The Pacific

Hell Was an Ocean Away

By: Hugh Ambrose

Narrated by: Mike Chamberlain

Length: 23 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's summary

In this companion to the HBO miniseries - executive produced by Tom Hanks, Steven Spielberg, and Gary Goetzman - Hugh Ambrose reveals the intertwined odysseys of four US Marines and a US Navy carrier pilot during World War II.

Between America's retreat from China in late November 1941 and the moment General MacArthur's airplane touched down on the Japanese mainland in August of 1945, five men connected by happenstance fought the key battles of the war against Japan. From the debacle in Bataan, to the miracle at Midway and the relentless vortex of Guadalcanal, their solemn oaths to their country later led one to the Great Marianas Turkey Shoot and the others to the coral strongholds of Peleliu, the black terraces of Iwo Jima, and the killing fields of Okinawa, until at last the survivors enjoyed a triumphant, yet uneasy, return home.

In The Pacific, Hugh Ambrose focuses on the real-life stories of the five men who put their lives on the line for our country. To deepen the story revealed in the miniseries and go beyond it, the book dares to chart a great ocean of enmity known as The Pacific and the brave men who fought. Some considered war a profession, others enlisted as citizen soldiers. Each man served in a different part of the war, but their respective duties required every ounce of their courage and their strength to defeat an enemy who preferred suicide to surrender. The medals for valor that were pinned on three of them came at a shocking price - a price paid in full by all.

©2010 Hugh Ambrose (P)2010 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“Doing for the war against Japan what Band of Brothers did for the war against Germany, Ambrose’s history effectively immerses readers in the Good War’s second front.” (Publishers Weekly)

“Ambrose’s narrative is convincing...[he] shows the possibilities of readable and complex military history.” (Dr. Allan Millett, director, Eisenhower Center for American Studies, The National World War II Museum)

Lousy

The reader talks in a monotone and it is hard to keep awake. The story is hard to follow because the events are stuck together in such a way that you get confused about who is who and where. The facts of the conflict are presented in a manner lacking veracity. There are better books on the Pacific War that give a less tainted version. This might have been good for TV but for reading ( listening ) it leaves a lot to be desired

Good read!

I would give this book 5 stars but for one thing. There are several places for the author makes assumptions about conversations that might have gone on and interjects them into the storyline. This drives me crazy. The story is good on its own. No need to embellish. All of that being said, this is such a good read, that I am sure I will revisit it again. It reads like a mixture of biographies and history, which it is. It not like written a movie script intended to titillate the reader.

The movie should have another name

A bit long, but it covers several stories ans campaigns so there is alot to chew on here. The narrator has a good voice for such a book. 10/10 from me.

NOT like the Series

"The Pacific" is nothing like the HBO miniseries. Not even close to it. But that's not a bad thing at all. It's a very well paced narrative featuring five "characters" from the series who were all real veterans. The only one not featured in this book, save a few references is Robert Leckie. It jumps from narrative to narrative, but not in a confusing fashion at all. It's just their stories. And many of the stories don't overlap. The Pacific campaign was so vast and all encompassing. No wonder there have been volumes and volumes written on this campaign, but one can never learn enough. It gets the reader every time. The fortitude of the marines, pilots, commanders, and others involved is incomparable. What a story that stays with you. Thank you Hugh Ambrose and Mike Chamberlain for such excellent narration.

must read. and i listen to every WW2 book I can..

one of the best must read WW2 books out there. and I read or listen to everyone I can get my hands on.
NUFF SAID!

Too broad, not enough depth

While I enjoyed this audiobook, it was too broad and not enough depth. It's author tried to cover everything within Navy and Marine Corp during WW2. It reads like an Enclopedia and that's being nice about it. Sadly, such a broad approach only scratches the surface. The author should have dropped the Navy portion and delved MUCH deeper into Marine Corp experience.

Outstanding

I thought it was a great listen and more than the move could provide. Thanks

Great continuity

I really enjoyed this and how it tied all the components together .I was impressed by the truth that the men revealed .

Mispronunciations are deal breaker

This was a very general tale of the Pacific war. Not a lot of detail, but for the novice WW II enthusiast it’s a good starting point. HOWEVER, I cringed at every one of the hundreds of mispronunciations by the narrator. It’s evident that he did no prior research before reading and it’s also obvious that there was no editing of the finished product. Absolutely awful the way that significant battles, towns and phrases were continually mangled.

dull

Blah, blah, blah, blah. Obviously a compilation of notes without any story or feeling. Could make it through.