Saipan

The Beginning of the End

By: Carl W. Hoffman

Narrated by: Eric Martin

Length: 16 hrs and 2 mins

Publisher's Summary

Saipan was the last barrier that prevented the Allied forces from launching their entire military might against the Japanese homeland.  

Victory at Saipan was the key that opened the door to the soft underbelly of the Japanese Empire. Yet because the Japanese were aware of this vulnerability, they were willing to throw everything they had against the ever-encroaching American forces and fight to the death to defend this island.  

Fifteen battleships began their bombardment of Japanese positions on June 13, 1944; they would fire more than 165,000 shells onto the island. Then, at 0700 on June 15, 8,000 Marines traveled in 300 LVTs to land on the West coast of Saipan to begin their assault. The Japanese high command realized that without resupply, the island would be impossible to hold, but they and their soldiers were to fight until the last man. To make things as difficult as possible for the US Marines, the Japanese used guerrilla tactics to disrupt the offensive and dug themselves in in the mountainous terrain of Central Saipan.   

Carl Hoffman's brilliant account of this ferocious battle takes the listener through the course of its duration, from the initial discussion of plans and preparations right through to the eventual victory. This audiobook is essential for anyone interested in the Pacific theater of war during World War Two and for the huge impact that the Marine Corps made in some of the bloodiest battles ever to have taken place.

Public Domain (P)2019 Tantor

Very intellectual

This book gave me a great overall view of the battle of saypan. The units involve their organization And operations.

Too Tedious

The author writes page after page that read like the Order of Battle lists. If you are looking for an interesting narrative, this is not the book for you.

No story just facts and figures

Probably a great Resource for research material but for a read? very very very dry

Research volume.

This book appears to be I thorough description of the movements of various units during the battle for Saipan, however it seems to this reader to be very sterile, At the end it is mentioned that over 3000 Americans lost their lives and many More Japanese.
To this reader the volume lacked the emotion and color that one finds in the best written books, it was simply a recitation of facts and figures while prominently naming officers who were injured and lost their lives it’s failed to mention the men who were covered with flies mud and gore and those that sacrifice them selves..

somewhat dry, but listenable

dryness due to lack of personal stories, but excellent recount of troop movement & involvement