Bloody Buna

To a certain extent this book is superseded by The Ghost Mountain Boys, but not completely. In this short, concise work the author manages effective and thoughtful criticism of MacArthur, and also addresses the issues of the friction between the Australian and American forces, and the quality or lack thereof of American fighting. This battle was commenced around September of 1942, and ended in January of 1943, really it was fought at the same time as Guadacanal. The author also does a good job pointing out the competition for resources and attention between Buna and Guadacanal, especially from the Japanese point of view. And the fact that appropriate weapons were lacking to reduce the Japanese bunkers. Much praise is due the author.

While trying to find any item I have that may actually be worth money, I typed in this book just for fun, never expecting it to come up. Lo and behold... My edition dates to 1974 and so understandably, this is not a new book. Be that as it may, Buna is a frequently overlooked campaign that SHOULD NOT be overlooked. The men who fought in New Guinea expereinced some of the worst conditions nature could provide and fought on all the same. This book in particular is a wonderful example of how history books used to be written. Liberal use of military documentation and personal accounts intersperse this novel but the reader never really gets to know the soldiers like they do the officers. The battle accounts as crisp, well written and a little aloof. Even so, readers will be amazed and impressed by the details included, such as a soldier, when asked by a visiting general what he wanted, flipping over to show the hole in his pants and saying only," PANTS General. GIve us PANTS!" Now that is just good history.