| | |  | Amazon Kindle | Home » » » Pearl Harbor: A Novel of December 8th (Pacific War) | | | | | | | Description: | | "A Thrilling Tale of the Attack That Marked America's Darkest Day" ---W.E.B. Griffin President Franklin D. Roosevelt's speech on December 8, 1941, lasted a mere six and half minutes. But his words and tone--in a monologue that would later be named the Infamy Speech--sent ripples into a nation and a world that continue even today. The historical implications that emerged from the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor were unprecedented, launching America not only into the depths of a dangerous war, but forever altering the safety and comfort of everyday living. December 8th became a day of speaking out publicly and declaring war; of action, battle, plotting, and victories. This date's significance is resonant and profound as an indelible moment in American history.
Fresh from their series on the American Civil War, bestselling authors Newt Gingrich and William R. Forstchen now launch a new epic adventure by applying their imaginations and knowledge to the "Date of Infamy"--the attack on Pearl Harbor.
Pearl Harbor covers the full spectrum of characters and events from that historic moment, from national leaders and admirals to the views of ordinary citizens caught in the chaos of war. From the chambers of the Emperor of Japan to the American White House, from the decks of aircraft carriers to the playing fields of the Japanese Naval Academy, this powerful story stretches from the nightmare slaughter of China in the 1930s to the lonely office of Commander James Watson, an American cryptographer, who suspects the impending catastrophic attack. It is a story of intrigue, double-dealing, the horrific brutality of war, and the desperate efforts of men of reason on both sides to prevent a titanic struggle that becomes inevitable.
Gingrich and Forstchen's now critically acclaimed approach, which they term "active history," examines how a change in but one decision might have profoundly altered American history. In Pearl Harbor, they pose the question of how the presence of but one more man within the Japanese attacking force could have transfigured the war. More than a retelling, the book also serves as a potent warning, valid still today as an example of what happens when communications and understanding breaks down, and a nation is ill-prepared for the onslaught that might ensue.
A compelling, meticulously researched saga, Pearl Harbor is also a novel of valor about those who took part in this cataclysmic moment in world history. It inaugurates a dramatic new Pacific War series that begins with the terrifying account of the day that started it all. Praise for Pearl Harbor:
"A politician and a novelist, each an accomplished historian in his own right, are emerging as master authors of alternative history. In this 'what if' treatment of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Newt Gingrich and William Forstchen combine their talents to make the diplomacy as suspenseful as the combat, even for readers who know what happens next---or think they know. The authors' mastery of both the broad sweep of events and the details of naval war and military technology give their counterfactual scenarios an unusual degree of plausibility, concluding with a version of the Japanese attack that guarantees a fictional Pacific war even more terrible than the one that began on December 7, 1941."
-- Dennis Showalter, former president of the Society of Military Historians
"The book is not only a great read, it is a fascinating historical story that applies today in Iraq as it did in the Western Pacific in the late '30s and '40s."
---Captain Alex Fraser (Ret.)
"Gingrich and Forstchen have done it again. Building on their successful collaboration on their Civil War trilogy that so skillfully combined real history with ficti...
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Average Customer Review:
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26 of 28 found the following review helpful:
 Interesting story despite weak characterizationOct 16, 2007
By Andrew S. Rogers
In any story about the Pearl Harbor attack, the attack itself is going to be one of the central "characters," and the narrative of the attack is almost inevitably going to be the most dramatic part of the plot. That's just as well in this case, as I found "Pearl Harbor" by Gingrich and Forstchen to be an interesting and mildly thought-provoking novel despite being weighed down by characters to whom the reader develops (or at least this reader developed) very little personal or emotional connection.
This is an "alternative history" novel of sorts, but not the kind that assumes time travel or poses "counterfactuals" like Wendell Willkie winning the election in 1940. In fact, the point at which fiction diverges from fact in "Pearl Harbor" is so subtle that readers unfamiliar with the Pearl Harbor attack run the risk, I imagine, of never noticing where the split happened. The road the authors have taken, though, is a plausible one, and the consequences of that difference flow logically. It's this element I'm looking forward to seeing explored further in later books in the promised series.
What was far less satisfying, however, was the authors' character development and, frankly, their writing. For one thing, this could have used at least one more pass by a good editor to catch spelling errors ("chocks" versus "chokes;" "terra incognito"), anachronisms (would Winston Churchill really have described someone as "outside the loop" [p. 270]?), and repeated descriptions, phrases, or actions -- if I had a drink every time Fuchida "slapped his pilot on the shoulder," I'd be drunk as a senator by the time the bombs started falling.
The fictional characters here are, as I said, not particularly engaging. I realized a good part of the way through the book that I wasn't really interested in them as such, but only as pegs on which to hang the story. One I came to think of as "Captain Cecil Backstory," useful mainly for long discussions with Winston Churchill during which the authors could explain Japanese culture and politics. Real-life characters like Churchill and FDR struck me as very imprecise portraits. (I've read a lot by and about Churchill, and I know Gingrich has as well. I was surprised, therefore, by how non-Churchillian the "Churchill" in this book sounded.) The one person in the book I did find interesting, and about whom I'm looking forward to reading more in later books, was Mitsuo Fuchida, the commander of the Japanese air strikes.
Because I'm a student of the Pearl Harbor attack and have read a fair amount about it, both fiction and nonfiction, I approached this book with a certain eagerness. I'm really sorry the characterization left so much to be desired, but the plausible and interesting premise may be enough to justify it and make me want to pick up later titles.
23 of 25 found the following review helpful:
 An Exciting "What If" Book About Pearl HarborMay 31, 2007
By Jeffrey T. Munson
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and historian William R. Forstchen have combined to write this exciting novel about the coming of war in the Pacific, as well as a chilling description of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. But this time, the Japanese finish the job.
The story is told through the eyes of Commander James Watson, USN and Lieutenant Commander Cecil Stanford, Royal Navy. Both men work in cryptology, and, through the course of the book, travel all over the world. They even end up meeting Commander Mitsuo Fuchida, the Japanese pilot who would eventually lead the attack on Pearl Harbor.
Throughout the course of the book, the reader learns, through Watson's and Stanford's eyes, about such events as the Japanese invasion of China, the rape of Nanking, and the sinking of the American gunboat Panay. All of these events set the Japanese, Americans, and British on a collision course toward war.
The story of the attack on Pearl Harbor only encompasses about a quarter of the book, but the story is amazing, and makes the reader wonder what would have really happened had the Japanese attack materialized in the manner conceived by Gingrich and Forstchen. In this fictionalized version of the attack, the Japanese have removed Admiral Nagumo from command of the Japanese striking force. Admiral Yamamoto himself has sailed forth with the strike force. Perhaps the most glaring narrative of the book is the description of a third attack wave. During the actual Pearl Harbor attack, the Japanese launched only two attacks then turned for home waters, not wanting to risk detection by the Americans. In this story, the Japanese actually launch a third wave, and the results for the Americans are devastating: More ships are sunk, the harbor channel is bottled up, the oil tanks are destroyed, and, perhaps most destructive of all, the huge floating dry dock is destroyed by aerial torpedo attack.
I've read many books about the actual attack on Pearl Harbor, and I've wondered why the Japanese never launched a third wave to finish the job. After reading this account of what could have happened, I'm glad that the Japanese didn't launch the third wave. Even though this book is only a fictionalized account, the authors show the amount of potential additional damage that could have been achieved had the Japanese actually launched a third wave.
I give this book my highest recommendation. The story is very good, and the historical basis used to develop the story is excellent. I especially liked the development of the characters of Watson and Cecil. Their inclusion in the actual events that occurred in the early 1930s until the Japanese attack made the book much more enjoyable. The description of the Japanese attack, complete with the fictional third wave, is handled extremely well and leaves the reader with a sense of relief that the Japanese didn't actually use a third wave in 1941. If you're a fan of Pearl Harbor history, then don't miss this exciting book; it gives a view of the Pearl Harbor attack that we should be thankful never actually occurred.
43 of 52 found the following review helpful:
Outstanding Read, But ...May 20, 2007
By John G. Gleeson Sr.
... the jacket designer should be shot! Portraying Iowa Class battleships at Pearl Harbor in 1941, when they were not even commissioned until 1943?
But the book is a gem! I liked the efforts of the authors in the Gettysburg series, and this first volume is wonderful! Good alternative history, in my opinion, hinges on a slight change in the actual events to speculate on potential results.
I do not want to be a plot spoiler; other reviewers have given some details. But this is an ideal book for military history fans, as well as for those who enjoy well crafted fiction. I look forward to future volumes!
26 of 32 found the following review helpful:
Another winner by the team of Gingrich and ForstchenMay 15, 2007
By W. Beesch
Posted for William Greenbaum, New York:
Good historical fiction teaches and entertains. Pearl Harbor, by Newt Gingrich and William Forstchen, does both in abundance.
This new novel approaches the lead-up to the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, as a conflict between Japan's desperate needs and America's revulsion at Japanese methods.
The portrayal of the attack itself is searing and fascinating. The book ends setting the scene for following volumes with history "tweaked" by a plausible alteration of Japanese leadership. The table is set for an alternative scenario in future books of the series by a more aggressive fleet commander leading imperial forces attacking Hawaii.
Internal conflicts guiding the actions of historical figures are fairly described. Intriguing fictional characters provide thematic insight and transition. Those characters also keep the reader riveted as they get into dangerous situations that highlight actual events. The reader will find particularly memorable the sinking of the U.S.S. Panay and scenes from the Japanese occupation of Nanking.
This is a worthy book. I look forward to succeeding volumes.
24 of 30 found the following review helpful:
A Great Start for a New SeriesMay 18, 2007
By Mark R. Whittington
Gingrich and Fortschen have written another triumph. Pearl Harbor sets out the background of the most infamous sneak attack in history, dramatizing some little known details, while telling fresh the more well known parts. The alt.history comes in when the Japanese launch a third wave that was cancelled in real life. This sets up what will likely be a bloodier Pacific War in subsequent books of the series. I can barely wait.
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