Last Mission to Tokyo

The Extraordinary Story of the Doolittle Raiders and Their Final Fight for Justice

De: Michel Paradis

Narrado por: Jacques Roy

Michel Paradis’s Last Mission to Tokyo, a “superb” (The Wall Street Journal) and “engrossing...richly researched” (The New York Times Book Review) account of a key but underreported moment in World War II: The Doolittle Raids and the international war crimes trial in 1945 that defined the Japanese-American relations and changed legal history.

In 1942, freshly humiliated from the attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States was in search of a plan. President Roosevelt, determined to show the world that our nation would not be intimidated or defeated by enemy powers, demanded recommendations for a show of strength. Jimmy Doolittle, a stunt pilot with a doctorate from MIT, came forward and led eighty young men, gathered together from the far-flung corners of Depression-era America, on a seemingly impossible mission across the Pacific. Sixteen planes in all, they only had enough fuel for a one-way trip. Together, the Raiders, as they were called, did what no one had successfully done for more than a thousand years. They struck the mainland of Japan and permanently turned the tide of the war in the Pacific.

Almost immediately, The Doolittle Raid captured the public imagination, and has remained a seminal moment in World War II history, but the heroism and bravery of the mission is only half the story. In Last Mission to Tokyo, Michel Paradis reveals the dramatic aftermath of the mission, which involved two lost crews captured, tried, and tortured at the hands of the Japanese, a dramatic rescue of the survivors in the last weeks of World War II, and an international manhunt and trial led by two dynamic and opposing young lawyers—in which both the United States and Japan accused the other of war crimes—that would change the face of our legal and military history. Perfect for fans of Lucky 666 and Nuremberg: Infamy on Trial, Last Mission to Tokyo is an unforgettable war story-meets-courtroom-drama that “captures the reader with the first sentence and never lets go” (John Grisham).

Very interesting insight and ending!

Thought it would be open & shut. Now want to learn more about https://en.m.wikipedia.org › wiki
Kenpeitai!

Love this narrator

The book wasn’t exactly what I was expecting (it was mostly about the trials), but it was a surprising read that I was very interested in. Expertly narrated!

terrific book, excellently rendered to audio

This is a terrific story, that expands on a small sliver of [mostly distorted] history within the broader story of the Doolittle Raid. It provides a different interpretation, convincingly, than I had been taught -- the one I had emphasized the "littleness" of the damage & suggested the Japanese were able to shrug the whole thing off. The author demonstrates that the raid was instrumental in the subsequent [disasterous for Japan] Midway expedition, and that the raid resulted in the intensification of rivalries within the Japanese cabinet. The author also shows how the foregoing, combined with the collateral/civilian damage from the raid (firmly denied by the Doolittle raid participants) led to the events of the imprisonment, torture, executions of the captured raiders. The author also provides an object lesson about how hard it is to achieve a truthful & fair war crimes trial, something that applies to the trial of the Japanese in Shanghai & to the Al Quaida in America's 100-year old Cuban colony in Guantanamo. Highly recommended.

Great Untold Story

I knew about Doolittle Raid but now know the fate of the missing crews. This book was at times boring but does keep you interested. The book was not much about the mission (which is what I was expecting and hoping for) but more of the trials which made it interesting. Well researched and well written, easy to understand for being a trial. Overall a great book to read.

Exasperating WW2 crimes investigation

Narration is clear

Story of one army criminal investigator being frustrated at every turn when searching for JIA OFFICERS RESPONSIBLE FOR EXECUTION OF THE DEWEY flyers.

The Japanese way of stone walling and double speak is maddening.

As additional evidence, just try to track down japan’s phony obfuscations concerning their enslaving thousands of young women. 80 years later they still refuse admission, much less apology; still even less willing to pay reparations. No wonder Asian neighbors still harbor distrust and hostility toward them. At some point they will get their comeuppance, that is addition to their disgusting reputation.