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Stephen Taaffe - US Army Divisions in the Pacific War |
- By Hawkeye7
For the American public, the Pacific War of World War II, if remembered at all, is mostly associated with the United States Marine Corps. As in World War I, the marines had good reason to wage a vigorous postwar publicity campaign, since the demise of the age of sail rendered the corps something of an anachronism, and there was a danger that the Army or Navy or both would decide that it was not required any more. Although six marine divisions fought in the Pacific, the US Army deployed twenty, and did the majority of the fighting. (No divisions were deployed to CBI, so that theatre is not covered.)
Another reason for this state of affairs is that the Pacific War is not a popular subject with American military historians. An exception is the author of this book, Stephen Taaffe, an historian at Stephen F. Austin State University, who has already written a couple of books about the war in the Pacific. This one provides an overview of the US Army's role in the Pacific War. Given the broad scope of the topic, the book describes each operation, but goes into little detail. The maps in the book are good, but often too small to read.
A theme of the book is evaluating the quality of the US Army divisions. Like others before him, Taaffe has found that the regular army divisions outperformed their National Guard and Organized Reserve divisions; the National Guard were called into active service in 1940 and 1941, while the Organized Reserve divisions were formed in 1942 and 1943. Only four Organized Reserve divisions saw combat in the Pacific. The National Guard units had issues with their close ties to the community, although other armies sought to promote these. Many were regarded as problematic. Some underwent a reorganisation process whereby officers were mass-retired, cross-posted or replaced. Oddly, the 33rd Infantry Division somehow avoided this process, yet still performed quite well. The majority of divisions had difficulty in their first combat operation, pointing to deficiencies in their training. Some, especially those that left the United States early, such as the 27th and 32nd Infantry Divisions, never really overcame a bad start. Alas, as with operations, the book does not go into detail about training, tactics and doctrine.
In sum, the book is a good introduction to a neglected subject area. Its scholarship is quite sound, drawing on primary sources and recently published secondary sources.
Publishing details: Taaffe, Stephen (2024). US Army Divisions in the Pacific War. Havertown: Casemate. ISBN 978-1-63624-449-5. OCLC 1429654340.
Éric Vuillard - An Honourable Exit |
- By Nick-D
An Honourable Exit is a recent historical novel by the French author Éric Vuillard that was translated by Mark Polizzotti. It is focused on the reasons for the French defeat in the First Indochina War.
I found this to be an unusual and unsuccessful novel. While it starts strongly with a sequence on the brutal and exploitative nature of the French colonial regime, the book then becomes bogged down with a heavy handed critique of the government and business figures in Paris who decided on slim grounds to continue the war in 1950. The various politicians, businessmen and senior military officers are presented as caricatures, which undermines the points that Vuillard is seeking to make.
The final third of the book, which is focused on the 1954 Battle of Dien Bien Phu, is better but still not particularly strong. While it provides an interesting portrayal of the battle, it at times reads like an introductory history rather than a novel and never really gels. The end result is a rather unsatisfying book.
Publishing details: Vuillard, Éric (2022). An Honourable Exit. Translated by Polizzotti, Mark. London: Picador. ISBN 978-1-0350-0400-3.
Recent external reviews |
Sarris, Peter (2023). Justinian: Emperor, Soldier, Saint. New York City: Basic Books. ISBN 9781541601338.
- Markowitz, Mike (1 October 2024). "Book Review: Justinian: Emperor, Soldier, Saint". StrategyPage.
Wingate, Jennifer (2024). 100 Cities 100 Memorials: Restoration, Recognition & Remembrance. Chicago: Pritzker Military Museum & Library. ISBN 9780998968957.
- Lengel, Edward (23 August 2024). "Memorials Pay Tribute to WWI Sacrafices". September 2024 Book Reviews. Association of the United States Army.
Waters, Conrad (2024). British Fiji Class Cruisers and Their Derivatives: Design, Development and Performance. Barnsley, United Kingdom: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 9781526799838.
- Melly, R.G. (1 October 2024). "British Fiji Class Cruisers and Their Derivatives". The Naval Review.
Whitaker, Blake (2022). Built on the Ruins of Empire: British Military Assistance and African Independence. Lawrence, Kansas: University Press of Kansas. ISBN 9780700633128.
- Guido, Joseph (October 2024). "Review of Whitaker, Blake. Built on the Ruins of Empire: British Military Assistance and African Independence". H-War, H-Net Reviews.
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