This book is a great read. Besides being a great retelling of a pivotal event in the history of our nation, this volume succeeds in putting Pearl Harbor in its proper context.  It clarified what I knew and taught me much that I did not. 

Nelson divides his book into three main parts. Part 1 discusses the roads to war in five informative chapters. Since you know what is coming, bad judgments jump off the page. Still, it makes for fascinating reading. That the politicians and military brass could be taken that by surprise is shocking and would be unforgivable were it not for the incredible war effort put together every day after December 7, 1941 until victory.

The heart of the book is in Part 2 that describes December 7th itself. I loved his taking a chapter for the attack from the air against everything except the ships.  It was gripping and you could so visualize the events. When he turned to the battleships it only became more intense and powerful. What many sailors faced is simply beyond description. I loved too how he explained the fear that raged for days after the attack. I felt I got inside the minds of those who lived it on these pages.

The last part cherry picked history from the rest of the war and beyond flawlessly to conclude the story of Pearl Harbor. It was the perfect length to make sense of a senseless event.

This book is a winner for anyone who loves reading history in a style worthy of a novel with careful reconstruction of events. I imagine you’ll love it. 

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.