The Battle of Wake Island

The History of the Japanese Invasion Launched in Conjunction with the Attack on Pearl Harbor

De: Charles River Editors

Narrado por: Scott Clem

All Americans are familiar with the "day that will live in infamy". At 9:30 a.m. on Sunday, December 7, 1941, Pearl Harbor, the advanced base of the United States Navy's Pacific Fleet, was ablaze. It had been smashed by aircraft launched by the carriers of the Imperial Japanese Navy. All eight battleships had been sunk or badly damaged, 350 aircraft had been knocked out, and over 2000 Americans lay dead. Indelible images of the USS Arizona exploding and the USS Oklahoma capsizing and floating upside down have been ingrained in the American conscience ever since. In less than an hour and a half the Japanese had almost wiped out America's entire naval presence in the Pacific, but one of the aspects of the war most forgotten is that the Japanese simultaneously launched concerted attacks against American targets elsewhere in the Pacific that the same day, including one against the strategically located Wake Island.

©2016 Charles River Editors (P)2016 Charles River Editors

Great short history

This was a great short book detailing the fight at Wake Island. Highly recommended for anyone.

I was very interested in this story

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

Many years ago I had the honor of knowing a gentleman who was a young worker for Morrison Knudsen on Wake Island when the Japanese invaded. He spent the entire war as a POW. I heard some of the stories, not many because they were stories of cruelty and horror and he had moved on and did not wish to dwell on them. For that reason I had a personal and strong interest in this book. I think it was fairly well written although I wish it were longer and more detailed. I really dislike criticizing the narrator but I felt like it was read without passion or investment. Sort of like listening to someone read a newspaper story out loud. The frequent sibilant on pronouncing everything with an "S" was distracting. I am glad, however, that I listened to the book. There were many hero's in this story. I wish I could have met more of them.

Would you be willing to try another one of Scott Clem’s performances?

Probably not, sorry!

Was The Battle of Wake Island worth the listening time?

Yes, wish it were longer.