Hell Is Upon Us: D-Day in the Pacific--Saipan to Guam, June-August 1944 [Hardcover]

Victor Brooks (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 7, 2005

June 14, 1944, just nine days after the D-Day invasion of Normandy, another mighty fleet steamed towards its own D-Day landing. A huge U.S. flotilla of 800 ships carrying 162,000 men was about to attempt to smash into the outer defenses of the Japanese Empire. Their target was the Marianas Island group, which included Saipan, home to an important Japanese base and a large population of Japanese civilians, and Guam, the first American territory captured in the aftermath of Pearl Harbor. During the next eight weeks, tens of thousands of men, hundreds of airplanes, and dozens of major warships were locked in mortal combat. When it was over, 60,000 Japanese ground troops and most of the carrier air power of the Imperial Navy were annihilated; Japan's leader, Tojo, was thrown out of office in disgrace; and the newly captured enemy airfields were being transformed into launching bases for the B-29s that would carry the conventional and, later, atomic bombs to Japan, turning the land of the Rising Sun into a charred cinder. After the U.S. victory in the Marianas campaign, the road to Tokyo was clearly in sight.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

A year ago, our nation was awash in commemorations of the sixtieth anniversary of the Normandy landings. Ignored in those celebrations was another "D-Day," the initial amphibious assault on the Marianas Islands in the Pacific, which began just nine days after the Normandy landings. The conquest of the Marianas ensured American supremacy in the central Pacific, crippled Japanese air and naval power, and left the Japanese home islands vulnerable to devastating B-29 attacks. Brooks is a professor and the author of several works on military history. He has written a detailed but very readable chronicle of a campaign notable not only for the heroism of its participants on both sides but also for the raw savagery of battle in which atrocities were common. Brooks provides cogent explanations of the broad strategic objectives of both Japanese and American military planners. He also offers a compelling portrait of Admiral Ernest King, the chief of naval operations. This opinionated, profane, and confrontational sailor was a brilliant naval strategist who has rarely received the acclaim he deserves. This is an excellent account of a campaign that guaranteed final victory in the Pacific theater. Jay Freeman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

"A welcome addition...A solid introduction to a crucial campaign for the general reader." -- Military.com, 11/22/05

"Survivors...will be grateful that their sacrifices and struggles are recognized." -- The Oklahoman, 8/13/06

"Worthy addition to the libraries of those who study war...well researched and organized...Brooks employs a lively writing style." -- Roanoke Times, 12/04/05

"[Brooks] is meticulous in providing data...An excellent read." -- Associated Press, 04/14/06

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: Da Capo Press; annotated edition edition (November 7, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0306813696
• ISBN-13: 978-0306813696
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,415,270 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars WWII from a Civil War perspective, February 26, 2006

By 

Colonel Moran - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hell Is Upon Us: D-Day in the Pacific--Saipan to Guam, June-August 1944 (Hardcover)

The author of this worthwhile book clearly has his heart in the history of the American Civil War. He discusses the Marianas campaign, a topic about which relatively little has been written, in a short, well-researched volume. His judgments are fair and balanced and he covers both the land and sea aspects of the battle. However, he constantly draws allusions and comparisons to Civil War battles and leaders. Some of these are interesting, but the author overdoes it by mentioning the Civil War far too many times. Some lessons about the Marianas can be learned by comparisons to Fredricksburg, but the world of warfare changed a great deal since Appomattox. In addition, the work suffers from numerous typos and unusual grammatical constructions, which should have been fixed during the proofreading process. In spite of these criticisms, the author provides a good overview of a Pacific battle of enormous consequence.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding!, December 28, 2005

By 

DesertDoc "jryan86" (Gerogetown, SC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hell Is Upon Us: D-Day in the Pacific--Saipan to Guam, June-August 1944 (Hardcover)

I read Dr. Brooks history of the Normandy Campaign and found it informative, readable and full of insights. For over 40 years I have had an interest in the campaign in the Marianas, especially Saipan. When I learned Dr. Brooks was to publish a history of that campaign, I anticipated it.

Saipan was the first time in US MIlitary History that the Marine Corps conducted a large scale amphibious assault (by that time, the US Army had successfully conducted large scale landings in North Africa, Sicily, Italy(twice) and Europe). It was the first time in History that the Marine Corps conducted a large scale ground operation. It was the first time in History that a Marine Corps General (Holland M. Smith) commanded a large scale ground operation. It was not the first time in History that the plan for a large scale ground operation did not survive first contact with the enemy. It was necessary to commit an Army Division, the 27th Infantry Division, to the ground campaign, something which HM Smith neither anticipated nor planned for. HM Smith scapegoated the 27th ID and its Commanding General, MG Ralph Smith, for what did not go according to plan on Saipan.

In the past 60+ years since Saipan, most of what has been written about the Battle has come from either Marines or authors friendly to the Marine Corps. These Marine/Marine-friendly Authors focus their writing on justifying HM Smith's treatment of the 27th ID. Often they distort the history of the battle, sometimes presenting fiction as factual history. In this context, Dr. Brooks has produced a History which is factual, readable, full of insights and thoroughly objective. For these reasons I rate it outstanding.

There are some nits to be picked, however. He does not mention Captain Ben Salomon, the third soldier of the 105th Infantry awarded a posthumous Medal of Honor for heroism in the gyokusai of 7 July 1944. A Dental Corps Officer acting as a Battalion Surgeon, he died defending his aid station against the Japanese. Because of a picky application of a technicality, his award was initially denied. Then, over 50 years after the event, the award was made.

He says that MG George Griner (who succeeded MG Ralph Smith as 27th ID Commander) ordered a body count after 27th ID reduced the Death Valley/Purple Heart Ridge position. General Griner ordered the body count after the Gyokusai, in response to claims by HM Smith's headquarters as to the intensity of the Gyokusai.

He does not go into much detail describing the operations against Nafutan Point. His description of the Japanese breakout from Nafutan does not match the description given in Edmond Love's "The 27th Infantry Division in World War II"(pgs. 219-222).

He states after Marianas Campaign, the US Army would not allow the placement of Army Divisions under US Marine Corps Command. The capture of Peleliu, Yap, Ulithi, Angaur took place after the Marianas. It was carried out by III Amphibious Corps, commanded by MG Roy Geiger, which had two Divisions assigned, the 1st Marine Division and the Army's 81st Infantry Division. According to Harry Gailey's "Peleliu 1944", planners envisioned III Amphibious Corps carrying out a much larger operation and having 4 Divisions under MG Geiger's command, one Marine Division and 3 Army Infantry Divisions.`

I would criticize any author for quoting from HM Smith's "Coral and Brass". HM Smith described a number of incidents regarding the 27th ID, none of them reflecting credit upon the 27th ID. There is evidence in the historical record that HM Smith fabricated at least two of his "rembrances". I refer the reader to the account of conditions regarding Nafutan in Edmund Love's history of the 27th Infantry Division, to Harry Gailey's "Howlin' Mad Versus the Army" and specifically to footnote 28 to Chapter VI in "Seizure of the Gilberts and Marshalls" in the US Army in World War II Series). "Coral and Brass", in my humble opinion, is not an historical resource but an attempt on the part of HM Smith to justify questionable judgments he made on Saipan.

The nit picking and one criticism aside, I again call this work outstanding.

36 of 48 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Very Disappointing, June 5, 2006

By 

Jeffrey W. Hunt (Austin, Texas United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hell Is Upon Us: D-Day in the Pacific--Saipan to Guam, June-August 1944 (Hardcover)

When I saw this book I was excited, as this campaign is overdue for a thorough study. Instead what the author provided was only the most basic overview. This is absolutely the most poorly edited printed book I have ever seen. There are several paragraphs were entire sentences are clearly missing; many places where the wrong word is used (stocking instead of stacking for example) and worse, many factual errors. The author refers to the LVT as Landing, Vessel Tank when it actaully means Landing, Vechile Tracked. He speaks of amtracs (amphibious tractors, aka LVTs) trying to land tanks at Tarawa. Any casual student of the Pacific War knows an LVT doesn't carry -- couldn't carry -- a tank. He reverses the number of U.S. dead and wounded on Tinian, etc. etc. Although the writing is sometimes good, constant references to the Civil War get very annoying. Clearly the author is more comfortable with that era. If you aren't a Civil War buff, these endless mentions will do nothing for you. If you are a Civil War historian (as I am) they get old very quickly and seem a stretch most of the time. The book barely has any maps, and the three maps it does have for Saipan, Guam and Tinian show nothing more than outlines of the islands with names for a few points. They don't even show where the landings took place. Overall this seems like a quicky effort to churn out a book and hopefully make a few bucks, written by someone who admits they are new to the story of the Pacific War. It would have made a medicore American Heritage Jr. Library book, but its a long way from a thorough, interesting or ground breaking examination of one of the key campaigns of the Pacific War.

Jeff Hunt, Curator, Admiral Nimitz National Museum of the Pacific War