some excellent books being mentioned for this month's theme read!

Has anyone read “With the Old Breed” by E.B. Sledge? I’m planning on reading it for February. I’m super excited, one of my 2025 goals was to read more about this theatre as I usually read about the European Theatre. I would love input and suggestions!

Claira.Rice wrote: "Has anyone read “With the Old Breed” by E.B. Sledge? I’m planning on reading it for February. I’m super excited, one of my 2025 goals was to read more about this theatre as I usually read about the..."

It's an excellent book and I don't think you will be disappointed if you decide to read it. It's one of my favourite first-hand accounts covering the Pacific theatre.

I got Max Hastings' "Retribution" audiobook from my library, but it's a 28-hour audiobook on a 14-day loan, so I might not finish it before I have to return it.

Retribution: The Battle for Japan, 1944-45 by Max Hastings

Paul wrote: "I got Max Hastings' "Retribution" audiobook from my library, but it's a 28-hour audiobook on a 14-day loan, so I might not finish it before I have to return it.

[bookcover:Retribution: The Battle ..."

Excellent choice Paul. I do hope you manage to finish it; it will be worth it!

I'll give it the ol' college try, as they say.

"Hell to Pay: Operation Downfall and the Invasion of Japan, 1945-1947" - In one of the early chapters the author discusses the role the British Commonwealth and their forces would play in the planned invasion of Japan:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commonw....

https://blog.nationalarchives.gov.uk/...

Claira.Rice wrote: "Has anyone read “With the Old Breed” by E.B. Sledge? I’m planning on reading it for February. I’m super excited, one of my 2025 goals was to read more about this theatre as I usually read about the..."

Hi Claira:

You won't be disappointed--WtOB is considered one of the best memoirs of the fighting in the Pacific and definitely worth the praise.

Reading James Scott's Black Snow currently for the monthly theme read. About half way through and has some interesting stuff about the earlier air war leading up to "terror bombing". Really tough spot for the allies as they want to end the war quickly but shy away from deliberate bombing of helpless citizens. The practice had happened in Europe with Hamburg in 1943 and later at Dresden. Really tough situation for all parties.

Pierce wrote: "Reading James Scott's Black Snow currently for the monthly theme read. About half way through and has some interesting stuff about the earlier air war leading up to "terror bombing". Really tough s..."

I have a copy of that book that I am keen to read. I have enjoyed all his previous books!

"Hell to Pay: Operation Downfall and the Invasion of Japan, 1945-1947" - The start of chapter 6 - The Decision:

"The Japanese defenders of Okinawa were inflicting casualties on U.S. combat units at a rate that was both faster and higher than in previous campaigns. The ratios of only 4.6 and 5 Japanese casualties (usually deaths) for every 1 American battle casualty during recent fighting on Leyte and Luzon respectively were far closer than what had been experienced during early south-west Pacific operations. By Okinawa the ratio had shrunk to 2 to 1 - and an even more appalling 1.25 to 1 during the brutal fighting that had finally spluttered to an end on Iwo Jima.

How did the terribly costly Okinawa and Iwo Jima campaigns affect the thinking of President Truman and senior members of his administration. First, it is important to understand that all these men had long been in positions that enabled them to absorb ongoing military intelligence and were deeply involved in the never-ending struggle to get enough American men into the war. Moreover, the long-expected 'casualty surge' that they had all known was coming finally arrived in the summer of 1944 with D-Day in France and the invasion of the Mariana Islands in the Pacific. Of America's roughly 1,250,000 combat and combat-related casualties in World War II, nearly 1 million of this number would be suffered from June 1944 to June 1945, a degree of losses that people today would understandably find astounding."

Hell to Pay: Operation Downfall and the Invasion of Japan, 1945-1947 by D.M. Giangreco

Aussie Rick, is 'Hell to Pay' heavy on dates/units' numbers? I'm thinking of buying an audioversion of it

Darya Silman wrote: "Aussie Rick, is 'Hell to Pay' heavy on dates/units' numbers? I'm thinking of buying an audioversion of it"

No, not overly, but out of over 550 pages only 290 pages are narrative, the rest is extensive appendices and notes.

'Aussie Rick' wrote: ""Hell to Pay: Operation Downfall and the Invasion of Japan, 1945-1947" - The start of chapter 6 - The Decision:

"The Japanese defenders of Okinawa were inflicting casualties on U.S. combat units a..."

Oh !! This is really horrible statistics.

So, finished this one last night:

Nightfighter: Radar Intercept Killer

Pretty interesting book which was badly in need of a better editor.

Now it's on to this one which is pretty good so far:

A Glorious Way to Die: The Kamikaze Mission of the Battleship Yamato

Marc wrote: "So, finished this one last night:

Nightfighter: Radar Intercept Killer

Pretty interesting book which was badly in need of..."

"A Glorious Way to Die" is a pretty decent read so I hope you enjoy it, Marc.

"Hell to Pay: Operation Downfall and the Invasion of Japan, 1945-1947" - A very frank and cynical appraisal of the use of Kamikaze attacks against American forces:

"The Japanese devised a simple method for the immediate organization of fully equipped and completely staffed Special Attack formations - the mass conversion of existing training units to the new mission by decree. At least some Japanese flight instructors, not sufficiently infused with the bushido spirt, were in despair over the lack of training being given to the novice kamikaze pilots, but airmen such as Captain Inoguchi Rikibei, commanding the 10th Air Fleet's 'special attack' pilot training, enthusiastically enforced the new orders. Said Inoguchi, 'Inasmuch as the kamikaze attacks were the last means of any favorable results in the war and the only chance for breaking down American resistance a little, we did not care how many planes were lost. Poor planes and poor pilots were used, and there was no ceiling on the number of either available for use'."

Kamikaze Attacks Caught on Film:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BkOW1...

"Hell to Pay: Operation Downfall and the Invasion of Japan, 1945-1947" - The kamikaze threat led to a number of innovations with the American fleet:

"Innovations were made to increase point defense capabilities by shortening antiaircraft weapons' response times during engagements that seldom lasted more than fifty seconds between when firing commenced on an incoming aircraft, and it was either shot down or crashed into its target. By the summer of 1945, slewing sights for the 5-inch gun mount officer's station were helping to ensure quick, non-radar-directed action, and many U.S. vessels had begun to rig cross connections between their 5-inch guns' slow Mark 37 director and the 40-mm guns' more nimble Mark 51 directors, These innovations (and a projectile in the loading tray) enabled the long-range 5-inch guns to come on line more quickly to counter sudden attacks but switch back to the longer-range Mark 37 director if radar found additional targets at a more conventional range. The new Mark 32 radar, which allowed early and accurate identification of incoming aircraft, also would have been widely distributed by the time of Operation Olympic.

Although 20-mm Oerlikon guns had proved vastly less effective against a plunging kamikaze than the 40-mm Bofors, that did not mean crews were eager to do away with them in order to free up deck space. These weapons at least had the advantage of not being operated electrically. Even if a vessel's power was knocked out, the 'door-knockers' could still supply defensive fire. And though production of the Oerlikon was discontinued, the advent of the kamikaze threat prompted the extensive remaining stocks to be reconfigured in twin mounts for replacement of single-gun mounts to beef up the firepower from ships' spaces already established for the weapons. By June 1945, 2,381 twin mounts had been installed on Navy ships in the Pacific, and 10,180 singles remained throughout the fleet. The numbers of quad, double, and single 40-mm mounts stood at 1,585, 3,045, and 510, respectively."

"Hell to Pay: Operation Downfall and the Invasion of Japan, 1945-1947" - The author mentioned the likely introduction of a new naval weapon for defense against the kamikaze's which was due in the winter of 1945-1946 - the 3-inch/50 rapid fire gun:

https://www.destroyers.org/tcs-ships/...

http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNUS_...

"Hell to Pay: Operation Downfall and the Invasion of Japan, 1945-1947" - An issue highlighted by the author in regard to potential Japanese defense of the Home Islands was Japanese air offensive capabilities:

"Another element worth emphasizing is that U.S. intelligence turned out to be dead wrong on the sheer quantity of Japanese aircraft available for defense of the Home Islands. Early estimates that approximately 6,700 planes could be made available in a piecemeal fashion to throw against the invasion grew to only 7,200 at the time of surrender and turned out to be short by some 5,500 of the 12,700 aircraft that the Japanese planned to use in the opening ten-day phases of both operations. Moreover, production continued in hidden, decentralized factories in spite of material shortages and the U.S. bombing campaign. And that did not include aircraft available from the Asian mainland and Formosa."

And:

"Many Japanese aircraft were not destroyed on the ground, in flight, or even in suicidal attacks. For example, of the 1,809 sorties logged by the Imperial Navy's 3rd, 5th, and 10th Air Fleets, (which flew the bulk of the Okinawa missions), fully 879 kamikazes and escorts successfully returned to base after not finding a target or completing conventional missions. The number of kamikazes and conventional aircraft actually lost or expended by these units, combined with approximately 500 lost or expended by the Imperial Army at Okinawa, was roughly 1,430, or little more than a quarter the number of the 5,500 aircraft missed by U.S. intelligence on the Home Islands - 1,430 aircraft, which killed 4,900 U.S. sailors in Okinawa waters and severely wounded 4,800 more."

Hell to Pay: Operation Downfall and the Invasion of Japan, 1945-1947 by D.M. Giangreco

"Hell to Pay: Operation Downfall and the Invasion of Japan, 1945-1947" - The Soviet 'shopping list' to enable them to join in the offensive against Japan in 1945:

" ... To this end, General Antonov handed Deane a list of supplies and equipment that the Soviet Union wished to receive from the United States to support a theater offensive of 1,500,000 men, 3,000 tanks, 75,000 motor vehicles and 5,000 aircraft. The list was impressive and included the following:

230,000 tons of petroleum products (major items: 120,000 tons of aviation gasoline, 70,000 tons of automobile fuel).

186,000 tons of food and fodder (major items: 60,000 tons of flour, 20,000 tons of beans or macaroni, 25,000 tons of canned meat, and 50,000 tons of oats or barley), 14,580 tons of clothing material and hospital supplies (major items: 3 million meters of overcoat cloth, 4.5 million meters of uniform cloth, 12 million meters of underwear cloth, and 2 million pair of shoes).

296,385 tons of automobiles, rod machines and airdrome equipment (major items: 30,000 trucks, 1,000 DUKWs [amphibious trucks], 2,000 oil and gas tank trucks, and two truck assembly plants).

306,500 tons of railroad equipment (major items: 500 steam locomotives, 3,000 box cars, 2,000 flat cars, 1,000 tank cars, 800 kilometers of rails and 500 switches).

20,175 tons of engineering and signal corps gear (major items: 5,000 tons of barded wire, 200 radio sets, 200 radar sets and 10,000 kilometers of field telephone cable).

A flotilla of small ships and craft (major items: 10 frigates, 20 corvettes, 30 minesweepers, 50 large subchasers, 20 large troop landing craft).

Medical supplies worth $3 million.

The Soviet General Staff placed the total tonnage to be moved by sea at 1,056,410 tons (860,410 tons of dry cargo and 206,000 tons of liquid cargo), which would require a sea lift of ninety-six merchant freighters (9,000 tons cargo per ship) and fourteen tankers (15,00 tons of liquid cargo per tanker)."

Hell to Pay: Operation Downfall and the Invasion of Japan, 1945-1947 by D.M. Giangreco

"Hell to Pay: Operation Downfall and the Invasion of Japan, 1945-1947" - One of the final chapters in the book was titled - "Half a Million Purple Hearts". This article below was written by the author in 2020 for the History News Network:

https://www.historynewsnetwork.org/ar...-

Finished this one today:

A Glorious Way to Die: The Kamikaze Mission of the Battleship Yamato

Really enjoyed this book and I definitely recommend it to anyone who wants to know more about this final sortie of the Imperial Japanese Navy.

Now it's on to this one:

Rock Force: The American Paratroopers Who Took Back Corregidor and Exacted MacArthur's Revenge on Japan

Marc wrote: "Finished this one today:

[book:A Glorious Way to Die: The Kamikaze Mission of the Battleship Yamato|7870638..."

Really glad to hear you enjoyed "A Glorious Way to Die". I hope you enjoy "Rock Force" just as much!

This is an interesting take on the end of the Pacific War: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Stalins-War-... There's also a Turkish translation for those who might need such a thing: https://www.kitapyurdu.com/kitap/sovy...

A late post for the Feb/March 2025 group read:

I selected and finished this book:

Ghost Soldiers: The Epic Account of World War II's Greatest Rescue Mission

Here is a quick review:
It was harrowing read in many places, illustrating the horrific treatment of the American soldiers and the Philippine people by the Japanese Army. Well-researched, the book does an excellent job documenting the rescue, as well as all that was involved with the preparation for the rescue. It also included the journey of the POWs to the camp, their life in the camp, and the importance of the Philippine guerillas in the rescue.

Reading the POWs stories was fascinating - how they coped, how they helped each other, how they fooled the Japanese, how they survived. The heroic actions of Captains Eduardo Joson and Juan Pajota of the Philippine guerilla groups were remarkable; the author rightfully gave them due credit for their part in this dangerous mission. I was impressed by their dedication and courage.

One of the most fascinating and brave people in the book was Clara Fuentes, nicknamed “High Pockets,” and also known as Madame Isubaki. An American spy, High Pockets owned a night club that catered to Japanese officers and officials. She passed on information she learned in her club to the USA intelligence. In addition, she spent the money she made in her business to buy goods for the POWs - medicine, clothing, etc. She would then pass these goods off to people who could sneak them into the POW camps. She was a truly amazing and inspiring person.

Because of the large cast of people in the book, sometimes it was challenging for me to track and/or remember some of the lesser known players.

I was 3/4 of the way finished with this book when I was flying back from a trip. The gentleman seated next to me and I began chatting and we found we were both very interested in WWII history. I showed him this book - he said he hadn't read it. I gave it to him, as I knew he'd really appreciate it. To finish the book, I borrowed a copy from my local library.

Nice review and a very gracious gesture to your airplane seatmate!

A very nice thing to do BA!