Tag: Japanese History
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Judgment at Tokyo by Gary Bass
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Judgment at Tokyo: Less of a trial and more like a clown show. Quick synopsis: The story of the Tokyo Trial to prosecute Japanese leadership after World War II. Fact for Non-History People: On a mission to bomb Chichi Jima, 9 U.S. pilots needed to bail out during the bombing run.…
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Ghosts of Honolulu by Mark Harmon and Leon Carroll Jr
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Ghosts of Honolulu: Yes, THAT Mark Harmon. Quick synopsis: The story of the spying in Hawaii before Pearl Harbor. Fact for Non-History People: In 1920, there were 109,000 Japanese immigrants in Hawaii which made up 43% of the total population. Fact for History Nerds: 2,403 Americans were killed at Pearl Harbor…
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Road to Surrender by Evan Thomas
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Road to Surrender: It did not go down how you think it did. Quick synopsis: The story of the decision to drop the atomic bomb. Fact for Non-History People: Even after the dropping of the second atomic bomb, Japan’s Supreme Council was deadlocked on whether to surrender. Fact for History Nerds:…
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Ira Hayes by Tom Holm
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Ira Hayes: An example of someone who never wanted the limelight. Quick synopsis: The story of Ira Hayes, one of the marines to raise the American Flag at Iwo Jima. Fact for Non-History People: We didn’t have the right names of the men who raised the flag until 2019. Fact for…
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Leyte Gulf by Mark Stille
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Leyte Gulf: The final navy smackdown. Quick synopsis: A look at the battle of Leyte Gulf which effectively ended Japanese naval power in World War II. Fun Fact for Non-History People: This is the largest naval battle in history. Fun Fact for History Nerds: The Japanese navy was so short on…
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Our Man in Tokyo by Steve Kemper
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Our Man in Tokyo: Ohhhhh, so that’s why Pearl Harbor happened. Quick synopsis: The story of how Japan ultimately chose to attack the U.S. from the perspective of the American ambassador, Joseph Grew. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: The Japanese emperor was seen as infallible, so he was never allowed…
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Black Snow by James M. Scott
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Black Snow: It wasn’t just two atomic bombs that were dropped. Quick synopsis: The story of how the U.S. bombing strategy evolved right before the dropping of the atomic bombs on Japan. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: More American airmen died in the skies over Europe than the Marine Corps…
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Target Tokyo by James M. Scott
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline: Wait, we bombed Tokyo right after Pearl Harbor? I’ll be damned. Quick synopsis: We bombed Tokyo right after Pearl Harbor. Yes, really. Jimmy Doolittle and his Doolittle Raiders actually did a hell of a lot. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: When the Doolittle Raiders took off for their bombing run, they…
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More Than Miyagi (Amazon)
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for More Than Miyagi: He was in a lot more than you remember! Quick synopsis: The life of actor and comedian Noriyuki “Pat” Morita. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: Morita actually had a disease which was supposed to render him unable to walk, but an experimental surgery healed him. Fun Fact…