Buy New

$14.95

FREE Shipping on orders over $25—or get FREE Two-Day Shipping with Amazon Prime

May take an extra 1-2 days to ship.

Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available.

Turn on 1-Click ordering for this browser

Ship to:

Select a shipping address:

Buy Used

$12.48

+ $0.00 shipping

Used: Very Good | Details

Sold by Free State Books

Turn on 1-Click ordering for this browser

Other Sellers on Amazon

Add to Cart

$14.63
+ Free Shipping

Sold by: Book Depository US

Add to Cart

$10.96
+ $3.99 shipping

Sold by: ---SuperBookDeals

Have one to sell? Sell on Amazon

Flip to back Flip to front

Listen Playing... Paused You're listening to a sample of the Audible audio edition.
Learn more

See all 2 images

Blue Skies and Blood: The Battle of the Coral Sea Paperback – February 25, 2003

by Edwin P. Hoyt (Author)

8 customer reviews

See all 10 formats and editions Hide other formats and editions

Price

New from

Used from

Hardcover

"Please retry"

—

$36.25

$2.29

Paperback

"Please retry"

$14.95

$10.96

Mass Market Paperback

"Please retry"

—

$18.85

$2.00

The first definitive account of one of the most critical naval battles of World War II in the pacific. Spring 1942: Following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, America was reeling under the successive Japanese victories at Singapore, Hong Kong, the Philippines and more. Desperate to stop what was seen as an inexorable Japanese advance toward Australia, the weak U.S. Navy intercepted the large Japanese fleet in the Coral Sea. The Battle of the Coral Sea ushered a new era in sea warfare. For the first time ever opposing fleets used carrier-launched aircraft to fight each other. It was a fight that would determine the future of the war. Few writers can sustain the kind of exciting narrative that distinguishes this account of brave men fighting each other to the death. Edwin P.Hoyt is one such writer. In BLUE SKIES AND BLOOD you hear the frightening roar of the dive-bombers' engines, feel the concussions of explosions that ripped apart the mighty aircraft carriers from stem to stern, and smell the acrid odor of cordite and terror as tonnes of sea water rush into ruptured smoke-filled hulls. About the Author Edwin P.Hoyt is an eminent authority on naval history. He is a former Army Air Corps flying in World War II, a war correspondent and television producer.

Blue Skies and Blood: The Battle of the Coral Sea

$14.95
FREE Shipping on orders over $25—or get FREE Two-Day Shipping with Amazon Prime May take an extra 1-2 days to ship. Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available.

Customers who viewed this item also viewed

Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1

This shopping feature will continue to load items. In order to navigate out of this carousel please use your heading shortcut key to navigate to the next or previous heading.

Ian W. Toll

537

Paperback
$15.49
Mark Stille

31

Paperback
34 offers from $19.20
Charles River Editors

34

Paperback
$9.99
Bernard Millot

1

Hardcover
4 offers from $31.32
Office of Naval…

4

Paperback
$5.99
James D. Hornfischer

367

Hardcover
$20.06

What other items do customers buy after viewing this item?

Pacific Crucible: War at Sea in the Pacific, 1941-1942 Paperback

Ian W. Toll

537

$15.49
The Coral Sea 1942: The first carrier battle (Campaign) Paperback

Mark Stille

31

Special offers and product promotions

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Edwin P. Hoyt, a historian and veteran of World War II, and has written over 150 books. His work has appeared in the Denver Post, Collier's, American Heritage, and CBS News.

Series: Battle of the Coral Sea
Paperback: 240 pages
Publisher: I Books (February 25, 2003)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0743458354
ISBN-13: 978-0743458351
Product Dimensions: 6.1 x 0.7 x 9.1 inches
Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 8 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #533,950 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1214 in Books > History > Military > Naval
- #4962 in Books > History > Military > World War II

Would you like to tell us about a lower price?
If you are a seller for this product, would you like to suggest updates through seller support?

NO_CONTENT_IN_FEATURE

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars

5 star		75%
4 star		13%
3 star		12%
2 star		0%
1 star		0%

Write a customer review

See all verified purchase reviews

Top customer reviews

The Stuff of Legend

ByDavid Webbon April 23, 2015

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

This short book does a great job of describing one of the greatest naval battles of modern times. The battle of the Coral Sea blunted Japanese expansion in the South Pacific and set the stage for Midway which turned the Pacific War against the Rising Sun! We can't imagine the way naval forces had to fight in this time. The US fleet was vastly outgunned by the Japanese and had to bide its time to locate the Japanese carriers and launch his attack. Admiral Fletcher was criticized by some for his cautious tactics but he was operating far from home with no relief in sight. Had the Japanese succeeded in attacking Port Moresby, WW II would have entered an even more dangerous and difficult epoch for the US Navy. The performance of our Navy in WW II is the stuff of legend!

0CommentWas this review helpful to you?YesNo

Five Stars

ByVictoria Faulkneron February 16, 2017

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

If you love History, you'll love it !! Easy to read !!

0CommentWas this review helpful to you?YesNo

Five Stars

Byjames m hawkinson March 20, 2016

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

good

0CommentWas this review helpful to you?YesNo

Still The Best Account Of The Historic Battle Of The Coral Sea

ByGeorge O'LearyTOP 500 REVIEWERon August 9, 2012

Format: Mass Market Paperback

Although this came out 37 years ago it remains to this day THE best account of the historic Battle Of The Coral Sea which took place in May 1942 - just five months after Pearl Harbor. Fully indexed and annotated, with a number of on-scene graphic photos, the best way to describe it is to quote from the blurb on the rear cover:

"The Turning Point: Spring 1942: Following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, America was sunk in deep despair - the Japanese juggernaut moved on. Singapore, Hong Kong, and the Philippines were lost. Most of Southeast Asia was overrun by a series of Japanese victories. Australia was to be next. Only the U.S. Navy could stem the tide (here I interject by pointing out both Britain and the USSR were up their eyeballs trying to halt Nazi Germany). The Battle of the Coral Sea was a new era in sea warfare. Aircraft carriers battled each other in the mightiest battle in Naval history. The Lexington and Yorktown were pitted against the Zuikaku and Shokaku, veterans of the Pearl Harbor victory. This was the battle that was to be decisive to the war's outcome (again I interject to emphasize - the PACIFIC war). The Japanese advance was stopped - their overall strategy of never-ending expansion was finally checked. After this battle the Japanese warlords learned a new word: Retreat!"

To quote from a review by the Daily Press, Newport News "The author tells it like it was and some portions include strong stuff, graphically portrayed and unfortunately true; the stuff that reawakens old nightmares for readers who participated long ago."

Author Edwin Palmer Hoyt, born on August 5, 1923, served from 1943 to 1945 with the Domestic Branch of The Office Of War Information, and after the war began a stint as a foreign correspondent for The Denver Post as well as United Press, covering events in Thailand, Burma, India, China, Korea, the Mid-East and North Africa, as well as parts of Europe. In 1948 he served as a broadcaster for ABC covering both the revolution in Czechoslovakia and the first Arab-Israeli confrontation. From 1951 through to 1955 he served as editor/publisher for the Colorado Springs Free Press, and in 1955-56 in New York City as associate editor of Collier's Weekly. His talents were then hired by CBS for which he became a TV producer/writer/director in 1957, and added the assistant publisher duties at American Heritage magazine in 1958.

It was at this stage of his career that he turned to writing books, eventually seeing close to 200 published, all but about 20 non-fiction military history books. In addition to this book, which he dedicated to Admiral Harleigh Burke, he wrote Old Ironsides, Decatur's Revenge, Hellfire In Tripoli, Against Cold Steel, The Battle Of Leyte Gulf, Nimitz And His Admirals, The Mutiny On The Globe, How They Won The War In The Pacific, and The Terrible Voyage - all recommended if any fall within your sphere of interest.

He passed away in Tokyo at age 82 on July 29, 2005 following a lengthy illness.

0Comment One person found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

product of its time

ByKonrad Baumeisteron September 25, 2011

Format: Paperback

This book, written some 40 years ago, makes for fast and light raading about the important battle of the Coral Sea. It can be seen as a tactical loss for the US in terms of ships lost, but simultaneously what at the time seemed a temporary delay in the Japanese timetable to conquer New Guinea (and down the road to isolate and perhaps invade Australia) ended up being the last real push south. The battle of Midway, following shortly after that of the Coral Sea, would put the Japanese for ever on the strategic defensive int he Central Pacific. Consequently, checking the Japanese offensive in the Coral Sea at that time can also be seen as something of a strategic block, an important victory.

Hoyt's book, like most of his books, is not the product of deep and exhaustive research into dusty old sources. They are eesentially rewritten ships' logs, maps and actions taken from the official histories, with a few (sometimes relevant, sometimes not) personal diaries, occasional interviews thrown in. What emerges is the type of popular history that is long on you-are-there detail for individual actions, a witness to specific flights or actions or strafing runs...while unfortunatrly often overlooking or glossing over the overall strategic or operational planning and the background for what took place. There were an awful lot of these books written in the 60s and 70s for the mass paperback market.

Some sources are of questionable value. Hoyt spends some time on the diary of the Japanese soldier who fell at Guadalcanal, but whose diary has nothing to do with actions in the Coral Sea (because he wasn't there, instead being with the army on Java). There are no real other sources from a Japanese point of view in the book, a real weakness. Others - official US Navy sources - are far better, allowing for precise details on ship locations and movements, and some maps with the text.

Overall, if you find this for 25c at a garage sale, it won't hurt much; but it is hardly the last or best, most authoritztive statement on the Battle of the Coral Sea. Look elsewhere.

0Comment 9 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

Customer images

See all customer images

Most recent customer reviews

Excellent History

"Blue Skies And Blood" by Edwin P. Hoyt. Subtitled: "The Battle Of The Coral Sea". Paul S. Eriksson, Inc. New York, 1975.

If you query Amazon.Read more

Published on March 23, 2007 by John P. Rooney

The Japanese are checked in the Coral Sea.

Hoyt has written several books about WWII. This is a rather short book and summarizes the battle. The Japanese lost the light carrier Shoho and the Americans lost the fleet...Read more

Published on September 5, 2003

America's First Naval Victory Over The Japanese

In May, 1942, the Japanese developed a plan to capture Port Moresby and Australia. A powerful Japanese fleet sailed into the bright blue waters of the Coral Sea.Read more

Published on July 7, 2003 by Jeffrey T. Munson

Set up an Amazon Giveaway

Amazon Giveaway allows you to run promotional giveaways in order to create buzz, reward your audience, and attract new followers and customers. Learn more about Amazon Giveaway

This item: Blue Skies and Blood: The Battle of the Coral Sea

Set up a giveaway

Pages with related products. See and discover other items: climbing hand exercise, gifts for cold weather, bladder bags, creek fishing, auto bike, bike clean

Buy New $14.95

Turn on 1-Click ordering for this browser

or

or

Buy Used $12.48

Turn on 1-Click ordering for this browser

Other Sellers on Amazon

Blue Skies and Blood: The Battle of the Coral Sea Paperback – February 25, 2003

Customers who viewed this item also viewed

What other items do customers buy after viewing this item?

Special offers and product promotions

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Product details

Customer reviews

Top customer reviews

Customer images

Most recent customer reviews

Set up an Amazon Giveaway

Buy New

$14.95

Buy Used

$12.48