Nemesis: The Battle for Japan, 1944-45

Description

A masterly narrative history of the climactic battles of the Second World War, and companion volume to his bestselling 'Armageddon', by the pre-eminent military historian Max Hastings. The battle for Japan that ended many months after the battle for Europe involved enormous naval, military and air operations from the borders of India to the most distant regions of China. There is no finer chronicler of these events than the great military historian Max Hastings, whose gripping account explores not just the global strategic objectives of the USA, Japan and Britain but also the first-hand experiences of the airmen, sailors and soldiers of all the countries who participated in the Far East and the war in the Pacific. The big moments in the story are chosen to reflect a wide variety of human experience: the great naval battle of Leyte Gulf; the under-reported war in China; the re-conquest of Burma by the British Army under General Slim; MacArthur's follies in the Philippines; the Marines on Iwojima and Okinawa; LeMay's fire-raising Super-fortress assaults on Japan; the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki; the kamikaze pilots of Japan; the almost unknown Soviet blitzkrieg in Manchuria in the last days of the war, as Stalin hastened to gather the spoils; and the terrible final acts across Japanese-occupied Asia. This is classic, epic history - both in the content and the manner of telling.

Max Hastings studied at Charterhouse and Oxford and became a foreign correspondent, reporting from more than sixty countries and eleven wars for BBC TV and the London Evening Standard. He has won many awards for his journalism. Among his bestselling books 'Bomber Command' won the Somerset Maugham Prize, and both 'Overlord' and 'Battle for the Falklands' won the Yorkshire Post Book of the Year Prize. After ten years as editor and then editor-in-chief of the Daily Telegraph, he became editor of the Evening Standard in 1996. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, he was knighted in 2002. He now lives in Berkshire.

'"Nemesis" is a triumph...provocative, insightful ...impressive...Put all these elements together - the ambition, insight, sureness of touch - and you have a book of real quality.' Sunday Times 'Brilliantly though Hastings lays out the strategic context, his real talent lies in his account of the 'terrible human experience' that it involved...This is a book for anyone who wants to understand what happened in half the world during one of the bloodiest periods of the blood-soaked 20th century.' Spectator 'An absorbing story woven from the letters, diaries and memoires of those who fought at the sharp end, friend and foe alike. The balance is sustained with admirable skill... "Nemesis" is Max Hastings's best book...informed, lively, thorough' Literary Review 'Spectacular...Hastings makes important points about the war in the East that have been all too rarely heard...excellent...compelling...searingly powerful.' Sunday Telegraph 'As Hastings brilliantly describes, conditions for fighting men on both sides were appalling...the fire-bombing of Tokyo and the decision to drop the atomic bombs were influenced by the urge to 'get this business over with', but the argument, as Hastings explains so well with his usual exemplary judgement, is far more complex.' Financial Times 'Highly readable...absorbing...excellent...admirably balanced...the author's attitude...refreshingly modern and sensitive.' Guardian 'A delight to read...absorbing...engrossing.' Scotsman 'A delight to read...its originality lies...in the meticulousness of the author's research...an absorbing read... "Nemesis" is an engrossing book.' Evening Standard Reviews for 'Warriors': 'With this collection, Hastings is back on home territory, where he can bring his unique blend of skills as war reporter, and social as well as military historian to bear!This is one of the best and most diverting of his shorter pieces.' Evening Standard 'All [of the stories] are corking!opinions are stated firmly and with big bold swings of the pendulum. His virtues are clarity and decisiveness -- greatly to be admired when it comes to making clear, for the lay reader, roughly what is going on in the fiendishly complex and bloody engagements he describes.' Spectator 'A wonderfully eclectic selection!a marvellous book. Wry, perceptive and engaging, it lays bare the curious mix of character traits -- good and bad -- that a successful warrior requires.' Sunday Telegraph 'His brisk prose has the qualities of his warriors: clear, decisive, forceful!"Warriors" will enthral everyone.' Daily Telegraph