The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors
The Extraordinary World War II Story of the U.S. Navy's Finest Hour
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Narrated by:
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Grover Gardner
About this listen
Filled with riveting detail and based on the author's extensive interviews and correspondence with veterans, unpublished eyewitness accounts, declassified documents, and rare Japanese sources, this is war at sea as it has seldom been presented before. It is an unforgettable narrative that captures the essence of heroism, the power of loyalty, and the way in which the unadorned truth is more stirring than legend itself.
Also, this audio program contains excerpts of exclusive interviews with Navy veterans conducted by the author.
©2004 James Hornfischer (P)2004 Random House, Inc., Random House Audio, a division of Random House, Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...
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Critic reviews
"Readable from beginning to end, this popular history magnificently brings to life men and times that may seem almost as remote as Trafalgar to many in the early twenty-first century....One of the finest World War II volumes to appear in years." (Booklist)
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In May 1942, Admiral Jack Fletcher's Task Force 17 closed in for the war's first major clash with the Japanese Navy. The Neosho, a vitally important tanker, was escorted by a destroyer, the Sims. The ships were attacked by Japanese dive bombers, and when the smoke cleared, the Sims had slipped beneath the waves. Scores of sailors were killed or wounded while hundreds bobbed in shark-infested waters.
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great story
- By alaina davis on 10-27-24
By: Don Keith
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Halsey's Typhoon
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- Narrated by: Eric Conger
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- Unabridged
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December 1944, the Pacific Theater. General Douglas MacArthur has vowed to return to the Philippines. He will need the help of Admiral William "Bull" Halsey's Pacific Fleet. But at the height of the invasion, Halsey's ships are blindsided by a typhoon of unprecedented strength and scope. Battleships are tossed like toys, fighter planes are blown off carriers, destroyers are capsized, and hundreds of sailors are swept into the roiling, shark-infested sea.
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Weather and Naval History Masterpiece
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Incredible Victory
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- Narrated by: Norman Dietz
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On the morning of June 4, 1942, doom sailed on Midway. Hoping to put itself within striking distance of Hawaii and California, the Japanese navy planned an ambush that would obliterate the remnants of the American Pacific fleet. On paper, the Americans had no chance of winning. They had fewer ships, slower fighters, and almost no battle experience. But because their codebreakers knew what was coming, the American navy was able to prepare an ambush of its own.
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Very informative
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Pacific Payback
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- Narrated by: Don Hagen
- Length: 12 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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Sunday, December 7, 1941, dawned clear and bright over the Pacific....
But for the Dauntless dive-bomber crews of the USS Enterprise returning to their home base on Oahu, it was a morning from hell. Flying directly into the Japanese ambush at Pearl Harbor, they lost a third of their squadron and witnessed the heart of America's Navy broken and smoldering on the oil-slicked waters below.
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Excellent companion to Dawn like Thunder
- By G. Bruce Greer on 07-21-14
By: Stephen L. Moore
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Grey Wolves
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In the early years of the Second World War, the elite force of German submariners known as the Ubootwaffe came perilously close to perfecting underwater battle tactics and successfully cutting Britain's transatlantic lifeline. To the Allies, these enemy sailors were embarking on a mission of unequivocal evil. Each member of the Ubootwaffe understood that he must take pride in being part of a unique brotherhood. He had to do so because he was setting out on a journey that would test his mental and physical endurance to the very limits, and which he had little chance of surviving.
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Like a Jr High Book Report, Performance Bad Too
- By Bill Sayer on 12-03-15
By: Philip Kaplan
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Intrepid
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Intrepid brings the history of the U.S.S. Intrepid to life in a stirring tribute complete with personal recollections of those who served on the ship and vivid descriptions of the deadly conflicts she endured. It is a story of the people who sailed in her, fought to keep her alive, and perished in her defense, a story which powerfully captures the human element in the history of American heroism.
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Ok read but needed more something...
- By Luis on 01-24-09
By: Bill White, and others
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Tin Can Titans
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When Admiral William Halsey selected Destroyer Squadron 21 to lead his victorious ships into Tokyo Bay to accept the Japanese surrender, it was the most battle-hardened US naval squadron of the war. But it was not the squadron of ships that had accumulated such an inspiring résumé; it was the people serving aboard them. Through diaries, personal interviews with survivors, and letters written to and by the crews during the war, preeminent historian of the Pacific theater John Wukovits brings to life the human story of the squadron and its men.
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Captivating
- By Jean on 09-23-17
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Enterprise
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America’s most decorated warship of World War II, Enterprise was constantly engaged against the Japanese Empire, earning the title “the fightingest ship” in the navy. Her career was eventful, vital, and short. Commissioned in 1938, her bombers sank a submarine just ten days after the Pearl Harbor attack, claiming the first Japanese vessel lost in the war.
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Great Bio of a Truly Remarkable Ship
- By Aser Tolentino on 09-18-12
By: Barrett Tillman
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The Silent Service in World War II
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- Unabridged
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When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the US Navy had a total of 111 submarines. It was mostly a collection of aging boats. Fortunately, with the war in Europe was already two years old and friction with Japan ever increasing, help from what would become known as the Silent Service in the Pacific was on the way: there were 73 of the new fleet submarines under construction. The Silent Service in World War II tells the story of America's intrepid underwater warriors in the words of the men who lived the war in the Pacific against Japan.
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Disappointing
- By Chris on 09-17-18
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A Dawn Like Thunder
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- By: Robert J. Mrazek
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One of the great untold stories of World War II finally comes to light in this thrilling account of the members of Torpedo Squadron Eight and their heroic efforts in helping an outmatched U.S. fleet win critical victories at Midway and Guadalcanal. These 35 American men - many flying outmoded aircraft - changed the course of history, going on to become the war's most decorated naval air squadron, while suffering the heaviest losses in U.S. naval aviation history.
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Excellent story well told
- By Kismet on 01-30-09
By: Robert J. Mrazek
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The Battle for Hell's Island
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From the author of Pacific Payback comes the gripping true story of the Cactus Air Force and how this rugged crew of dive bombers helped save Guadalcanal and won the war. November 1942: Japanese and American forces have been fighting for control of Guadalcanal, a small but pivotal island in Japan's expansion through the South Pacific.
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agonizing audiobook full of facts
- By chris on 04-13-16
By: Stephen L. Moore
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Pacific Crucible: War at Sea in the Pacific, 1941-1942
- By: Ian W. Toll
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 22 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Story
On the first Sunday in December 1941, an armada of Japanese warplanes appeared suddenly over Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, and devastated the U.S. Pacific Fleet. Six months later, in a sea fight north of the tiny atoll of Midway, four Japanese aircraft carriers were sent into the abyss. Pacific Crucible tells the epic tale of these first searing months of the Pacific war, when the U.S. Navy shook off the worst defeat in American military history and seized the strategic initiative.
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Astonishingly good.
- By Mike From Mesa on 09-01-12
By: Ian W. Toll
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What listeners say about The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall
- William Hudson
- 07-25-04
Greatest Navel Battle
This is an excellent account of a little know battle. The Sailors and Commanders do an impossible task with next to nothing. They really are the greatest heros ever born. The reader is great.
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4 people found this helpful
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Overall
- Anthony
- 02-13-05
Outstanding
This book contains an exceptional detailed account of the Battle of Leyte Gulf, focusing on the engagement off the coast of Somar. This battle should be taught to school children in order to demonstrate the resilience of America's finest generation. The book is well written conclusion to a lot of hard work and research. I encourage any one with an interest in Naval history to give it a chance.
The reader does a great job.
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3 people found this helpful
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- milrevko
- 04-28-16
Desperate times desperate measures
What not to do in war...
Keep it simple, do not count on the other guy surrendering
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- Eric
- 07-22-19
Disappointed by the Audio Book
This is an outstanding book that tells a very compelling story. I was disappointed to learn the audio version is abridged. It felt off while listening to it and checking the description confirmed my suspicions. While it is absolutely worth listening to, like a movie, it just doesn't compare with the book.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Darren Sapp
- 02-20-20
Detailed but Lacking
Although well-researched and compelling, this reads more like a list of events or after-action report rather than a narrative. The story behind the story is missing. I'm still glad I took the time to read it.
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- Josiah
- 03-28-22
Missing paragraphs
Loved it overall, but I was reading along and noticed seemingly random paragraphs were missing.
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Overall
- Paul
- 09-22-05
An amazing narrative
The mind-boggling heroism displayed by the sailors in this battle is amazing. The story is very well-told and is very hard to put down (or to stop listening to). Almost as interesting is how the magnitude of the loss of life may have been totally avoidable, and the aftermath of this realization among senior Navy staff.
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- GenoZ
- 05-09-17
Wow!
This book came highly recommended in the World of Warship community. Within the few a minutes the narrator brought the book to life. The writing was amazing and the story and accounts were captivating. For me the balance of historical facts and the human elements was so well done. Heard historical details followed by notes written by the crew brought the events to life.
Simply an amazing book. Amazing narrator. And an amazing group of men. This is a must buy plain and simple.
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- Amazon Customer
- 02-27-18
Riviting!
Makes one appreciate the courage and determination of our navy men under such overwhelming odds.
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Overall
- Randall
- 06-25-07
Excellent!
This is a riveting story, a David and Goliath tale- except that it is an historical fact! For 6+ hours, I was glued to my seat listening to the story unfold about the courage and sacrifice of our Pacific Fleet. Wonderful!
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