Brotherhood of Heroes: The Marines at Peleliu, 1944 -- The Bloodiest Battle of the Pacific War

Author does an excellent job of moving from the tactical level of the company,platoon, squad and even team to the divisional operational level (to be a pain and nitpick with other reviews the two-division sized op on Peleliu is operational warfare, the strategic level in the Pacific is mentioned only in passing). It is such a good book that I actually had to put the book down and take a break. The description of the deadly, never ending days of battle is almost too intense. I came away with a good integrated feel for the battle. That's a tribute to the author's skill and military knowledge. Also the fact that the battle was fought by one Marine division backed up by one Army division on a small island means the reader feels in control of the subject matter. There are not many maps but the one's used are good. As with any military book they need to be referred to often. America is lucky to always have men such as the Marines described in the book when we need them.

In late 1944 the Marines invaded a small island within an archipelago that had been "owned" by Japan since the end of World War 1, the Japanese having been ceded the territory by the Germans as part of the WWI Armistice (possession, in this case, being 100% of ownership). The island was fortified by the Japanese as part of one of several concentric fortification rings rippling out from the home islands. The strategic picture by 1944 involved a Japan being pressed steadily back in every theater of operation in which they operated, and particularly in the vastness of the Pacific. The Americans, and MacArthur particularly, were eager to re-take the Phillipines and a number of islands, including Pelileu, were deemed to stand in the way. The American policy of leaving certain Japanese island to whither on the vine was in place at this point, but for a number of reasons - none of which seem appropriate in retrospect - the decision was made to invade Pelilieu, and the task was given the to the First Marine Division. Known as the "Old Breed," the base cadre of the First Marine Division were a significant portion the long term professional soldiers that made up the United States' pre WWII military. In writing this history, Sloan had the benefit of being able to speak to actual participants in the battle, and he very ably maintains a balance of first hand accounts with the progression at a high tactical level of the campaign. Individual and individual's battles are drawn sharply and without any real bombast. He is able to convey some of the most graphic aspects of men fighting men with expertise, and time and again the challenges faced by the Marines were astonishing, more so given that he is like as not to include their various failures and deaths as well as the successes. The focus here is really on the squad level, with the broader scope providing context for their efforts. Would have been nice to get some perspective on the other side here, but given that only a couple of dozen Japanese were captured, that was more or less impossible. On a side note, here again is a battle in the Pacific that astonishes the reader for the proportion of casualties (and by that I mean death) that the Japanese absorbed in these battles. Less than one percent of the defenders survived, at all. While the Marines tactics were necessarily brutal ("curing" a cave meant shelling it directly with tanks and/or artillery, constant automatic weapon fire into the apertures, and air assault where feasible, followed by flamethrowers, followed by satchel charges to close the entrance), the absolute unwillingness of the average Japanese soldier to surrender remains astounding to this day. While in retrospect, this was an unnecessary battle on its face, in fact the lessons learned here served the US well at future larger battles - Iwo Jima, Okinawa, etc.. The author make this point strongly, if coming off somewhat as an apologist on the point, but he fails to alsop

When veterans of World War II, like those who fought in the ferocious, island-hopping campaigns in the Pacific, returned home at war's end, their families and friends were given a piece of advice: Don't ask about their experiences. As a result, many family members went for years with only bits of information about what their sons, brothers or fathers did from 1941 to 1945 in the service of their country. Much of that changed in the 1990s when America observed the 50th anniversary of the war that was the 20th century's pivotal event. With that observance also came the realization that the men and women who served during that time were nearing the end of their lives. Important stories of heroism and bravery were in danger of being lost. Bill Sloan, first with Given Up for Dead, the inspiring story of the defense of Wake Island early in the Pacific war, and now with Brotherhood of Heroes, is helping to preserve the heritage of courage and bravery of those who fought in World War II. Brotherhood of Heroes tells of the invasion by the First Marine Division of a hellhole of an island called Peleliu, east of the Philippines. Specifically, it zeros in on the men of K Company, Third Battalion, Fifth Marine Regiment and their accomplishments despite the efforts of a determined enemy. Battles like Peleliu were fought by armies, divisions, battalions and companies. But in reality they were fought by men who were scared, angry, and tired but who were indeed members of a brotherhood of heroes. The book was criticized in an earlier customer review because it reflects only on American courage and determination. There's an obvious reason for that. Only about 30 of the approximately 11,000 Japanese defenders who fought with suicidal bravery on Peleliu survived the battle. Locating and then interviewing any of those 30 men who were still living some 60 years later would have been an impossible task.

Brotherhood of Heroes by Bill Sloan is the story of the First Marine Division's battle to defeat the Japanese on the island of Peleliu. Fighting under conditions that can only be described as horrific, the Marines fought from the minute they hit the beaches, and kept on fighting until they were pulled off the line some thirty days later. During this time the division lost 6,526 men, 1,252 killed in action, and 5,274 wounded in action. This "equated to more than two casualties for each of the island's 3,200 acres." Although the early fighting was done on the beaches, the majority of the battles took place in the very mountainous region of Peleliu where the Japanese had built a series of interconnecting tunnels. The fighting was intense and very costly for both sides. However, as a result of the courage of these heroes the Marines were able to carry the day. I have read a number of books on different battles occurring in both the ETO, and the PTO and in my opinion Peleliu ranks among the worse. With the book and Given Up For Dead, Bill Sloan has established himself as one of the premier WWII historians. This is a must read for all.

Peleliu was a bitch. About the only good think you can say regarding Peleliu is that it tought some valuable lessons to the Marines. These were to be well used in subsequent campaigns. The intelligence about Peleliu was bad, the overall stragegy was arguable, the whole thing was screwed up. Originally it was thought that it was necessary to protect MacArthur's flank as he took the Philippines. Subsequently there was thought that this wasn't necessary, but Nimitz believed that Peleliu would be a easy campaign and useful as an airbase. He was wrong. The battle for Peleliu was supposed to last for only about 72 hours as the few hundred or maybe a couple of thousand Japanese were defeated. Instead 10,500 Japanese fought very, very well for thirty days of continuous fight-to-the-last-man combat. It was one of the few islands where the Marines faced Japanese tanks. This book follows (mostly) K Company, Third Battalion, Fifth Regiment - K/3/5. K Company was in the forefront of the invasion with 235 men. At the end of the battle 85 answered roll call. This is their story, a story of an incredible brotherhood. Great Reading About a Tragic Battle.