Overview

In August 1942, America took the offensive for the first time in World War II. The place was Guadalcanal. The cost was unimaginable. From the surprise landings on a rain-soaked jungle island to the brutal six-month campaign that followed, this is the definitive account of the Battle of Guadalcanal-the turning point of the Pacific War, told through the eyes of the Marines, sailors, and pilots who fought it. Drawing on firsthand accounts, war diaries, and oral histories, this narrative chronicles the savage land battles, desperate naval engagements, and fierce air combat that transformed an obscure Solomon Islands airstrip into hallowed ground. But this is more than a combat chronicle. It's the story of what jungle warfare, malaria, starvation, and relentless enemy pressure did to the men who endured it-American and Japanese alike. It's about the coastwatchers who risked everything, the Solomon Islanders whose home became a battlefield, and the commanders who made decisions that changed the course of the war. This gripping military history covers: The hastily planned Operation Watchtower and initial landings Land battles from Alligator Creek to Bloody Ridge to Mount Austen Major naval engagements: Savo Island, Eastern Solomons, Cape Esperance, the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, Tassafaronga The sinking of USS Wasp and the carrier battles Marine Raiders' deep patrols and special operations The Japanese perspective and the ultimate evacuation during Operation KE For readers of WWII Pacific Theater history, Marine Corps combat narratives, and anyone seeking to understand the human cost of the campaign that stopped Japanese expansion and began America's long road to Tokyo. This is Guadalcanal as it has never been told before-from the foxholes, the gun decks, and the cockpits.

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