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Islands of Hell: The U.S. Marines in the Western Pacific, 1944-1945 |  | Author: Eric Hammel
Publisher: Zenith Press
Category: Book
List Price: $50.00
Buy New: $28.75
as of 7/30/2010 23:16 MDT details
You Save: $21.25 (42%)
New (22) Used (6) from $28.75
Seller: SellerShar
Rating:  7 reviews
Sales Rank: 432038
Media: Hardcover
Edition: First
Pages: 300
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 5.4
Dimensions (in): 12 x 11 x 1.4
ISBN: 0760337799
Dewey Decimal Number: 940.545973
EAN: 9780760337790
ASIN: 0760337799
Publication Date: March 1, 2010
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
By the summer of 1944 the tide had turned in the Pacific War against the Japanese. The war was not nearly over, however, and the U.S. Marines had their heaviest combat in front of them. Here for the first time is a detailed photographic history for the Fighting Leathernecks' fierce combat for the Marianas, Peleliu, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa. Illustrated with hundreds of never-before-published photographs and supplemented with full-color maps, Islands of Hell is a historical and visual treat.
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 7
A Stunning Tribute! June 3, 2010
Dave Schranck (Anaheim Ca)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Islands of Hell, by the noted author who has 65 books to his credit, is the seventh and latest in a series of Pictorials that give tribute and edification to the US forces of both Marines and Army soldier fighting in the Pacific in WWII .
In this installment the invasions of Saipan, Guam, Tinian, Peleliu, Iwo Jima and Okinawa are covered. These landings occurred in late 1944 and 1945.
While most in the series have around 250 pages, this volume has 284 pages. These pictorials are large having a dimension of approx 12 in by 11 in. It has over 550 photos and all of them are memorable and some are deathly gruesome. Most of the pictures are of fighting on land but naval and aerial shots were included as well. The overhead photos of the islands were impressive and adds to your apreciation of the difficulties of conquering these islands.
Each landing begins with a brief strategy; each island had its own particular terrain and problems and this explanation helps set the scene. After this sitrep the tactical is discussed. These islands had their differences but one thing in common is that they were difficult and costly to take. Each photo has its own detailed caption as well so between the narrative and the captions, the reader will have a good basic understanding of each battle.
Mr Hammel has a talent of choosing great photos and describing the action and horror of battle that makes the reader feel as one with the soldiers and marines in landing the beaches, shooting from foxholes or charging the summit or clearing that cave.
Some of the photos can be seen in the author's earlier works but many are new.
If you're looking for a pictorial of the Pacific war with a brief but competent overview this book and the author's other books in the series are masterful and highly recommended.
A Landmark Book April 14, 2010
Hans Halberstadt (San Jose, CA USA)
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
ISLANDS OF HELL is a unique military history book in my experience, and I ought to know -- I've been writing them myself for twenty-five years. Eric Hammel has done something with this one that makes it very special. He's managed to take an important period of history and bring it alive again with a combination of commentary and photography that is vivid and intense. This book does what the Military Channel and the History Channel claim to do, but don't -- bring battlefield history to life.
The book is unique in several ways: one is that Hammel knows this subject like a combat veteran and can tell the story like a Marine who lived it. Another is the photography; he's managed to find hundreds of dramatic images that I've never seen before, and to get them reproduced with superb clarity. There's a photograph of a Marine throwing a frag grenade that's so clear that you can see the little whisp of smoke from the fuse and sense the danger and tension of the moment the shutter opened. There are dozens of photographs like that, individually fascinating, collectively as close as anybody today can come to the experience of combat at those times and those places.
Now, there are dozens or maybe hundreds of military history books loaded with photographs, and some with my name on them. But Hammel's book shames us all with the excellent design and reproduction of this book which takes the prize for this genre. The design is clean and the printing and binding far superior to any other history book I can think of. It's what a military history book ought to be...it's what a history book ought to be.
An Unforgettable Pictorial Record April 13, 2010
Bruce Gamble (Northwest Florida)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Eric Hammel's newest offering in his series of pictorial works on U.S. Marines in combat in the Pacific War is a real gem. The hundreds of photographs are of superior quality, and many are quite provocative. By this I mean that the images will affect the reader, either because they convey the difficult conditions under which the island battles were fought, or because they depict--in graphic detail--the aftermath of numerous bloody firefights and banzai charges. But Hammel did not select the images merely for the sake of sensationalism. The photos, combined with well-written text, serve as a tribute to the sacrifices made by thousands of young marines in wresting the islands from the Japanese. The book is also an example of fine production with excellent maps, top quality paper, and stunning photographs.
Outstanding Content and Presentation April 10, 2010
Jay A. Stout (San Diego, CA)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Eric Hammel has been writing about the Pacific War for decades, and has enjoyed a personal, professional and academic relationship with the Marine Corps for at least that long. All of that experience, coupled with his colorful writing style makes this work a vivid, living account of the island campaigns of the latter part of World War II.
The photographs--carefully selected--are magnificent. Aside from captions, they are supported by well-written text that describes the campaigns with enough detail to satisfy armchair historians. He writes real history and although he commemorates the heroism and bravery of the fighting men, he is not reluctant to point out follies in leadership. In particular he highlights the foolishness of the decision to take the island of Peleliu in a gruesome, bloody campaign that made little sense even in the context of the time. In this respect, "Islands of Hell" is much more than a coffee table accessory.
Physically, the book is very well put together. The hardcover is sturdy, the pages are heavy, durable stock, construction is quite good and the entire book has a real, pleasing heft. Photo reproduction is very good.
Highly recommended.
 Coffee table book April 10, 2010
J. Hyland (Daytona Beach, FL)
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
This is a large, coffee-table book. Very in-depth as are all of Hammel's works. Many photographs. A treasure.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 7
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