“Morning of the Rising Sun is the compelling story of the first major Allied combined land, air and sea offensive in the war in the Pacific. Historian and author, Dr. Kenneth Friedman, spent six years extensively researching and painstakingly writing the first draft of this sweeping trip across the battlefields and into the minds and motivations of the combatants ... and it shows. It unflinchingly depicts the deadly details of the war in the jungles, waters and airspace that made up the struggle for control of Guadalcanal.
Dr. Friedman brilliantly lays out the political and cultural underpinnings of that bloody six month donnybrook with the meticulous clarity of an accomplished historian while at the same time taking the reader into the minds, motives and personal experiences of warriors from both sides with a novelist's sense of story. This is an eminently readable and thoroughly enjoyable delineation of the fascinating details of the conflict that changed the course of the war.
Guadalcanal stopped the advance of the Japanese across the Pacific and created momentum that would take the Allies from blood soaked island to blood soaked island all the way to Japan. Hastily organized, audaciously launched and uncompromisingly fought, its outcome was tenuous and uncertain until the very last days and, but for a few propitious moments that we euphemistically, in hindsight, call the fortunes of war, it could easily have turned out differently. And that would have dramatically altered the course of the war.
This book is a valuable addition to our understanding of the causes of conflict and the nature of both victory and defeat, a testament to the honor and courage of those who believed in their cause and fought on both sides. Anyone interested in military history, political history or the very personal nature of war without quarter will find Morning of the Rising Sun a productive investment of their time and a fascinating read.” --- David McClure -- San Francisco, CA
“Just a quick note to tell you how much I thoroughly enjoyed your book. I have read Frank, Leckie, Hammell, Feldt and others and and rate yours at the top. Good work! Definitely a five-star rating.” --- John L. Willis, DDS ---Yuba City, CA
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