"A Magnificent Fight": The Battle for Wake Island

by Robert J. Cressman

Overview

This book recounts how the Wake Island garrison survived nearly daily bombings and repulsed the first Japanese attempt to take the atoll. The author uses extensive Japanese materials--many never before used or available-- to identify the enemy order of battle and the roles each unit played in the drama.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781612512303
Publisher:	Naval Institute Press
Publication date:	09/17/2013
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	324
Sales rank:	403,799
File size:	7 MB

About the Author

Robert J. Cressman is an award-winning author who is a leading expert on the War in the Pacific. He is the author of The Official Chronology of the U.S. Navy in World War II. He lives in Rockville, MD.

Table of Contents

Robert J. Cressman is an award-winning author who is a leading expert on the Pacific War. He is the author of The Official Chronology of the U.S. Navy in World War II.

Preface ix

Acknowledgments xi

Special Notes xiii

Chapter 1 "A Land Reserved to Those Who Fly" 1

Chapter 2 "An Uninviting Low-Lying Atoll" 26

Chapter 3 "Like the Fatted Calf" 54

Chapter 4 "I'll See That You Get a Medal as Big as a Pie" 80

Chapter 5 "Humbled by Sizeable Casualties" 111

Chapter 6 "Still No Help" 135

Chapter 7 "Very Secret to Everyone Except the Japs" 170

Chapter 8 "This Is as Far as We Go" 192

Chapter 9 "A Difficult Thing to Do" 225

Appendix 1 The Cunningham-Devereux Controversy 261

Appendix 2 Decorations for Valor Awarded to Wake Defenders 268

Appendix 3 Wake Island's Wildcats 270

Appendix 4 Wake Island, the Movie 275

Notes 277

Bibliography 305

Index 313