Dead Reckoning: The Story of How Johnny Mitchell and His Fighter Pilots Took on Admiral Yamamoto and Avenged Pearl Harbor
Product ID: 206713505
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The definitive and dramatic account of what became known as "Operation Vengeance" -- the targeted kill by U.S. fighter pilots of Japan's larger-than-life military icon, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, the naval genius who had devised the devastating attack on Pearl Harbor. “AIR RAID, PEARL HARBOR. THIS IS NO DRILL.” At 7:58 a.m. on December 7, 1941, an officer at the Ford Island Command Center typed what would become one of the most famous radio dispatches in history, as the Japanese navy launched a surprise aerial assault on U.S. bases on Hawaii. In a little over two hours, more than 2,400 Americans were dead, propelling the U.S.’s entry into World War II. Dead Reckoning is the epic true story of the high-stakes operation undertaken sixteen months later to avenge that deadly strike – a longshot mission hatched hastily at the U.S. base on Guadalcanal. Expertly crafting this "hunt for Bin Laden"-style WWII story, New York Times bestselling author Dick Lehr recreates the tension-filled events leading up to the climactic clash in the South Pacific skies – frontline moments loaded with xenophobia, spycraft, sacrifice and broken hearts. Lehr goes behind the scenes at Station Hypo on Hawaii, where U.S. Navy code breakers first discovered exactly where and when to find Admiral Yamamoto, on April 18, 1943, and then chronicles in dramatic detail the nerve-wracking mission to kill him. He focuses on Army Air Force Major John W. Mitchell, the ace fighter pilot from the tiny hamlet of Enid, Mississippi who was tasked with conceiving a flight route, literally to the second, for the only U.S. fighter plane on Guadalcanal capable of reaching Yamamoto hundreds of miles away – the new twin-engine P-38 Lightning with its fabled “cone of fire.” Given unprecedented access to Mitchell’s personal papers and hundreds of private letters, Lehr reveals for the first time the full story of Mitchell’s wartime exploits up to the face-off with Yamamoto, along with those of key American pilots Mitchell chose for the momentous mission: Rex Barber, Thomas Lanphier Jr., Besby Holmes, and Ray Hine. The spotlight also shines on their enemy target –Admiral Yamamoto, the enigmatic, charismatic commander in chief of Japan’s Combined Fleet, whose complicated feelings about the U.S.—he studied at Harvard—add rich complexity. In this way Dead Reckoning offers at once a fast-paced recounting of a crucial turning point in the Pacific war and keenly drawn portraits of its two main protagonists: Isoroku Yamamoto, the architect of Pearl Harbor, and John Mitchell, the architect of the Yamamoto’s demise. Dead Reckoning features black-and-white photos throughout.
| Dimensions | 6 x 1.29 x 9 inches |
| Isbn 10 | 006244851X |
| Isbn 13 | 978-0062448514 |
| Item Weight | 1.25 pounds |
| Language | English |
| Print Length | 416 pages |
| Publication Date | June 9, 2020 |
| Publisher | Harper |
User
Masterly written. Well worth the read!
An event we all know about, but certainly not the story that unfolds in the book. The author does a masterful job of introducing us to the major players in this historic event so we get to know them as the people they were, not just a name. He brings the characters together with the event in a level of detail that lets us understand the strategic as well as the tactical thinking that had to come together in short order to make the mission work. And then he wraps it all up with the aftermath of the strike and what the major characters did in the rest of their lives. Highly recommended!
User
Vengeance in the SW Pacific
Well written and detailed account of the mission to kill Admiral Yamamoto in WWII. Exacting and sympathetic portrait of Yamamoto as a reluctant warrior. The main character of course was Johnny Mitchell the leader of the 16 P-38’s that intercepted and shot the plane transporting Yamamoto out of the sky 450 miles from their base. It was a legendary feat of navigation and leadership. I rarely say this about a work of history but I could barely put it down. Lots of detail about flying out of Guadalcanal in 1942-43 when the Japanese still held sway over the Pacific islands. Thoroughly enjoyable read of ordinary men doing extraordinary things.
User
Great Story
This is a comprehensive review of the lead up to War, the causes and many actions taken from that point to the end of it's Architect. Very good historical read.
User
Yamamoto’s End: The WWII Mission That Should Have Failed
BOOK REVIEW: Dead Reckoning by Dick LehrDead Reckoning by Dick Lehr recounts the daring WWII mission to intercept and kill Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, the architect of Pearl Harbor, a strike whose impact reverberated far beyond the destruction of a single aircraft. Lehr convincingly shows how Yamamoto’s death dealt a severe psychological and strategic blow to Japan, influencing the course of the Pacific war at a critical moment.Equally compelling is the book’s emphasis on the mission’s staggering logistical improbability. The operation required pinpoint intelligence, extreme-range flights at the limits of aircraft capability, and flawless timing across vast stretches of open ocean—any single failure would have doomed the effort. Lehr’s narrative makes clear that success was never assured and bordered on the miraculous.Concise and suspenseful, Dead Reckoning demonstrates how the elimination of Yamamoto stands as one of WWII’s most unlikely and consequential missions.
User
Very interesting book
I love books about WW2 and found this book to be an interesting read. Lots of insight into details of what it was like to serve during this time.
User
Excellent, Excellent, Excellent!
There is so much more to learn about the shoot down of Admiral Yamamoto and the Army Aviators who completed the 800 mile, 50 feet off the water strike with only a wrist watch, a compass and "Dead Reckoning " The author goes back to the child hood and earlier generations of the strike leader and the Admiral. Deeply researched a page turner!
User
Very Detailed
It was a bit tedious but that was the only way to capture the minute details of a very complex story. It was well written and the editing was excellent. It was almost error free and that's not easy to do with such a detailed study.
User
Killing Yamamoto
This is a great story about what actually happened on the mission to shoot down Yamamoto’s plane. A must read!
User
I was held spellbound from the 1st page to the last
Very well written bookIf I close my eyes, I can see Mitch telling the room of Generals & Admirals how the mission was going to be conducted - & Mitscher backing him up - great stuff....
User
Pearl Harbour.
It’s been written about, over and over. But this is a most personal and intuitive story, relating the ongoing parallels of two key players in that WWII drama. Wonderful and very insightful.
User
Misleading dust jacket
The dust jacket of 'Dead Reckoning' describes it as "The story of how Johnny Mitchell and his fighter pilots took on Admiral Yamamoto and avenged Pearl Harbor" [sic]. The book does indeed do that but only in the last 90 of its 330 pages. The rest is more or less a love story or, indeed, two love stories - set against the period before and during the Pacific War - describing how Mitchell met and married his wife Annie Lee and how Yamamoto courted the love of his life, the geisha Chiyoko.That said, there is sufficient material to engage the interest of the military historian and the author - Dick Lehr - describes the key events of the first two years of the Pacific War, whilst maintaining a focus on Mitchell's career as a fighter pilot and his rise to command of the 339th Fighter Squadron. The final third of the book then covers the mission to shoot down Yamamoto but only briefly explores the post-event controversy over who should have got the credit, ending with the debunking of Tom Lanphier's widely publicised claim to have been 'the man who killed Yamamoto'.All in all, it is nonetheless an engaging read and an informative addition to any military history library.
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