Books

Pacific Payback: The Carrier Aviators Who Avenged Pearl Harbor at the Battle of Midway 

The Pacific Payback: The Carrier Aviators Who Avenged Pearl Harbor at the Battle of Midway Hardcover was very informative. This past summer i had visited Pearl Harbor and visited the USS Arizona and Ford Island. I wanted to see where for the United States World War II began. History sometimes leaves out details and this book corrects many of history omissions.
I have read many books about our war in Europe during World War II, but I did not know much about the Pacific War. My knowledge of the Pacific theatre was many from movies like Tora,Tora, Tora and Midway. Those movies are well done but only presented a portion of what happen on Pearl Harbor and on  Midway.
I have always held carrier aviators in high regard, but reading about their sacrifices and skill in defeating the Japanese who had more carriers and aircraft is amazing. The Battle of Midway was a hard fought battle where many aviators died. It was a great victory for the United States but hard fought. I did not know how rough it was until I read this book.
The author Stephen Moore does a great job of putting you in the action. I felt at times, I was in the back seat of a dive bomber shooting a machine gun and keeping the Japanese pilot of my tail as we dove on an aircraft carrier.
There are many somber moments as the aviator return from their missions and many of their friends were killed and they look at the empty seat in the briefing roomThe aviators wanted revenge for Pearl Harbor. There were aviators that were trying o land on Ford Island when the Japanese were attacking.  The aviators did avenge Pearl Harbor at the Battle of Midway as they sunk four Japanese Aircraft Carriers. When they sailed back into Pearl Harbor ,it was the Unites States Army Air Forces that reported that they sunk the Japanese Carriers. There is proof that not one of the Army Air Forces B-17 hit any Japanese ships. The author tells of many brawls between the Navy and the Army on this.The book reads quickly and it well written if you want to add to your understanding of the Pacific War this is a great book to read. 

To Kingdom Come: An Epic Saga of Survival in the Air War Over Germany

Many books have been written about the 8th US Air Force, but I found “To Kingdom Come" most unique. The book chronicles the lives of several airmen who flew bombing missions over Germany during World War II.

Many of the early bombing missions in 1942-43 sustained horrific causalities. There were some squadrons that came back with only three B-17's left out of 12. The rest were shot down by the Germans. The author Robert J. Mrazek with a flare that makes you feel that you are in a B-17 20,000 feet high and the temperature is 20 degrees below zero.

I could feel the terror of the airmen when the Germans start firing their dreaded antiaircraft 88 guns. Bombers were being blown up and there was nothing to do stop except continue on the mission.

The sickening fact is for each bomber shot down ten airmen on board were lost.

Mrazek takes us along the journey of the downed air crewmen who bailed out over enemy territory. Some of the crew were captured, escaped to Switzerland, or were rescued by the French resistance. Many others were wounded. One crewman spent five months with the French Resistance. He later escaped to England with their help. The book also tells how the French Resistance helped them during their escape. Many of the Resistance fighters were captured by the Germans imprisoned, tortured and were executed. I gained a whole new level of understanding about the French Resistance and their sacrifice for our soldiers and airmen.

One of the stories describes a bomber that was under attack by many German fighters and was going to crash. Everyone either parachuted out or was killed except one of the crewman. He took a 20mm cannon round to his head which went through his eye and took off a lot of his face. He was left aboard the aircraft still alive. The Germans found the crashed plane and took him to a hospital and operated on him. Miraculously he survived the surgery and his capture. He figures if he could survive getting a horrific wound and a crash the rest of his life was a piece of cake. The Germans and Allies would exchange soldiers and air crewmen who were seriously wounded and could no longer fight. He was allowed to go back home. His story has a happy ending with his meeting a woman, before he was sent to a hospital for facial reconstruction.

The book tells the reader about General Robert Travis. I've been to Travis Air Base in California and I had no idea of his World War II combat service. He would fly all the dangerous missions not the so called milk runs (easy ones). He was awarded three silver stars for his war time service. General Travis would get into a lot of trouble for his complaining how the bombing campaign was conducted. He knew long range fighters would make the difference after reading about General Travis, it would have been a honor to have served with him.

The book epilogue tells us what happened to some of the main characters of the book. Two of the air crew are in their 90's and still going strong. All remember the impact of combat in the skies over the European Theater and know every day is a blessing.

MAJ (ret) Eric Shuler NJARNG

A Higher Call: An Incredible True Story of Combat and Chivalry in the War-Torn Skies of World War II

By Adam Makos with Larry Alexander

I remember hearing about a badly shot up B-17 being escorted by a German fighter pilot in Bf-109. I never really followed up on it but when I saw the book A Higher Call and was just intrigued by the cover. It is a painting showing a B-17 Bomber with a Bf-109 on his wing. Also on the cover is a picture of the two pilots of the planes one German and the other an American.

I had to read the book. The first thing you learn is the pilot of the American aircraft is named Charlie Brown. Yes that is no typo. Brown tells the author Adam Makos that to know the story you must know the story of the German pilot Franz Stigler. The author was taken aback by that comment as his job is recording stories of veterans from World War II. Why would Brown suggest he interview the enemy? Brown's only clue to was that Stigler was a man of great moral character. How could an enemy fighter pilot hold such a high respect of Charlie Brown?

The author started a dialogue with Franz and kept also keep in communication with Brown. This book took years to write as Makos would ask questions about both about their home life, combat experience, and after the war. The more questions he asked the more Makos wanted to know and he tried to make sure the stories were historically accurate.

The book tells the story of Franz and Brown as youth and how they came to fly and then to fight in combat. The story of the German Luftwaffe was unknown to me. Sure, I knew the German aircraft names and the controversial issue of whether to call it a Bf-109 or Me-109 which was the plane Stigler flew. I actually felt sorry for the German pilots and I don't say that lightly as my Cousin Bob Mawn was a nose gunner on B-17 and often a target for the Germans. Makos tells the story about how Franz lost his brother and later his father later in the war. The German Fighter Pilots had to fly till they died, were wounded, or promoted to a different post. The author starts the book by telling about Franz trying to a job after World War II. He could not as the German people blamed the fighter pilots because for they could not stop the allies and their planes from bombing the German homeland.

It is a fascinating story when you learn that the Luftwaffe pilots considered Goring a fat joke. The author puts you into their boots. Many story that are told that you have to take time to digest and think about. One thing I learned is for most of the war the Luftwaffe pilots did not use the Hitler salute with the stretched arm until late in the war as ordered by Hitler. There are countless stories and Franz and Charlie's reunion close to 60 years after the war is unbelievable.

Ironically they both died in 2009 and I regret I never met both of them. This book is a easy to read as well fascinating and would make a good movie.

The Cover-Up at Omaha Beach: D-Day, the US Rangers, and the Untold Story of Maisy Battery Hardcover by Gary Sterne

The Cover-Up at Omaha Beach: D-Day, the US Rangers, and the Untold Story of Maisy Battery Hardcover by Gary Sterne definitely got my attention. What Maisy Battery? What cover up? The book sounded like a historical fiction novel.  Gary Sterne does a great job of opening a new discussion of the great Invasion that took place. D-Day has a host of books on it and is one of most visited battlefields and yet even after 70 years there is more to learn about it.

The author tells how he uncovered the Maisy Battery. When I say uncovered it was covered over with Earth and he purchased the land and evacuated it. The battery was quite big in area as well and there were a large amount of guns that were emplaced there. Those guns could have turned the battle in favor of the Germans had they been used fully.

My personal favorite are military history books that include soldiers stories in the book in addition to  the facts of the battles. The soldier’s stories add a realm of humanity of the battle. Battles are fought with men under difficult and dangerous circumstances. The author has done a skillful job of weaving their tales and the facts throughout the book.

Another thing I learned from a military historian, does the book have maps in it? There is no way you understand a battle without knowing the terrain. The author includes many copies of original maps in the book to enable you to fully understand the battle of D-Day.

Sterne includes copies of many original documents of the battle. It makes you look twice when you see on the documents the word “Bigot”.  The author explains that is the code word for D-Day and it was a secret document.

There are many subjects the author writes about and I will keep you interested and reading the book. This book is worthy addition to your knowledge about D-Day and another mystery uncovered.

World War II From Above: An Aerial View of the Global Conflict by Jeremy Harwood

World War II From Above: An Aerial View of the Global Conflict by Jeremy Harwood is a great read. I study World War II history and this book definitely adds a different side of it. The book is written from a photo reconnaissance point of view. There are many side by side pictures of before and after a bombing mission. It is quite overwhelming to see the destruction caused by aircraft. I have read about the Dam Buster raiders, but I didn't know it involved four dams. There is a picture of one of the dams and another showing their destruction. It was truly a remarkable that they were able to figure out to “bounce” bombs into to the dam.
There is a discussion in the book about Area or Precision Bombing which worked. I let you read the book to make your opinion. The pictures will show you both. In each chapter there are black silhouettes of aircraft used during World War II.  There are stats on the aircraft to include length, speed, and armament. They help the reader understand the aircraft that were involved in fighting.
If you want to get an idea what a bombing and photo recon missions were like this book is for you. 30,000 feet up and trying to hit a target with an unguided bomb took a lot tries. The photos of the pockmarked landscape remind you of the craters on the moon. The Allies had no idea what to look for a secret German “buzz bomb” the V-1. They had taken pictures of area of the three rings. They had no idea what the rings were for. One of the photo analysis spotted what look like a small plane and they were able to deduce this was a V-1 and they concluded this was a launch site. The Allied command then sent bombers to destroy. I found this chapter to be one of the most interesting. I will keep this book for my collection, it a great book to have.

The Ultimate Guide to Hawaii

If you are planning on going to one of the islands in Hawaii, I strongly suggest you take a look at Andrew Doughty’s books on Hawaii. The books are well written by someone who lives on the island of Hawaii. Andrew writing style is if friend was telling what to see and do in Hawaii

I will tell straight up this book is like a multi-tool., maps, photos, advice, places to see, places not to waste your time.  The book takes most of the guess work on what to do and see. The books are organized by towns. There is an index which can help your search. Andrew injects humor in his books and he pretty upfront if seeing an attraction is a good, great, or just avoid the site. He does not pull any punches.

There is much to see in the islands and you have a limited time there so naturally you want to make the most of your visit.   We are on the Big Island and my wife was looking for a place to eat for lunch and she saw in the book a place called Café 100 in Hilo. The place had picnic tables and was not fancy but the food was awesome and reasonable. My wife and I would have driven past it had it not been for his book.

The books give some history and insight on the state. Did you know that there is a law that allows you access to the beaches? Andrew lists all the beaches and has photos of them. My wife and I stopped at numerous beaches and frankly could not remember all their names. Scrolling thru the book  you can see where you visited on the map and the accompanying photos..

Andrew humor comes thru many times especially when he writes about the interstate highways in Oahu. You just take it for granted there are interstate high ways. You then realize that Hawaii is not connected to any state. Andrew tells you that was how Hawaii was able to get federal tax dollars to build the highways by calling them interstate.

He gives times to locations not miles. My only suggestions would be to put gps coordinates next to the attraction. Hawaii has their own way of giving directions. An example is go down this road for  20 miles long and then turn left at the light (the only light) and then make a right a mile way down the road.

My wife and I flew 5,000 miles to get to Hawaii and it is a little bewildering in what to see. We were both afraid that we would miss something.  Thou we didn’t see everything on the two islands we visited we certainly saw some of the best sites in Oahu and the Big Island in Hawaii. Out of the three different guide books we brought, Andrew’s books were the most informative and the most helpful. If you are planning on going to Hawaii, I strongly recommend his books.

My only regrets are that my wife and I wish we had the two books prior to read them cover to cover. I did not realize there is also an app for your smartphone, which downloads the book to your phone. The app uses your gps and can you navigate to attractions as well as make suggestions based on your location.

Aloha 

Forgotten Fifteenth the Daring Airmen who Crippled Hitler’s War Machine

Forgotten Fifteenth the Daring Airmen who Crippled Hitler’s War Machine  by Barrett Tillman is 338 pages and a very quick read. I was   very unfamiliar with the 15^th Air Force. I thought the Mighty 8^th Air Force was the only ones that fought against Germany. This book opened my eyes up to the unsung heroes of the 15^th Air Force.  Tillman is a superb writer and this book just adds to his collection. There are different chapters that tell their story. He writes about the history and included memories and statements from veterans that were there.

I have read about Ploesti and somehow I never realized that it was not only the 8^th Air Force involved. The tales of combat are gripping and you can feel yourself on a mission with them. There are 9 chapters and each tells a portion of the unit history.

I feel bad for the 15^th Air Force as history has forgotten their sacrifices during the war in Europe. This book should assist in correcting that over sight.  There were many brave men in the 15^th that sacrificed themselves and I am glad Tillman was able to tell their stories.

The only thing I wish he included where a map of two so I can easily visualize where the unit was stationed and the different parts of Europe they attacked. The 15^th moved to different areas as the war progressed.