Overview

Tells the remarkable story of how a few brave marines managed to single-handedly turn the tide against the Japanese in the Battle of Tarawa. In May 1943 a self-described ""really young, green, ignorant lieutenant"" assumed command of a new Marine Corps company. His even younger enlisted Marines were learning to use an untested weapon, the M4A2 ""Sherman"" medium tank. His sole combat veteran was the company bugler, who had salvaged his dress cap and battered horn from a sinking aircraft carrier. Just six months later the company would be thrown into one of the ghastliest battles of World War II. AUTHORS: Romain V. Cansière is a native of southern France, interested in the U. S. Marine Corps since his teenage years. His current historical research is on the Marine Corps in World War I. Oscar and Romain co-authored Tanks In Hell: A Marine Corps Tank Company On Tarawa, winner of the 2016 General Wallace M. Greene Jr. Award for distinguished non-fiction. Oscar E. Gilbert was a U.S. Marine Corps artilleryman and instructor, and retired after a thirty-eight year career in government service, university teaching, and international petroleum exploration. He is the author of numerous books on military history.

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9781612006512

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.. . trusts veterans of the battle to recall their own experiences -- and gives them plenty of space to do so -- while the historians do the work of tracing the individual paths of specific tanks and fitting them into a cohesive narrative of Pacific tank combat. Helpfully, each tank had a name, making them easier to follow. --War Is Boring The Battle of Tarawa has been extensively studied, with many scholarly works covering the battle. Oscar Gilbert and Romain Cansiere have approached this topic by burrowing down to the company level examining in minute detail the activities of C Company, I Corps Tank Battalion (Medium), its individual M4A2 Sherman tanks, and the Marines who operated them Arguing that Marine tank operations have been understudied generally and that the tank contribution on Tarawa specifically has been relatively ignored, the authors present a holistic unit history...It is a very enjoyable read, the style is plain but energetic, and the battle scenes are very clear. As a battle study, the work is a great success, providing a detailed account of the company's successes and failures on Tarawa. As a unit history, the work provides an excellent mix of personal anecdote and organizational data... The book provides a personal, beachlevel view of the Marine island campaign that highlights the sacrifices made by Marines of all stripes while winning the war in the Pacific. --Marine Corps History .. . unique study describes the battle of Tarawa as you've never seen it: from the tankers point of view... --Tanks on Tarawa The book is heavily laden with quotes, memories and stories of the men of Charlie Company. This book brought tears to my eyes in some instances where the authors and Marines remember their actions in one of the most fiercely fought battles of the Pacific. The first person accounts along with the historical narrative both flow together well to provide a gripping account of the battle for Tarawa from a tanker's point of view. This book adds a much-needed perspective on the Marine Corps operations on Tarawa. Get it and read it. Highly Recommended, especially for those interested in the Pacific Theater and armor operations in World War II. --Armor Modeling and Preservation Society

.. . trusts veterans of the battle to recall their own experiences -- and gives them plenty of space to do so -- while the historians do the work of tracing the individual paths of specific tanks and fitting them into a cohesive narrative of Pacific tank combat. Helpfully, each tank had a name, making them easier to follow. --War Is Boring .. . unique study describes the battle of Tarawa as you've never seen it: from the tankers point of view... --Tanks on Tarawa The Battle of Tarawa has been extensively studied, with many scholarly works covering the battle. Oscar Gilbert and Romain Cansiere have approached this topic by burrowing down to the company level examining in minute detail the activities of C Company, I Corps Tank Battalion (Medium), its individual M4A2 Sherman tanks, and the Marines who operated them Arguing that Marine tank operations have been understudied generally and that the tank contribution on Tarawa specifically has been relatively ignored, the authors present a holistic unit history...It is a very enjoyable read, the style is plain but energetic, and the battle scenes are very clear. As a battle study, the work is a great success, providing a detailed account of the company's successes and failures on Tarawa. As a unit history, the work provides an excellent mix of personal anecdote and organizational data... The book provides a personal, beachlevel view of the Marine island campaign that highlights the sacrifices made by Marines of all stripes while winning the war in the Pacific. --Marine Corps History The book is heavily laden with quotes, memories and stories of the men of Charlie Company. This book brought tears to my eyes in some instances where the authors and Marines remember their actions in one of the most fiercely fought battles of the Pacific. The first person accounts along with the historical narrative both flow together well to provide a gripping account of the battle for Tarawa from a tanker's point of view. This book adds a much-needed perspective on the Marine Corps operations on Tarawa. Get it and read it. Highly Recommended, especially for those interested in the Pacific Theater and armor operations in World War II. --Armor Modeling and Preservation Society

Author Information

Oscar E. Gilbert was a U.S. Marine Corps artilleryman and instructor, and retired after a thirty-eight year career in government service, university teaching, and international petroleum exploration. He is the author of numerous books on military history. Romain V. Cansière is a native of southern France, interested in the U. S. Marine Corps since his teenage years. His current historical research is on the Marine Corps in World War I.

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