Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Historian Duffy (Lincoln's Admiral) recovers from the annals of nearly lost history the decisive WWII campaign to secure New Guinea from Japanese forces. Duffy's clear, concise, and comprehensive history, based primarily on secondary sources, begins with the Japanese invasion of New Britain (in the Bismarck Archipelago off the coast of New Guinea) in 1942 and ends with the last major operations on the western end of New Guinea in August 1944. He addresses the strategic and tactical aspects of the campaign through the experiences of senior leaders such as General MacArthur as well as the common soldiers in combat. Duffy also includes the Japanese and Australian perspectives of the campaign, equally important. The New Guinea campaign, which lasted more than two full years, is not that well known because it didn't produce a large casualty count. This doesn't diminish its strategic importance. Had the Japanese been successful in New Guinea, the use of Australia as a base for an Allied offensive against Japan would have been impossible. Duffy makes a strong case that MacArthur's generalship is a major reason for the campaign's success. The book lacks some deep analysis, but it is a good introduction. Maps. (Jan.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
Historian Duffy (The Sinking of the Laconia and the U-Boat War) explores a critical but often overlooked series of battles in the Pacific theater of World War II, with equal focus given to the actions and motivations of Japanese and Allied forces. Without control of New Guinea, an Allied victory would have been a near impossible prospect. The strategic location of the island gave Australia a base to land and refuel, and granted the Allies a well-fortified foothold in the area. Duffy effectively describes the capture of New Guinea, an effort that mobilized a force of over half a million Japanese soldiers, as well as the viscous, slow, and bloody fight to take the land back. Unforgiving and nearly uninhabitable by humans, the island itself becomes a mutual enemy of both armies, winnowing away their ranks through disease and starvation, with soldiers sometime resorting to cannibalism to survive. This essential book adds insight and detail to a pivotal piece of the overshadowed war in the Pacific. At times, the descriptions can be somewhat bland; nevertheless, Duffy presents a complete chronicle aided by numerous maps. VERDICT This work may help raise the profile of this particularly brutal and bloody series of battles. For World War II historians and readers interested in a greater perspective of Douglass MacArthur or military strategy.-Benjamin Brudner, Curry Coll. Lib., Milton, MA © Copyright 2015. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
A history of the battle for the island of New Guinea during World War II. Duffy (The Sinking of the Laconia and the U-Boat War: Disaster in the Mid-Atlantic, 2013, etc.) sets out to tell the "forgotten" story of Allied Commander in Chief Douglas MacArthur's battle against the Imperial Japanese Army for the seemingly inconsequential island of New Guinea. It's a bit misleading to classify this story as forgotten, given the breadth of war scholarship available, and little about Duffy's account of the events that transpired to beat back Japanese encroachment throughout the South Pacific appears new or revelatory. Nevertheless, the author ably reconstructs the chronology of battles that were pivotal to staving off the Japanese and their ambitious yet foolhardy goal of limitless military expansion. The empire sought the island of New Guinea as an offensive against Australia and ultimately against Allied forces taking strategic positions in the South Pacific. The American-led coalition focused their efforts on the strategic New Guinea city of Port Moresby on the southern side of the island as well as the port of Rabaul, located on the nearby island of New Britain. MacArthur's strategy of isolating groups of Japanese troops across the island to cut them off from supply chains forced them to either surrender, starve, or die of disease, which was rampant in the tropical jungles of the region. Duffy expertly unwinds the many disparate threads that make up wartime planning and communication, contrasting strategy with outcome and showing how the chain of command truly takes control in an otherwise chaotic situation. For all his careful reconstructing, Duffy is often exhaustively detailed, but his thoroughness pays off. The events of the war are elegantly retold, and while they may not be forgotten, they are certainly overlooked. This book could change that. Duffy's portrait of the South Pacific is an entertaining and well-researched war history that will satisfy intrigued novices and devoted students alike. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
