WORLD WAR II - NONFICTION
"Guadalcanal - An American Story" by Carl
K. Hixon 
This is an excellent and highly readable account of the epic struggle between the Americans and the Japanese for control of Guadalcanal and the Solomon Islands. After discovering that the Japanese were building an airfield on Guadalcanal and the strategic implications, the Americans had to take decisive action. Marines were landed on 7 August, 1945 and thus savage battles raged on land, in the air, and at sea.
This book looks at all aspects of the campaigns from planning by the Americans and Japanese commands, to the gut wrenching actions in the trenches and in the jungles. Four times the Japanese tried major assaults to retake the island and all met with disaster. The US Navy also suffered two major defeats at the Battles of Salvo Island and Tassafaronga. The continued air assault by the Japanese also claimed many of the cream of their aviation corps that could not be replaced. With mounting costs, the Japanese finally decided their attempts to drive the Americans were too costly, and from that point until the end of the war, they were on the defensive.
This is a tribute to the many marines, soldiers, and
sailors (Japanese as well as American) that gave their all in savage and
extremely difficult conditions. They not only had to fight their enemies, but
the weather, insects, snakes, and disease, which took a heavy toll.
Reviewed by Kenneth S. Smith 2/06/2001
Available from:
Naval Institute Press
Annapolis Maryland
www.usni.org
