Midway

The Battle That Doomed Japan, the Japanese Navy's Story

By: Mitsuo Fuchida, Masatake Okumiya

Narrated by: Terence Aselford

Length: 7 hrs and 46 mins

Publisher's summary

This landmark study was first published in English by the Naval Institute in 1955. Widely acknowledged for its valuable Japanese insights into the battle that turned the tide of war in the Pacific, the book has made a great impact on American readers over the years. Two Japanese naval aviators who participated in the operation provide an unsparing analysis of what caused Japan's staggering defeat.

Mitsuo Fuchida, who led the first air strike on Pearl Harbor, commanded the Akagi carrier air group and later made a study of the battle at the Japanese Naval War College. Masatake Okumiya, one of Japan's first dive-bomber pilots, was aboard the light carrier Ryujo and later served as a staff officer in a carrier division. Armed with knowledge of top-secret documents destroyed by the Japanese and access to private papers, they show the operation to be ill-conceived and poorly planned and executed, and fault their flag officers for lacking initiative, leadership, and clear thinking. With an introduction by an author known for his study of the battle from the American perspective, the work continues to make a significant contribution to World War II literature.

©1955, 1992 U.S. Naval Institute (P)2004 Naval Institute Press

Critic reviews

"Midway gives an enlightening account of the Japanese naval leaders of the time, placing a new perspective on their abilities, shortcomings, and their ways of thinking and acting." (Military Review)
"Captain Fuchida's and Commander Okumiya's clear style should satisfy both the casual [listener] and the naval strategist." (Baltimore Sun)

Unique perspective of the battle

I have heard, read and watched stories about the battle of Midway many many times. I really enjoyed hearing about it from the perspective of a Japanese aviator.

Midway.

Alot like the Movie but still a very interesting Book. I would recommend this Book.

Midway Japans view of the battle

An excellant well written review of this critical battle in the Pacific. Insights from a surviving Japanese Officer who was able to understand the big picture.
Narrator was also excellent. Well spoken, perfect cadence and brought me into the action.
This book gives the Japanese side a new dynamic to those interested in the history of the War in the Pacific.

Nice to hear from The Other Side

What did you love best about Midway?

The authors' description of how the battle plans came together that I felt I was there. They were not reticent to reveal any detail, even those that were errors.

What does Terence Aselford bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The authors are Japanese. I do not think Terence Aselford is, yet he does not attempt to sound Japanese with a fake accent.

A Classic Whose Truth Has Now Been Challenged

I've been a Midway buff for most of my adult life. An incredibly dramatic story that Hollywood should definitely try again to tell after the awful star-filled bomb of 1976. I had read all the books on the American side, all of which relied heavily on Fuchida's book for the Japanese side.


But I had never read (heard) Fuchida's book until now. There is a lot to be learned from it. Japanese over-confidence that led them to cheating on their own war games of the battle. The crazy deployment by Admiral Yamamoto of Japan's enormous naval force. The eyewitness account of the battle itself.

I'm glad that I read it. But if you've been away from World War II naval history for a while, you should know that 2005's Shattered Sword is now the definitive book on the Midway battle. For the Japanese side it relies on testimony of survivors and the translation of many Japanese documents into English for the first time.

And it claims to bust many long-time myths about Midway. For example, that the sacrifice of Torpedo 8 was not in vain because it brought the Japanese fighters down to an altitude where they could not recover in time to intercept the dive bombers. (The dive bombers did not attack until a whole hour after the torpedo strike.) When the American dive bombers struck, the Japanese carrier decks were full of airplanes beginning to take off to attack the American carriers. (The decks were clear of planes at the time, although secondary explosions in the hanger decks doomed the carriers.)

Shattered Sword accuses Fuchida's book of many inaccuracies, calling some of them intentional. The "two-phase" search plan that Fuchida criticizes his commanders for not employing, according to the authors of the new book, was not part of Japanese or American doctrine in 1942.

So listen to Fuchida's book and read Shattered Sword and decide for yourself.

Worth a listen

Interesting prospective on the battle of midway, but even more so on the causes and reasons associated with the attack on Pearl Harbor,

Liked every minute.

Excellent from IJN POV

IJN story of Midway. For Midway historians a different perspective. Well done. Many IJN strategic errors due to over confidence in 1942

Battle of Midway from the Japanese view point.

Excellent description and evaluation from a very experienced senior
Japanese WW II naval aviator of the most decisive battle of the war in the Pacific that largely gave the initiative to the United States for the rest of the war.

Good, well rounded history

“Midway: The Battle That Doomed Japan, The Japanese Navy's Story” was a slightly more than typical historical account of a WWII battle, or any conflict for that matter. The research and fact finding was superior and the time line precise, however the story was dry, yet somewhat passionate. The authors had a unique perspective of the battle, having been aboard one of the doomed Japanese aircraft carriers. There were also a number of facts from the Japanese military about the planning, strategy, and execution of the battle plan that could have only been put in there proper perspective by a member of that military. However, after all is said and done there have been so many books written about this battle, some of them superior works, and Midway: The Battle That Doomed Japan, The Japanese Navy's Story” just wasn’t one of them. It just could not escape that uninteresting history for histories sake style of writing.

The Japanese Experience at the Battle of Midway

What made the experience of listening to Midway the most enjoyable?

It was the view from the enemy experiences during and after the battle. What it was like being aboard their carriers while under attack by the Americans, damaged planes crashing on deck, damage control errors. Very exciting & interesting!