Can I give SIX stars? | Shattered Sword: The Untold Story of the Battle of Midway

Final Word | Shattered Sword: The Untold Story of the Battle of Midway | Jonathan Parshall, Anthony Tully

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	• Shattered Sword: The Untold Story of the Battle of Midway Jonathan Parshall, Anthony Tully Potomac Books Inc., 2007 - 568 pages average customer review:based on 113 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Waldron was the man!

The book was very informative and well written. The authors arrive at the same conclusion I did early on when they reach page 435 where they state that if the American air groups including Hornet's had arrived simultaneously with a coordinated attack, the entire Japanese force "might well have been knocked out in a single blow". They fail, however to name names - that is, if John C. Waldron had been in command of Hornet's air group or if Stanhope Ring had simply listened to Waldron, Hornet's air group would have arrived in force early on (Waldron was the only American aviator that got it dead right from the get go). They also fail to follow through with their reasoning - that is, if the entire Japanese force had been so knocked out, there would have been no counter strike on the Yorktown and that vessel and all those who died on it would have been saved! One small change in command would likely have had that effect. If Ring had been in the Soviet navy he probably would have been shot instead of decorated!
On the issue of the contribution of the attack of VT-8, the authors seem to argue with themselves and, worse, they have allowed many casual readers of reviews to believe that the VT-8 attack accomplished nothing. They admit in the book that the VT-8 attack caused the Japanese carriers to be turned out of the wind and, in conjunction with the VT-6 attack, the Japanese flight decks were tied up with CAP operations delaying an offensive strike. They also state that the attack of VT-8 was like a rock thrown into a flock of pidgeons. I think one should look at it from a "but for" position. In other words, had there been no attack by VT-8, how would the situation have changed. The authors freely admit that the smoke and firing in response to the VT-8 attack probably attracted VT-6 and they also admit that the Japanese were overly focused on these attacks but they seem to feel that the Japanese CAP simply lacked discipline in failing to get back into position. The Japanese may have overreacted to the attacks from the torpedo squadrons but if the torpedo squadrons had not attacked THERE WOULD HAVE BEEN NOTHING TO OVERREACT TO! The Japanese would have, no doubt, been in a much better position to defend against the subsequent dive bomber attacks. BOTTOM LINE - All the squadrons from all the American carriers should have followed the only man who seemed to know where he was going - John C. Waldron!

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Can I give SIX stars?

I'm preaching to the converted here, but Shattered Sword is one of the most readable and clearly articulated historical narratives that I've ever seen. Although this book would be useful to someone learning about the Midway battle for the first time, an understanding of WWII naval aviation and having read some of the most frequently referenced work (such as Fuchida's account of the Midway battle) is certainly helpful in fully comprehending the details. I was skeptical at how much new ground would really be covered here. I was pleasantly surprised. The painstaking reconstruction of ship and aircraft movements is impressive given the degree of navigational error common to ships and aircraft of that time. However, what really makes this work shine are the detailed records of IJN air operations and the associated operational doctrine. This is the key to understanding the condition of the flight decks during the course of the 04 JUNE battle, and the reasons why the IJN carrier force was in DEEP trouble from the moment they launched their initial Midway strike and their location by the U.S. Navy shortly thereafter. The timeline the authors lay out clearly shows how the battle's events unfolded, and ultimately hinged on the skill and courage of a very few.

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Final Word

If you are an arm chair military historian, you must have this book. It fills in the blanks and in some cases corrects faulty conclusions that have been unchallenged for over 60 years! It is a must read!

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Close to best WW2 book ever

From the outset I read a LOT of military history books and I enjoy both the technical and the life experience books equally.

This is in another category altogether.

Parshall and Tully have done what all modern historians should do with information: ditch what you have read and start from the actual documents. They have made a special effort to get things right from the Japanese side even down to tactical and political doctrine in the Imperial Japanese navy. After reading the standard texts and pieces on the Midway battle my whole opinion of the battle changed after reading this book. Using log entries and after action reports they have made what I would consider the best overall picture of the Battle of Midway currently available without exception!

The other thing that is unusual in this work is the fact that it is beautifully written and is an absolute pleasure to read. A colleague with similar interests who read my copy of this book agrees totally and he is going to purchase his own copy.

I would think that out of all the non-fiction military books of WW2 this one would have to be one of the best in research, topic and writing that I have read by a long margin.

Do yourself a favour and buy this book!

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Shattered Sword: The Untold Story of the Battle of Midway

If you want to know what really happened at Midway, this book is a must read.

reviews: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, page 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19

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