Way It Was: Pearl Harbor (H)

by Donald M. Goldstein, Katherine V. Dillon, J. Michael Wenger

Book Overview

Containing both American and Japanese photographs, this book is published to mark the 50th anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour. The text tells the harrowing personal stories of many of the combatants on both sides, and describes the historical circumstances of the attack, the attack itself and the strategic results. The photographs show Pearl Harbour before, during and after the raid, as it looked to the combatants of both sides.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0080405738
• ISBN13: 9780080405735
• Release Date: January 1991
• Publisher: Potomac Books
• Length: 181 Pages
• Weight: 2.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 8.9" x 11.3"

Customer Reviews

Shouldn't be your first book on the attack, but...

If you have gleaned all the knowledge possible from the multitude of first person and general overviews published, this book will give you a concise knowledge of the tactics and timeline of the events. It contains a wealth of photographs that you will not see anywhere else, and each one of them is pinpointed to the minute when it was taken. You will see the first bomb hit the floating drydock, you will see the California disappear into a sea of burning oil, and you will see period photographs of the men involved (on both sides), what they did, and where and when they died doing it. True, some of the photographs are dark and lack contrast in the details, but hey, if you don't know what the Oglala or Nevada looks like up close, then you are not ready for this book. Another nice feature is that you rarely have to turn the page to study a photo as it is referenced in the text. It would have been nice to have this book printed on glossy pagestock, but I believe the publishers suspected it would not have a wide audience. Nonetheless, it is an invaluable reference for the serious student of the Day of Infamy.

If You Read Only 2 Books On Pearl Harbor, This Has to Be One

I just finished "At Dawn We Slept" and was very impressed with it. I then saw the movie "Pearl Harbor". On a coffee stop at the bookstore, I saw this book, and bought it on the good impression of a similar volume about D-Day by the same editors. The coffee was just OK, but the book is tremendous.This book, as did the D-Day issue (see my review if you're interested), presents original photos tied together with a fairly simple narrative that tells the story of the Pearl Harbor attack. You'll get to see photos of all the major players, Kimmel, Short, Yamamoto, et al. Some of the attack photos are pretty amazing. The original Japanese photos are stunning and good for hardware fans. The Japanese ariel photos lend great detail to the story. The superimposed flight patterns are very instructive. As I implied above, after Prange's book and the movie, this book was the crowning glory to my Pearl Harbor reading.This book will catch you off-guard. At first it looks very simple, which it is, almost for children, but when you dive into it, it gets surprisingly detailed. All the US planes that were involved are present in photographs, even a B-18! The text presents facts and occurances, and no politics. 90% of the ship photos are spectacular.So, go out and buy this book. You really should have it, then read one of the many books about Pearl Harbor. The photos will make the story live. Well done Mr. Goldstein and Ms Dillon.