The Pacific Warriors: The U.S. Marines in World War II: A Pictorial Tribute
by Eric Hammel
from Zenith Press

Editorial Review:

FROM THE HALLS OF MONTEZUMA to the shores of Tripoli, as the Marine Corps Hymn relates, and more recently in the epic battle of the Chosin Reservoir in Korea and the siege of Hue City in Vietnam, America's "soldiers of the sea" have fought their country's baffles around the world for more than two centuries. From Belleau Wood in the Great War to the killing fields of Iraq, the fighting Leathernecks have been known for their valorous spirit--their ability to persevere in the face of nearly any odds.
The U.S. Marines earned their reputation of being the "First to Fight" on the South Pacific island of Guadalcanal, when on August 7, 1942, the 1st Marine Division stormed ashore to begin one of the most difficult and brutal campaigns of recent military history. This was just the first of an unbroken string of a dozen island victories across the Pacific: up the Solomons from Guadalcanal, on westward in 1943 from Tarawa in the central Pacific, and the climactic Western Pacific campaigns of 1945 on Iwo Jima and Okinawa.

Pacific Warriors covers all of the legendary Marine battles of the Pacific War in a tribute to the men who led the way against Japan. It also provides the reader with a look at the prewar Marine Corps and its remarkable base force to a full six divisions along with a modern Marine Corps air force. The rise and development of modern amphibious doctrine and training going back to the end of the nineteenth century are an important part of the story and receive detailed coverage.
Combined with nearly three hundred photographs--many never before published--and detailed captions, plus seventeen maps commissioned especially for this volume, the expert text by critically acclaimed military historian Eric Hammel will serve as a lasting tribute to the United States Marines of World War II.

Customer Reviews:

• Avg. Customer Rating: 5.0 / 5.0

• Let us always remember these men
  Born in 1940, I lived a serene childhood during the War. Our hardships were rationing and blackouts. My like-age cousin in Southwestern Germany dodged bombs and tanks, lost her father somewhere on the Eastern Front and our great uncle when their town was overrun. Like her, I knew we were at war. Our city streets had plenty of amputee veterans and men in uniform. I saw the Atlantic horizon lined with warships. I played war with my brother and "flew" my toy planes crying, "bombs over Tokyo." How protected we... more info

• Pacific Warriors
  This is an excellent book showing the US Marines during WW2 in the Pacific. Both the pictures and text are some of the best I have seen. This book will truly be appreciated by anyone who wants to understand what it was like to be a Marine fighting in the Pacific Theater of Operations during World War II.

• Outstanding Visual Presentation of Pacific War
  Pacific Warriors is one of those rare books that absolutely captures the essence of an era. Eric Hammel's photo selection and text sets the stage and allows the images themselves to tell the story of a generation of Marines who fought the battles in the Central Pacific during World War II. These photos remind everyone that the cost of victory over Japan did not come cheap. The combat cameramen captured the close-range fighting brilliantly, and some of the best war photography ever taken can be seen within... more info

• Nice overview of the Pacific war.
  This book covers the full scope of the island-hopping Marines, with vivid pictures portraying what they went through in World War II. However, if you want to follow one Marine who hit Tulagi, Guadalcanal, Tarawa, Saipan, Guam, and Iwo Jima, I recommend reading "Pacific War Marine."