Challenge for the Pacific: Guadalcanal: The Turning Point of the War
by Robert Leckie
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Description
History. Military. Nonfiction. From the Japanese soldiers' carefully calculated-and ultimately foiled-attempt to build a series of impregnable island forts on the ground to the tireless efforts of the Americans who struggled against a tenacious adversary and the temperature and terrain of the island itself, Robert Leckie captures the loneliness, the agony, and the heat of twenty-four-hour-a-day fighting on Guadalcanal. Combatants from both sides are brought to life: General Archer show more Vandegrift, who first assembled an amphibious strike force; Isoruku Yamamoto, the naval general whose innovative strategy was tested; the island-born Allied scout Jacob Vouza, who survived hideous torture to uncover the enemy's plans; and Saburo Sakai, the ace flier who shot down American planes with astonishing ease. Propelling the Allies to eventual victory, Guadalcanal was truly the turning point of the war. Challenge for the Pacific is an unparalleled, authoritative account of this great fight that forever changed our world. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
Great book for anyone interested in World War II history. However, listening to the audiobook was kinda hard as it jumps around in place. One sentence will refer to some guys on a sand dune and then next sentence will be some palm tree guys, or commanders, or boats. I think it would be much easier to follow reading the book. I listened to the book twice and the second time went much better..
Essentially it is the minute by minute account of the main battle for Guadalcanal - also, the author details the regular life and/or background of some of the US and Japanese forces. I don't understand how the author got down to the level of things that the men said, but he does include that. Anyway, this is a highly detailed book and if you like show more more general overviews this is not the book for you.
Leckie has written some other books but I think this was his best book (until I find something better... it's possible). show less
Essentially it is the minute by minute account of the main battle for Guadalcanal - also, the author details the regular life and/or background of some of the US and Japanese forces. I don't understand how the author got down to the level of things that the men said, but he does include that. Anyway, this is a highly detailed book and if you like show more more general overviews this is not the book for you.
Leckie has written some other books but I think this was his best book (until I find something better... it's possible). show less
2287 Challenge for the Pacific: Guadalcanal--The Turning Point of the War, by Robert Leckie (read 22 Apr 1990) This is a 1965 book and it is an engrossing account. It is a popularized account, but is well-done and stirring. Leckie himself was on Guadalcanal and tells his personal story in his book Helmet for My Pillow, [which I read after reading this book]. This book tells the story from August 1942 till the Marines left in Dec 1942, and it is told with Leckie's customary gusto. It was a terrific battle. 1042 Marines died and 550 soldiers died during that period. This was a good book to read: one should periodically read things about World War II, even though I lived through it as a high schooler.
Well told story...I'll have to get to more of his books...points for being from
Rutherford of course...
Rutherford of course...
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Author Information
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Robert Leckie was born in 1920 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At the age of 16, he began a career as a sportswriter for The Record of Hackensack. He also later worked as a reporter with the Associated Press, the Buffalo Courier Express, the New York Journal American, the New York Daily News and The Star-Ledger. The day after the attack on Pearl show more Harbor, Leckie joined the Marines. He became a machine gunner and scout in the 1st Marine Division in the Pacific and participated in all of the Marine campaigns except Okinawa. He was awarded the Naval Commendation Medal with Combat V, the Purple Heart and five battle stars. Leckie was on active duty for three years and participated in six campaigns. It is because of his experience in the war that he chose to write about American military history. Most of his books trace American war history from the French and Indian War to Desert Storm. Leckie's first book was published in 1957, and was a personal narrative of his experiences in World War II. It was entitled "Helmet for My Pillow." His books covered the Civil War in "None Died in Vain: The Saga of the American Civil War," another World War II book called "Delivered from Evil: The Saga of World War II" and his one volume history entitled "The Wars of America." Leckie adapted many of his books for a younger audience and also wrote some fiction books. In 1969, the Leckies founded The Sportstman's Club at Lake Hopatcong, a physical fitness facility in New Jersey. The family owned the club until about eighteen months before Leckie's death. Robert Leckie died on December 24, 2001. He was 81 years old. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Series
Belongs to Publisher Series
Common Knowledge
- Original publication date
- 1965
- Important places
- Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands; Pacific Ocean; Solomon Islands
- Important events
- World War II (1939 | 1945); World War II, Pacific Theater (1941-12-07 | 1945-09-02); Guadalcanal Campaign (1942-08-07 | 1943-02-09)
- Dedication
- To Bud Conley, Lew Juergens, and Bill Smith - My Buddies on Guadalcanal
- First words
- The Admiral was tall, hard, and humorless. His face was of flint and his will was of adamant. In the United States Navy which he commanded it was sometimes said, "He's so tough he shaves with a blowtorch."
Classifications
- Genres
- History, Nonfiction, General Nonfiction, Biography & Memoir
- DDC/MDS
- 940.5426 — History & geography History of Europe History of Europe 1918- Military history of World War II Campaigns and battles by theatre Pacific
- LCC
- D767.98 .L4 — History of Europe, Asia, Africa and Oceania History (General) World War II (1939-1945)
- BISAC
Statistics
- Members
- 193
- Popularity
- 168,844
- Reviews
- 3
- Rating
- (4.26)
- Languages
- English, French, Italian
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 9
- ASINs
- 5
