Alone on Guadalcanal: A Coastwatcher's Story

by Martin Clemens

Book Overview

This remarkable memoir tells the compelling story of the near-mythic British district officer who helped shape the first great Allied counteroffensive. Scottish-born and Cambridge-educated, Martin Clemens managed to survive months behind Japanese lines in one of the most unfriendly climates and terrains in the world. After countless partisan and spy missions, in 1942 he emerged from the jungle and integrated his Melanesian commando force into the...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1591141249
• ISBN13: 9781591141242
• Release Date: January 2013
• Publisher: US Naval Institute Press
• Length: 343 Pages
• Weight: 1.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.1" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Hats off to Martin Clemens

As an ex-patriot Australian now living in the U.S., I'm ashamed to admit I knew almost nothing about Guadalcanal, other than its reputation for being a bad place to be during WW2, until reading this outstanding book. My ignorance of the incredible risks Clemens and the Allied Forces took at that time is particularly surprising given that I knew the author as the father of a close friend when I was growing up in the late 1960s. I sat across the dining table from him during many Sunday dinners and heard nothing of his adventures in the Solomon Islands. Perhaps the author's reluctance to bore those around him with war stories, and my youthful lack of curiosity, deprived me of hearing the story first-hand. I'm truly grateful that he has shared this exciting and harrowing story with the world. Having read his account, I'm inspired to read other perspectives of the events that took place at that time. This book has reinforced my appreciation for those Allied soldiers who bravely fought off this persistent invader on our very doorstep while Australian civilians quietly went about their business at home.

Great book

A wonderful book and a finely documented living history. Refreshing account based on Mr. Clemens actual diary notations. I have read almost every book on Guadalcanal and this one is definitely different. It reflects lulls between events and actually provides new information. The history and events in his story builds some natural suspense and his work is highly accurate! Not many books are written in a manner that makes you actually feel like you were there. Particularly good is the detailed writing of periperhal events surrounding well know events and battles. This work fills in many blanks will add another dimension to existing knowledge bases of historians and those interested in early pacific war. Also, not just a WWII campaign story but an excellent example of what can be accomplished when the odds are against you!

WWII: The definitive Story of the British Solomon Islands

For people interested in the Pacific WWII. This is the only book that provides the complete story of Coastwatchers and how they helped win the war on Guadalcanal. Never before been told and written by a near-mythic Coastwatcher Martin Clemens A compelling true adventure story. Of particular interest to Marines who were there but didn't have the slightest idea of what was going on in the background. For First Marine Division Marines this is a MUST read. I was there with Martin Clemens.

Great firsthand account - feels like you were there!

Superb account of the early days of World War II in the Solomon Islands. No other book is as effective in taking the reader back to this uncertain period just prior to the turning point of the war. Mr. Clemons work is truly a unique perspective and anyone remotely interested in this campaign and period of history must remind themselves that Mr. Clemons was one of only a handful of people in a position to witness firsthand, the early events that unfolded into a military campaign of epic proportions. I am a VERY SELECTIVE READER and this is a classic piece of work. For those of you who have read every book on this campaign - this one fills in the gaps and truly personalizes it all. When I put the book down and relect on what I read, it feels like I was there - very nice. Contains some `fresh' pictures too. It's based off of Mr. Clemons diary/notes he kept during his time on Guadalcanal. There's even a picture of his dairy/notepad in the beginning of the book!

The sense of actually being there.

Many of us have read quite a bit or talked to others about this time frame and the events in the pacific theater. I was especially interested in the island life and events as they unfolded caused by the Japanese invasion and control. I always wondered why I could not find a book on an individual's experiences from almost a daily basis on the Solomon Islands. What a delight to find. Martin Clemens has written not, a sensationalized version, instead, an experience making the reader think and feel like they were there. I burned through this book.