Guadalcanal: Starvation Island

GUADALCANAL: Starvation Island



Eric Hammel



The Japanese defeats at Midway and Guadalcanal decided the outcome of the Pacific War. Guadalcanal was the classic three-dimensional campaign. On land, at sea, and in the air, fierce battles were fought with both sides stretching their supplies and equipment to the breaking point. The campaign lasted six months, involved nearly one million men, and stopped Japanese expansion in the Pacific.



When the campaign began on August 7, 1942, no one on either side quite knew how to conduct it, as Eric Hammel shows in this masterly account. Guadalcanal: Starvation Island corrects numerous errors and omissions in the official records that have been perpetuated in all the books previously published about the campaign. Hammel also draws on the recollections of more than 100 participants on both sides, especially the enlisted men at the sharp end. Their words bring us into the heart of the battle and portray the fighting accurately, realistically, and powerfully.



Guadalcanal: Starvation Island follows the men and the commanders of this decisive World War II campaign in an integrated, brilliantly told narrative of the desperate struggle at sea, on land, and in the air.



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Praise for Guadalcanal: Starvation Island and Eric Hammel



“A comprehensive history of the Guadalcanal Campaign . . . [and] a well balanced account. Well written and fast moving.” —Marine Corps Gazette



“Hammel has written the most comprehensive popular ac¬count to date . . . and exposes controversial aspects often passed over,” —Publishers Weekly



“Hammel takes the reader behind the scenes and details how decisions were made . . . and how they impacted on the troops carrying them out. He tells the story in a very human way.” —Leatherneck Magazine



“A splendid record of this decisive campaign. Hammel offers a wealth of fresh material drawn from archival records and the recollections of 100 odd surviving participants. . . . A praise¬worthy...