"New" book on Pearl Harbor, attack analysis.

[Chaos]

I've ordered two books already because of this thread... Do I have to get this one too, really?

Hara was, as the title of his book so subtly alludes, a Japanese destroyer captain. IIRC he commanded Amatsukaze from 1941, through the conquest of the Phillipines and Dutch East Indies, until after the First Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, where she was badly damaged. In 1943 he was technically in command of a destroyer division, but the only ship of the division that wasn´t serving in a different division was the old, worn-out Shigure serving in the Solomons. After a long period ashore, teaching at torpedo school IIRC, he then commanded the light cruiser Yahagi when it escorted Yamato´s death ride.

He has some amazing stories to tell - and since he starts his account in his childhood and explain how he went on to become a naval officer, his book also sheds a lot of light on Japanese society in the first half of the 20th century.

 

[Anerystos]

Hmm, sounds interesting. however my "to be read" pile is growing too fast as it is.

Ditto, ditto.

Given that most non-fiction books really consist of the first chapter which describes the plot and the rest of it is justifying why reality is that shape-shifting little green men rule the cosmos. (Problem solved folks: that's where the Jumblies came from and why the sieve didn't sink.)

But I digress.

I've cut back on buying books - I borrow them from the library now, read the first chapter and take them back. If the book is any good, I buy a copy. I also work in a charity scond-hand book shop. A few get delayed on their way to the shelves.

But I digress!

 

[ArchieGoodwin]

Hara was, as the title of his book so subtly alludes, a Japanese destroyer captain. IIRC he commanded Amatsukaze from 1941, through the conquest of the Phillipines and Dutch East Indies, until after the First Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, where she was badly damaged. In 1943 he was technically in command of a destroyer division, but the only ship of the division that wasn´t serving in a different division was the old, worn-out Shigure serving in the Solomons. After a long period ashore, teaching at torpedo school IIRC, he then commanded the light cruiser Yahagi when it escorted Yamato´s death ride.

He has some amazing stories to tell - and since he starts his account in his childhood and explain how he went on to become a naval officer, his book also sheds a lot of light on Japanese society in the first half of the 20th century.

Thanks for the synopsis. Sounds fascinating. I'll add it to the list.