Nemesis

The Battle for Japan, 1944-45

By: Max Hastings

Narrated by: Stewart Cameron

Length: 29 hrs and 17 mins

Publisher's summary

With an introduction read by Max Hastings. A companion volume to his best-selling Armageddon, Max Hastings' account of the battle for Japan is a masterful military history.

Featuring the most remarkable cast of commanders the world has ever seen, the dramatic battle for Japan of 1944-45 was acted out across the vast stage of Asia: Imphal and Kohima, Leyte Gulf and Iwo Jima, Okinawa, and the Soviet assault on Manchuria.

In this gripping narrative, Max Hastings weaves together the complex strands of an epic war, exploring the military tactics behind some of the most triumphant and most horrific scenes of the 20th century. The result is a masterpiece that balances the story of command decisions, rivalries, and follies with the experiences of soldiers, sailors, and airmen of all sides as only Max Hastings can.

©2007 Max Hastings (P)2014 Audible Studios

Excellent Book, Questionable narration

Max Hastings is one of the best historians of WWII. It is always a pleasure to read or listen to his work. In this instance, although Stewart Cameron was, for the most part, clear and not bad to listen to, the "accents" for Russian, Australian, Japanese and Chinese were questionable, often unpleasant and frankly unnecessary.

Interesting history for the generalist.

Would you listen to Nemesis again? Why?

I would likely listen to the portions detailing the schism between the British and American commands in the Pacific theatre as this often gets downplayed or ignored while the divisions between the IJA and IJN are given too much weight.

If you’ve listened to books by Max Hastings before, how does this one compare?

It's a typical Max Hastings book. Lots of interesting content marred by the usual gratuitous "horrors of war" porn salaciously described while hiding under a veneer of smug "tut-tutting". Just describe what happened and leave the judgment to the reader, please.

Would you listen to another book narrated by Stewart Cameron?

He did a fine job generally but there really should have been an editor involved to coach him on the correct pronunciation of certain Japanese names. The 'u' in the 'tsu' sound is nearly silent when it occurs in the middle of a word so names like Etsuko should be read as "Etsko" not "Et-TSU-ko" as Mr. Cameron has done. Further, while it is a feature of the Japanese language to add a "yu" sound to a word with a "mu" in it, this is not done with the word "samurai". Mr. Cameron insists on pronouncing it as "sa-MYU-rai" when the correct pronunciation is "sa-mu-rai".

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No.

Any additional comments?

The ratings system should not force one to enter a grade for "story" in works of non-fiction.

a superb book, must read

max Hastings must be acknowledged as as a superb historical writer if not imminent master historian. His works combine both the macro and micro universe of the various theatres which come under his microscope . I have never granted a perfect score before but given the immensity of scope and depth of emmotional intensity which this book must contend with, I feel justified in giving it five stars . the narrator was just right, very dignified and concise, there were a few puzzling pauses that had me glancing at my phone to make sure the app was on but that likely had more to do with the editing, I will definitely purchase more from Hastings.

Almost great.

As with Inferno, Max Hastings has written a different kind of history of World War II, this one of the war in the Pacific theater. Like Inferno, this history provides an overview of the strategy and battles with details gleaned from personal letters, diary entries and recollections of those involved. All sides are represented with many such entries involving the Japanese, Chinese and Burmese as well as the western allies, and subjects not generally covered in histories of World War II are covered in some detail. Thus, in this book, we find details on what life was like for allied soldiers held as POWs by the Japanese, for western civilians held in internment camps, for the few Japanese held as POWs by the allies, random acts of compassion and violence committed by both sides, the thoughts of those involved in the fighting on places like Iwo Jima, Okinawa and other islands, the only detailed discussion of the Russian invasion of Manchuria right before the surrender of Japan that I have found in books like these, an extraordinary chapter on the decision to drop the atomic bomb as well as almost unknown incidents like those involving the Australian soldiers who mutinied and refused to be sent out on patrols and the Australian civilians who refused to load and unload war supplies on holidays and weekends during the last 2 years of the war when Australia was no longer under the threat of Japanese invasion.

The writing is engrossing and hard to put down, the stories of individuals both fascinating and horrifying and the truth of what life was like for those caught up in the war both clear and enlightening. While most histories of World War II have centered on the war in Europe this book makes clear that the war in the Pacific was just as difficult and painful for those involved, on both sides, as the one in Europe and Mr Hastings clearly shows how public opinion slowly turned from anger against the Japanese for their undeclared attack against Pearl Harbor into revulsion as stories of the treatment of allied POWs came out. Interestingly enough he also tells of the efforts by the allied governments to suppress the stories of Japanese brutality regarding the allied POWs.

As wonderful as this book is I only gave it 4 stars because Mr Hastings sometimes seems to let his personal opinions overwhelm the narrative. There are parts of the book where those opinions prevent him from presenting different, but valid, views on the subject. While there are many such examples I will mention only one.

Mr Hastings does not Douglas McArthur and that dislike seems lot color all of his writings concerning the general. Almost nothing McArthur did or planned (excepting his stewardship of Japan after the war) seems acceptable to Mr Hastings. He judges McArthur’s invasion of the Philippines as unnecessary for the defeat of Japan and spends considerable time saying so. Even if one accepts his premise that the invasion was militarily unnecessary Mr Hastings does not even consider that there might be other valid reasons for the invasion. The Philippines was a US dependency and the people were largely supportive of the US governance and the planned granting of independence. Almost alone among the peoples of Japanese occupied Asia the Philippine people looked forward to a US invasion and would probably have considered the US bypassing them as a slap on the face. In addition there was the cause of the American and Philippine POWs held by the Japanese and the attempt to save their lives. As Mr Hastings makes very clear, Japanese surrender did not mean the safety of US POWs and many were killed by their captors after Japan surrendered. In addition Mr Hastings blames the terrible loss of life of the Philippine civilians, killed by the Japanese during the invasion, as being as much due to the invasion as to the Japanese - an assumption I found both unreasonable and prejudicial.

Mr’s Cameron’s narration is very good and helps keep the narrative foremost in view. However he has the very annoying habit of mispronouncing the word “corpsman”. In American English this is pronounced KOR-MAN but Mr Cameron constantly pronounces it KORS-MAN. It is extraordinarily annoying and ruined parts of the narration for me. I have to assume that he does not know the proper pronunciation since the word is American and refers to the medical enlisted men in the US Marines. Regardless, it is annoying.

Exhaustive Analysis.

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

The author's candid evaluation of leadership. He did not merely "rubber stamp" received evaluations (e.g., his sobering assessment of MacArthur).

What was one of the most memorable moments of Nemesis?

Can't think of only one. It is a very long "listen."

What about Stewart Cameron’s performance did you like?

Clear enunciation. However, also somewhat monotone.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

No.

Any additional comments?

An informative "listen."

excellent story boring story telling

story teller was very dry and emotionless but a very good narrative of a not often told story. still worth listening to.

Best read of War with Japan.

I'm very impressed with the way the history of that period (44-45) in the pacific is told. I've read a lot on the Pacific and Europe WW2 war and as far as the war in the Far East This book is the best testament of that period I've read so far!
I strongly recommend NEMESIS on your WW2 reading list!!!

Richard LeBLanc Sr.

Gripping history

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

This is a monumental work covering the last year and a half of the WWII pacific theater. I found this wide ranging and expansive, offering insights at the geopolitical level, through military strategy, to the on the ground/sea fighting. I found it gripping from beginning to end. The narrative is effectively punctuated by frequent first-person accounts which is not often found in this genre. As well, Hastings takes pains to present the perspectives of all sides of the conflict and also weighs in on such ongoing moral controversies such as Japanese and allied war crimes, the morality of total war, the competence of the leading strategists and military commanders (in particular MacArthur) and the use of the atomic bombs. This is thoroughly enjoyable and informative reading and I will definitely be looking to read more of Hasting's works.

What three words best describe Stewart Cameron’s performance?

The narration is competent and Cameron punctuates the first person accounts by invoking various accents. Still, given that the war in the pacific was fought mostly by Americans, I found Cameron's English accent oddly out of place and had a hard time getting past it.

Just great!

Max Hastings is both a great historian and an accomplished writer. The narration is also first rate. I highly recommend it!

Excellent story

Narrators impression of American accents was ridiculous and distracting. His performance was good otherwise. Excellent story and a balanced presentation.