There may not be a better book on what happened at Pearl Harbor than "Day of Infamy"--and it's not as if the Pearl Harbor story has lacked chroniclers. Walter Lord is best known for "A Night to Remember", his book on the voyage of the "Titanic". "Day of Infamy" deserves to stand beside that classic as a gripping narrative, and the subject matter, of course, is infinitely more important. Lord begins by showing how Japanese admirals, three months before their notorious sneak attack, "tested the idea on the game board at the Naval War College." (It didn't go nearly as well there as it did in real life.) Then he proceeds briskly through the preparations for the assault and delivers a minute-by-minute account about those fateful hours in Oahu. The detail is incredible. The Japanese scan Hawaiian radio stations to see if their moves have been detected; a U.S. naval officer on "his first night on his first patrol on his first command" spots a Japanese submarine just hours before the strike; when the surprise attack finally does arrive, an excited Japanese commander shouts "Tora! Tora! Tora!" ("Victory!") before even the first bombs have fallen. The whole assault lasted about two hours. Thousands of Americans were killed or wounded. The Navy lost the "U.S.S. Arizona", which blew up about 15 minutes into the raid, and 17 other ships were either sunk or crippled. Hundreds of planes were destroyed or damaged. The Japanese, by contrast, lost only 29 planes. It must be considered one of the most lopsided battles in all history--and "battle" probably isn't the best word to describe it. Pearl Harbor was closer to a massacre. Whatever the label, Pearl Harbor was a turning-point moment in American history, and it gave rise, the very next day, to some of the most famous words ever spoken by an American president: "Yesterday, December 7, 1941, a date which will live in infamy, the United States was suddenly and deliberately attacked...." If you intend to read only a single book on Pearl Harbor, this is the one for you. "--John J. Miller"

I found that this book was excellent. It was packed with very interesting information and pictures. The author did a great job in putting this book together. I thought that the information in this book was accurate when compared to the information from other books I've read, such as Luftwaffe Fighter Aces by Mike Spick and Jagdgeschwader 26: Top Guns of the Luftwaffe by Donald Caldwell. I enjoy the entire series of Luftwaffe at War books to which this book belongs. I own 7 of the 10 and find them all equally informative. This book points out details in the aircraft and gives information on the pilots who flew them. However this book does use terms that a person, who has not read books peviously about the Luftwaffe, would not completely understand. I would strongly encourage anyone who is interested in History, aircraft, or the Luftwaffe to purchase and/or read this outstanding book.

<div>"Padfield's compellingly readable book conveys a flavor of Nazi leadership unmatched by anything outside the memoirs of Albert Speer. It is difficult to frame higher praise."--John Keegan. A distinguished naval historian and biographer paints a riveting portrait of Grand Admiral Karl DÖnitz, the Supreme Commander of the German Navy and mastermind of World War Two's devastating submarine war. As Padfield so eloquently proves, dedicated officer DÖnitz was corrupted by his inner need for a cause and for a leader to serve--both of which he found in Adolf Hitler. As Germany slid inexorably toward defeat in 1945, the FÜhrer duly rewarded his most loyal supporter and confidant by appointing DÖnitz his successor: the last leader of the Third Reich. </div>

Not quite the book I thought it would be. The descriptions of the battles are mostly a order of battle (units involved etc.). Although very complete in that way and probably more accurate than many accounts, it does not make for very good reading. There are some insights as far as claims on both sides and what units were involved, but no first person stories and little overall evaluation and conclusion. Description of aircraft is also pretty light, and does not include pictures or drawings of all aircraft (would be useful for some of the more uncommon aircraft). If you are interested in units involved and numbers etc., I would suggest this book. If you want interesting stories and reading or want some evaluation and insight (other than numbers) on the subject I would not suggest this book.