IWO

by Richard Wheeler ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 11, 1980

Wheeler, author of brief wrap-ups of Sherman's March and The Siege of Vicksburg, here turns to Iwo Jima--with the difference that he has his own eyewitness chronicle, The Bloody Battle for Suribachi (1965), to draw upon (unacknowledged). In this slow-starting narrative, Wheeler reminds us of the uncommon sacrifice and courage that marked the Iwo Jima operation. He details the factors in building Marine esprit de corps, then explains the defenders' fanatical resistance. The bulk of the Japanese troops survived the heavy naval and air bombardment preceding the amphibious assault, then let our troops push two to three hundred yards inland before opening fire from numberless tunnels, caverns, and pillboxes. For five weeks the Marines attacked the ingenious network of fortifications, at a cost of 6,821 American lives; only 1,000 of the Japanese defenders let themselves be taken prisoner. This chronicle of the Iwo Jima campaign is less one-sided than most earlier accounts, but still fails to reflect the Japanese experience. Indeed, Wheeler's new book will impress only those unfamiliar with Iwo literature and in particular with Richard F. Newcomb's Iwo Jima (1965) which still ranks as the best piece of writing on the subject.

Pub Date: April 11, 1980

ISBN: 0785823069

Page Count: -

Publisher: Lippincott & Crowell

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1980

Categories: NONFICTION