Saipan Audiobook By James H. Hallas cover art

Saipan

The Battle that Doomed Japan in World War II

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Saipan

By: James H. Hallas
Narrated by: Tim Dixon
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The story of the Battle of Saipan has it all. Marines at war: on Pacific beaches, in hellish volcanic landscapes in places like Purple Heart Ridge, Death Valley, and Hell's Pocket, under a commander known as "Howlin' Mad." Naval combat: carriers battling carriers from afar, fighters downing Japanese aircraft, submarines sinking carriers. Marine-army rivalry. Fanatical Japanese defense and resistance. A turning point of the Pacific War. James Hallas reconstructs the full panorama of Saipan in a way that no recent chronicler of the battle has done. In its comprehensiveness, attention to detail, scope of research, and ultimate focus on the men who fought and won the battle on the beaches and at and above the sea, it rivals Richard Frank's modern classic Guadalcanal. This is the definitive military history of the Battle of Saipan.

©2019 Rowman & Littlefield (P)2019 Rowman & Littlefield Americas Asia Japan Military United States Wars & Conflicts World War II Scary
Personal Accounts • Historical Detail • Excellent Narration • Comprehensive Coverage • Perfect Volume • Engaging Tone
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Amazingly detailed account of how the US Army, Navy, and Marines wrested control of one small island from Japan, with war-altering results. You are there, grinding yard by yard through murderous gun and mortar fire, or plummeting down on enemy ships as air bursts riddle your dive bomber. On the island comes a final convulsive Japanese armor and infantry attack when heads literally roll and thousands choose suicide over surrender, all told foxhole to foxhole. This is among the best histories of the Pacific war ever written.

Like Being in the Thick of Battle

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The sacrifice of our soldiers was very great and we shouldn’t forget how much they gave

I appreciated learning about

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This is one of the best war historical novels I have ever read. It presents the history from both the Japanese and American side and in the end demonstrates exactly why America had to use the atom bomb.

Amazing history and personal experiences

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Easily one of the best purchases I've ever made on Audible. the narrator was great, the writing was exemplary, and the story was riveting, informative, and horrifying

Incredible

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This book was one of the most brutal historical warfare accounts of any work I've ever read or listened to. I picked up this title because I'm interested in learning everything I can about World War 2 in the pacific. "Saipan" did not disappoint in it's thoroughness and was a very effective overview of the Saipan campaign from the highest to lowest levels, supported with technical detail. Individual stories were presented fairly from all sides, even from a civilian perspective and the extreme brutality and reality of what total war actual is, was made very clear in this work. I found myself having to take periodic breaks from the book due to multiple protracted and gruesome sections that described combat injuries in intricate gory detail. I do not hold this against the writer as there is absolutely no other way to get a true sense of what happened on Saipan and to do the campaign justice.

You'll find heroism, unbelievable coincidences, close calls, superhuman feats and loads of technical detail in this work. I would recommend this book to anyone wanting a hardcore historical overview of the Saipan invasion, however, make sure you have the stomach to face the true ugly face of war.

A brutal and thorough Saipan account

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The research about individual people was both impeccable and interesting I would recommend this book highly

My thoughts

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As close as you can get to h*** on Earth. Well researched with 1st hand accounts and Is official government documents, Saipan will transport you to one oh the fiercest battles of the war in the Pacific. I wish I could give 10 stars for the performance and the story.

Bloody Saipan

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A bunch of different accounts from many sides, and chock full of recollections from US servicemen as well as some from civilians and Japanese soldiers

Really captivating

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I have read several books that cover the campaign for Saipan. This book was by far the best. It blended both Japanese and American perspectives and everything from the individual soldier or sailor to the admiral/ general concerned with grand strategy. Strong recommendation

Outstanding!

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Impossible to stop listening to. Relentless in its retelling of a battle just as relentless in its cacophony of horror, bloodshed, valiant heroism, and absolute confusion of the U.S. marines who withstood the Japanese onslaught and dooming the Empire of the Sun. The narrator ratio is very easy to listen to with a tone that holds your attention to the end. Highly recommended.

An absolute masterfully account of battle

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