Given Up for Dead: America's Heroic Stand at Wake Island

Before reading this book, I was vaguely aware that a World War II battle had taken place on Wake Island at some point during the war. I didn't know that it was the first U.S. Engagement of the war, or that it began just hours after Pearl Harbor was bombed. It was likened to the Alamo at the time, yet unlike Pearl Harbor, it's rarely mentioned today.

When the war started, the Americans were behind in preparing the island's defenses. Marine and Navy personnel were outnumbered by civilian construction workers. When the Japanese bombing started, undermanned military units recruited civilians to help defend the island. When there weren't enough weapons available to arm all of the civilians, some of them carried ammunition, filled sand bags, show more and performed other vital support functions. One group of civilians was quickly trained and put to work manning a three-inch gun under the leadership of a Marine. The gun would otherwise have sat unused since there weren't enough Marines to man it.

Based on various histories of the battle and interviews with survivors, Sloan pieces together a day-by-day account of the battle for Wake Island. The skill and determination of the defenders is still as inspirational as it was in 1941. It was heartbreaking to read of the controversial decision to surrender at a point when a U.S. victory still seemed possible. It was even more heartbreaking to read about the treatment the military and civilian personnel received as prisoners of war. These brave men deserve to be remembered for their perseverance and ingenuity in overcoming innumerable disadvantages in the fulfillment of their duty. show less

I've probably seen the 1942 Brian Donlevy, William Bendix Wake Island movie (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0035530/) a dozen or more times. I thought I knew the story. I was wrong.

As often happens, the movie was short on detail or included things I missed or both. The greatest difference was me thinking the battle was over fairly quickly, if not in hours than maybe a day or so. Not true, the first bombing of Wake by the Japanese began December 8, 1941, and the island's surrender did not occur until December 23rd. I also didn't know how well the Americans did in this first face-to-face encounter between Japanese and American ground forces of WWII.

Author Sloan does an excellent job describing the battle and what happened to the US Marine show more and civilian defenders after surrender and 4 hard years in captivity. Not a pleasant story, one made even worse learning how little attention was paid to the survivors when they did come home.

You don't have to be a WWII buff to enjoy this but it certainly helps. Sloan tells the story in such a way as to enable you to "see" what the island was like during those 15 days of conflict. Read this book and you won't forget it. show less