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Dead Reckoning: The Story of How Johnny Mitchell and His Fighter Pilots Took on Admiral Yamamoto and Avenged Pearl Harbor
Top of the pile
88
/100
I Index Overall Rating
Readers
84/100Critics
91/100Scholars
Author:
Dick Lehr
Publisher:
Harper
Date:
June 9, 2020
An account of what became known as the U.S. military's "Operation Vengeance"âthe targeted kill by U.S. fighter pilots of Japan's larger-than-life military icon, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, the naval genius who had devised the devastating attack on Pearl Harbor.
What The Reviewers Say
The story of targeting Yamamoto has been told before, of course. What freshens Mr. Lehr’s account is his inspired idea to balance the Japanese admiral with the much younger Capt. John Mitchell.
These often poignant missives are balanced by correspondence already in the public record between Yamamoto, who was married with children, and his longtime mistress, who was a geisha. The author artfully weaves this compelling human element into the narrative..
More of a biography than a strict look at the military confrontation, the text provides an intimate look at the war in the Pacific told through the eyes of the men leading up to their fateful intersection. Though the mission itself was a success from the American point of view, the anguish felt by the Japanese people is also carefully explored.
... touching.
