History

Utmost Savagery

Name: Utmost Savagery
Author: Joseph H. Alexander
ISBN: 9781441788627

by Joseph H. Alexander

Available on Bookshop Write a review

Books.org participates in affiliate programs including Bookshop.org and the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. We may earn a commission from qualifying purchases made through links on this page, at no additional cost to you.

Synopsis

Review ''The first complete and definitive account of the Battle of Tarawa.'' -- Major General Mike Ryan, USMC (Ret.), Navy Cross recipient ''A gripping narrative of one of the bloodiest battles of WWII in the Pacific theater.'' --Publishers Weekly''Without a doubt the best narrative of the struggle ever produced.'' --Richard B. Frank, author of Guadalcanal''Outstanding . . . It is a tribute to Alexander that the reader sweats out every hour of the battle as if the book were a novel. Alexander's surpasses every other existing account of the battle by a considerable margin.'' --Booklist Product Description On November 20, l943, in the first trial by fire of America's fledgling amphibious assault doctrine, five thousand men stormed the beaches of Tarawa, a seemingly invincible Japanese island fortress barely the size of the three hundred-acre Pentagon parking lots. Before the first day ended, one-third of the marines who had crossed Tarawa's deadly reef under murderous fire were killed, wounded, or missing. In three days of fighting, four Americans would win the Medal of Honor and six thousand combatants would die. Now, Colonel Joseph Alexander, a combat marine himself, presents the full story of Tarawa in all its horror and glory: the extreme risks, the horrific combat, and the heroic breakthroughs. Based on exhaustive research, never-before-published accounts from marine survivors, and new evidence from Japanese sources, Colonel Alexander captures the grit, guts, and relentless courage of United States Marines overcoming outrageous odds to deliver victory for their country. About the Author COLONEL JOSEPH H. ALEXANDER (Ret.), a combat veteran who served in the Marine Corps for twenty-eight years, is the author of six books and has helped produce twenty-five military documentaries. He lives in Asheville, North Carolina.