Try free for 30 days
-
Shattered Sword
- The Untold Story of the Battle of Midway
- Narrated by: Tom Perkins
- Length: 24 hrs and 44 mins
Failed to add items
Add to basket failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from Wish List failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Buy Now for $34.12
No valid payment method on file.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also picked
-
Into the Bright Sunshine
- Young Hubert Humphrey and the Fight for Civil Rights (Pivotal Moments in American History Series)
- By: Samuel G. Freedman
- Narrated by: Mike Lenz
- Length: 17 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
During one sweltering week in July 1948, the Democratic Party gathered in Philadelphia for its national convention. The most pressing and controversial issue facing the delegates was not whom to nominate for president—the incumbent, Harry Truman, was the presumptive candidate—but whether the Democrats would finally embrace the cause of civil rights and embed it in their official platform. On the convention's final day, Hubert Humphrey, the relatively obscure mayor of the midsized city of Minneapolis, ascended the podium.
-
Japanese Destroyer Captain
- Pearl Harbor, Guadalcanal, Midway - The Great Naval Battles Seen Through Japanese Eyes
- By: Captain Tameichi Hara
- Narrated by: Brian Nishii
- Length: 15 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This highly regarded war memoir was a best seller in both Japan and the United States during the 1960s and has long been treasured by historians for its insights into the Japanese side of the surface war in the Pacific. The author was a survivor of more than one hundred sorties against the Allies and was known throughout Japan as the Unsinkable Captain.
-
-
I think a must for navy buffs
- By Attila on 11-12-2017
-
Battleship Commander
- The Life of Vice Admiral Willis A. Lee Jr.
- By: Paul Stillwell
- Narrated by: Walter Dixon
- Length: 11 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Battleship Commander explores Lee's life from boyhood in Kentucky through his eventual service as commander of the fast battleships from 1942 to 1945. Said to be down to earth, modest, forgiving, friendly, and with a wry sense of humor, Lee eschewed the media and, to the extent possible, left administrative details to others.
-
Thunder Below!
- The USS Barb Revolutionizes Submarine Warfare in World War II
- By: Eugene B. Fluckey
- Narrated by: Corey Snow
- Length: 15 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Under the leadership of her fearless skipper, Captain Gene Fluckey, the Barb sank the greatest tonnage of any American sub in World War II. At the same time, the Barb did far more than merely sink ships-she changed forever the way submarines stalk and kill their prey.
This is a gripping adventure chock-full of "you-are-there" moments. Fluckey has drawn on logs, reports, letters, interviews, and a recently discovered illegal diary kept by one of his torpedomen.
-
-
Some of the most fun I’ve had with an audio book
- By Anonymous User on 27-09-2020
-
Leyte Gulf
- A New History of the World's Largest Sea Battle
- By: Mark E. Stille
- Narrated by: John Chancer
- Length: 14 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Pacific War expert Mark Stille examines the key aspects of battle of Leyte Gulf, the largest naval encounter in history and probably the most decisive naval battle of the entire Pacific War, with new and insightful analysis and dismantles the myths surrounding the respective actions and overall performances of the two most important commanders in the battle, and the “lost victory” of the Japanese advance into Leyte Gulf that never happened.
-
-
Very technical
- By Andrew Singleton on 20-07-2023
-
To the End of the Earth
- The US Army and the Downfall of Japan, 1945
- By: John C. McManus
- Narrated by: Walter Dixon
- Length: 15 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The dawn of 1945 finds a US Army at its peak in the Pacific. Allied victory over Japan is all but assured. The only question is how many more months—or years—of fight does the enemy have left. John C. McManus’s magisterial series, described by the Wall Street Journal as being “as vast and splendid as Rick Atkinson’s Pulitzer Prize-winning Liberation Trilogy,” returns with this brilliant final volume.
-
Into the Bright Sunshine
- Young Hubert Humphrey and the Fight for Civil Rights (Pivotal Moments in American History Series)
- By: Samuel G. Freedman
- Narrated by: Mike Lenz
- Length: 17 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
During one sweltering week in July 1948, the Democratic Party gathered in Philadelphia for its national convention. The most pressing and controversial issue facing the delegates was not whom to nominate for president—the incumbent, Harry Truman, was the presumptive candidate—but whether the Democrats would finally embrace the cause of civil rights and embed it in their official platform. On the convention's final day, Hubert Humphrey, the relatively obscure mayor of the midsized city of Minneapolis, ascended the podium.
-
Japanese Destroyer Captain
- Pearl Harbor, Guadalcanal, Midway - The Great Naval Battles Seen Through Japanese Eyes
- By: Captain Tameichi Hara
- Narrated by: Brian Nishii
- Length: 15 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This highly regarded war memoir was a best seller in both Japan and the United States during the 1960s and has long been treasured by historians for its insights into the Japanese side of the surface war in the Pacific. The author was a survivor of more than one hundred sorties against the Allies and was known throughout Japan as the Unsinkable Captain.
-
-
I think a must for navy buffs
- By Attila on 11-12-2017
-
Battleship Commander
- The Life of Vice Admiral Willis A. Lee Jr.
- By: Paul Stillwell
- Narrated by: Walter Dixon
- Length: 11 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Battleship Commander explores Lee's life from boyhood in Kentucky through his eventual service as commander of the fast battleships from 1942 to 1945. Said to be down to earth, modest, forgiving, friendly, and with a wry sense of humor, Lee eschewed the media and, to the extent possible, left administrative details to others.
-
Thunder Below!
- The USS Barb Revolutionizes Submarine Warfare in World War II
- By: Eugene B. Fluckey
- Narrated by: Corey Snow
- Length: 15 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Under the leadership of her fearless skipper, Captain Gene Fluckey, the Barb sank the greatest tonnage of any American sub in World War II. At the same time, the Barb did far more than merely sink ships-she changed forever the way submarines stalk and kill their prey.
This is a gripping adventure chock-full of "you-are-there" moments. Fluckey has drawn on logs, reports, letters, interviews, and a recently discovered illegal diary kept by one of his torpedomen.
-
-
Some of the most fun I’ve had with an audio book
- By Anonymous User on 27-09-2020
-
Leyte Gulf
- A New History of the World's Largest Sea Battle
- By: Mark E. Stille
- Narrated by: John Chancer
- Length: 14 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Pacific War expert Mark Stille examines the key aspects of battle of Leyte Gulf, the largest naval encounter in history and probably the most decisive naval battle of the entire Pacific War, with new and insightful analysis and dismantles the myths surrounding the respective actions and overall performances of the two most important commanders in the battle, and the “lost victory” of the Japanese advance into Leyte Gulf that never happened.
-
-
Very technical
- By Andrew Singleton on 20-07-2023
-
To the End of the Earth
- The US Army and the Downfall of Japan, 1945
- By: John C. McManus
- Narrated by: Walter Dixon
- Length: 15 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The dawn of 1945 finds a US Army at its peak in the Pacific. Allied victory over Japan is all but assured. The only question is how many more months—or years—of fight does the enemy have left. John C. McManus’s magisterial series, described by the Wall Street Journal as being “as vast and splendid as Rick Atkinson’s Pulitzer Prize-winning Liberation Trilogy,” returns with this brilliant final volume.
-
The Quiet Warrior
- A Biography of Admiral Raymond A. Spruance
- By: Thomas B. Buell
- Narrated by: Chris Monteiro
- Length: 18 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Regarded as the standard biography of World War II naval hero Adm. Raymond A. Spruance. Spruance, victor of the battles of Midway and the Philippine Sea and commander of the Fifth Fleet in the invasions of the Gilberts, the Marshalls, the Marianas, and Okinawa, is one of the towering figures in American naval history. Yet his reserved, cerebral personality did not make "good copy" for correspondents, and until the publication of The Quiet Warrior he remained an elusive figure.
-
Mastering the Art of Command
- Admiral Chester W. Nimitz and Victory in the Pacific
- By: Trent Hone
- Narrated by: Paul Heitsch
- Length: 15 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Mastering the Art of Command is a detailed examination of Admiral Chester W. Nimitz's leadership during WWII. It describes how he used his talents to guide the Pacific Fleet, win crucial victories against the forces of Imperial Japan, and then seize the initiative in the Pacific. Once Nimitz's forces held the initiative, they maintained it through an offensive campaign of unparalleled speed that overcame Japanese defenses and created the conditions for victory. This book explores how Nimitz used his leadership skills, command talents, and strategic acumen to achieve these decisive results.
-
Black Snow
- Curtis LeMay, the Firebombing of Tokyo, and the Road to the Atomic Bomb
- By: James M. Scott
- Narrated by: L.J. Ganser
- Length: 12 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Seven minutes past midnight on March 10, 1945, nearly 300 American B-29s thundered into the skies over Tokyo. Their payloads of incendiaries ignited a firestorm that reached up to 2,800 degrees, liquefying asphalt and vaporizing thousands; sixteen square miles of the city were flattened and more than 100,000 men, women, and children were killed. Black Snow is the story of this devastating operation, orchestrated by Major General Curtis LeMay, who famously remarked: "If we lose the war, we'll be tried as war criminals."
-
Tower of Skulls
- A History of the Asia-Pacific War, Vol. 1 (July 1937 - May 1942)
- By: Richard B. Frank
- Narrated by: L. J. Ganser
- Length: 26 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This story casts penetrating light on how struggles in Europe and Asia merged into a tightly entwined global war. It features not just battles, but also the sweeping political, economic, and social effects of the war, and are graced with a rich tapestry of individual characters from top-tier political and military figures down to ordinary servicemen, as well as the accounts of civilians of all races and ages.
-
-
it's great
- By callum on 27-05-2022
-
Sustaining the Carrier War
- The Deployment of U.S. Naval Air Power to the Pacific
- By: Stan Fisher
- Narrated by: Tom Perkins
- Length: 9 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The ability of the US Navy to fight and win a protracted war in the Pacific was not solely the result of technology, tactics, or leadership. Naval aviation maintenance played a major role in the US victory over Japan in WWII. The naval war against Japan did not achieve sustained success until enough aircraft technicians were available to support the high tempo of aviation operations that fast carrier task force doctrine demanded.
-
Fighting in the Dark
- Naval Combat at Night, 1904-1944
- By: Vincent P. O’Hara - editor, Trent Hone - editor
- Narrated by: Chris Monteiro
- Length: 10 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Before the twentieth century ships when relied upon visual signaling, vessels beyond range of sight or a cannon shot, were blind, deaf, and dumb in the dark, making night battles at sea rare, and near always accidental. The introduction of certain technologies like the torpedo, the searchlight, radio, and then radar, transformed naval warfare by making night combat feasible and, in some cases, desirable. The process by which navies integrated these new tools of war and turned the dark into a medium for effective combat, however, was long and difficult.
-
The Scrap Iron Flotilla
- By: Mike Carlton
- Narrated by: Mike Carlton
- Length: 15 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When the Second World War broke out in September 1939, the British asked Australia for help. With some misgivings, the Australian government sent five destroyers to beef up the British Royal Navy in the Mediterranean. HMAS Vendetta, Vampire, Voyager, Stuart and Waterhen were old ships, small with worn-out engines. Their crews used to joke they were held together by string and chewing gum; when the Nazi propaganda minister Josef Goebbels heard of them, he sneered that they were a load of scrap iron.
-
-
Great book to hear from the author.
- By Kindle Customer on 17-08-2022
-
Against All Odds
- A True Story of Ultimate Courage and Survival in World War II
- By: Alex Kershaw
- Narrated by: Mark Bramhall
- Length: 8 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As the Allies raced to defeat Hitler, four men, all in the same unit, earned medal after medal for battlefield heroism. Maurice “Footsie” Britt, a former professional football player, became the very first American to receive every award for valor in a single war. Michael Daly was a West Point dropout who risked his neck over and over to keep his men alive. Keith Ware would one day become the first and only draftee in history to attain the rank of general before serving in Vietnam. In WWII, Ware owed his life to the finest soldier he ever commanded, a baby-faced Texan named Audie Murphy.
-
-
Top class story telling
- By Pipc on 02-08-2023
-
Ship of Ghosts
- The Story of the USS Houston, FDR's Legendary Lost Cruiser, and the Epic Saga of of Her Survivors
- By: James D. Hornfischer
- Narrated by: Mark Cashman
- Length: 17 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Renowned as FDR's favorite warship, the cruiser USS Houston was a prize target trapped in the far Pacific after Pearl Harbor. Without hope of reinforcement, her crew faced a superior Japanese force ruthlessly committed to total conquest. But the men of the Houston fought back with dignity, ingenuity, sabotage, willpower, and the undying faith that their country would prevail.
-
The Battle of Midway
- The Naval Institute Guide to the U.S. Navy's Greatest Victory
- By: Thomas C. Hone - editor
- Narrated by: Paul Boehmer
- Length: 15 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The best way for today's sailors to learn about a battle is from those who fought it. The Battle of Midway, commemorated annually in the US Navy, warrants close attention. This Naval Institute guide includes some of the most vibrant and informed accounts by individuals who fought on both sides of the June 1942 battle. The anthology pulls together memoirs, articles, excerpts from other Naval Institute books, and relevant government documents to help listeners understand what happened and explain why the battle was so significant to the naval service.
-
Neptune's Inferno
- The U.S. Navy at Guadalcanal
- By: James D. Hornfischer
- Narrated by: Robertson Dean
- Length: 18 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
With The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors and Ship of Ghosts, James D. Hornfischer created essential and enduring narratives about America’s World War II Navy, works of unique immediacy distinguished by rich portraits of ordinary men in extremis and exclusive new information. Now he does the same for the deadliest, most pivotal naval campaign of the Pacific war: Guadalcanal. Neptune’s Inferno is at once the most epic and the most intimate account ever written of the contest for control of the seaways of the Solomon Islands.
-
-
Brilliant!
- By IRB on 08-01-2020
-
White Sun War
- The Campaign for Taiwan
- By: Mick Ryan
- Narrated by: Joshua Saxon
- Length: 8 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
After decades of poising on the brink, the United States and China finally go to war when China invades the island of Taiwan. Deploying their most futuristic technologies in this grand strategic competition of the twenty-first century, the stakes could not be higher. Not only the future of the Taiwanese people but the fate of the world lies in the balance. In an era when humans no longer just use machines, but partner with them in all aspects of military operations, this fictional account views this future war through the eyes of the American, Chinese, and Taiwanese caught up in the maelstrom.
-
-
AI narration?
- By Anonymous User on 13-03-2024
Publisher's Summary
Many consider the Battle of Midway to have turned the tide of the Pacific War. It is without question one of the most famous battles in history. Now, for the first time since Gordon W. Prange's best-selling Miracle at Midway, Jonathan Parshall and Anthony Tully offer a new interpretation of this great naval engagement. Unlike previous accounts, Shattered Sword makes extensive use of Japanese primary sources. It also corrects the many errors of Mitsuo Fuchida's Midway: The Battle That Doomed Japan, an uncritical reliance upon which has tainted every previous Western account. It thus forces a major, potentially controversial reevaluation of the great battle.
Parshall and Tully examine the battle in detail and effortlessly place it within the context of the Imperial Navy's doctrine and technology. With a foreword by leading World War II naval historian John Lundstrom, Shattered Sword is an indispensable part of any military buff's library.
Shattered Sword is the winner of the 2005 John Lyman Book Award for the "Best Book in U.S. Naval History" and was cited by Proceedings as one of its "Notable Naval Books" for 2005.
Critic Reviews
“This incredibly detailed book provides a whole new approach to the study and interpretation of the battle.” (Ships and Shipping)
John Lyman Book Award, Best Book in U.S. Naval History, 2005
Notable Naval Books, Proceedings, 2005.
More from the same
What listeners say about Shattered Sword
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Scott
- 17-09-2022
A simply brilliant analysis of Midway
For anyone c interested in the War in The Pacific in WW2 I can not recommend this title more highly. It blows away many of the myths and makes understanding this crucial battle of WW2 in the Pacific and the war against Imperial Japan more generally easier.
It should be compulsory reading for all naval officers in particular and any Army or Airforce officer in general. A must for the serious military historian not just the Naval enthusiast
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 23-04-2020
excellent
A necessary read for anyone who loves military history. All the levels of the conflict are taken into consideration.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 04-06-2020
Fascinating.
A revisionist view of the battle of Midway from the American, Japanese and modern day perspective.
I loved all the detail, whilst admitting to being unable to absorb much of it other than a general overview.
Still fascinating owing to the complexity. fate and simple, dumb, blind luck of this momentous carrier battle.
Military historians may quibble but I found it a great yarn with a superb narration.
Well worth a read.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- IRB
- 08-01-2020
Incredible Depth
I am in awe of the research that has obviously gone into this book. I bought both the Kindle and Audible so as to read in conjunction and look at the illustrations. It took me well over a month to finish it. It does get a bit repetitive, especially towards the end but can not detract from and incredible piece of work.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- ST
- 24-07-2020
A superb piece of historical writing
This is an excellent book. The authors, by using previously unexamined sources of information, shed new light on this historic battle and challenge longheld misconceptions about what happened at the Midway Atoll in 1942.
It's not entertainment history like Dan Carlin (who is also excellent at what he does). It's meticulously detailed and very little attempt was made to give the presentation of the information any drama. But the rapid destruction of Japan's Kido Butai is dramatic enough that it's still an interesting read.
The book is presented from the Japanese perspective. It's a gripping tale of how groupthink and overconfidence led the Imperial Japanese Navy to allow the finest naval aviation striking force on the planet turn into scrap iron in a matter of minutes. For military history fans who don't mind a deep dive into a topic, it's an excellent read.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Steve
- 23-04-2021
Definitive Midway book
This is an amazing book. The analysis of the forces, their operational and tactical doctrines are very well thought-out, and debunks many earlier books on the topic.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!