Days of Infamy (Pearl Harbor)

First I must admit to some surprise at the differing reviews for "Days of Infamy". I loved it. Yes, it is WW2 but a quite different scenario than his other books in this time. In this book, Japan follows up her attack on the `sleeping giant" with an invasion. He looks at a reaction from the shattered U.S forces and a hasty response from the main land later. I found the book to be a "page turner", i.e. a book that I could not put down. I read it in a week and constantly enjoyed the different viewpoints from Japanese and U.S sailors, army and aviators. As a bonus the civilian population, both Japanese and "haoles", provided a great contrasting viewpoint. Sam Hendricks, author of "Fantasy Football Guidebook: Your Comprehensive Guide to Playing Fantasy Football".

This is the first of a pair of gripping alternative history novels which explore the possibility that Japan might have backed up the air strikes on Pearl Harbour with a land invasion. The sequel is called "End of the Beginning." This is the fourth alternative version of World War II which Turtledove has written. He has previously done stories with aliens from Tau Ceti invading in 1942, (the Worldwar series) a parallel history following pretty much the real track, in a world where technology uses magic rather than engineering (Darkness/Derlavi/World at War series) and an alternative World War II in a history following a Rebel victory in the US Civil War, hwich has the same roles as in the historical WWII carried out by different people (Settling Accounts). Having done so many alternative versions of World War II, you would think he would find it impossible to say anything new about them or maintain the reader's interest. Judging by other reviews, some readers do indeed have that problem, and I expected to be one of them, but from the moment I picked up this book I found myself hooked. Turtledove suggests that the Imperial Japanese forces would have treated the inhabitants of Hawaii with the same ruthless cruelty they dealt out to other people who fell under their control, such as the luckless people of Nanking. This is all too plausible. He weaves a story of how this might have affected the people who lived under their regime, from American Prisoners of War, U.S. and Hawaiian civilians, to Hawaiian residents of Japanese origin. Turtledove's account of how the conflict might have left this latter group torn between conflicting loyalties is presented through the story of a family in which the father, who was born in Japan, welcomes the invasion and blames the death of his wife (killed by a Japanese bomb) on the Americans for resisting: his sons continue to identify with the American side and blame the Japanese attackers for their mother's death. For the reasons hinted at above, I nearly didn't read this book, but I'm very glad I gave in to the temptation to do so. If you liked most of Turtledove's other books, you will almost certainly like this one.

Days of Infamy (2004) is the first novel in the Pacific War series. On December 7, 1941, Japanese carrier planes attacked the US installations at Pearl Harbor. They sank all the US battleships in the Pacific and destroyed most of the Army Air Corps planes at Hickam Field. They could not sink the three carriers stationed at Pearl Harbor since these ships were at sea. In this novel, the Japanese send a third wave of planes to bomb the tank farms and repair facilities. Then the Japanese army lands on the north shore of Oahu. Since the Japanese carrier planes are supporting the invasion, the nearby US carriers send planes to protect US troops; then the Japanese planes find the US carriers and sink or disable all three. The US army fights back as best it can, but is disorganized, outnumbered, and then defeated in detail. Eventually most of the soldiers surrender to the Japanese. Of course, the Japanese consider surrender to be dishonorable and set out to work the prisoners to death. By the way, Fletcher Armitage is an artillery officer in the US Army, not an aviator. The Japanese army takes Oahu and then the rest of the nearby islands. The Japanese set up an occupation government under Army command. They punish infringement of their orders with death; the high school principal is beheaded for keeping a radio despite Japanese orders to turn it in to the occupying troops. The Japanese now have a forward base within flying boat range of the continental US. They bomb Los Angeles and other sites and fly recon on the west coast. Their biggest problem is the US use of radar, which they don't yet have despite positive advances in their laboratories. Since most food stores in Hawaii were shipped in from elsewhere, the Japanese convert some commercial farms to food production and encourage the residents to plant gardens. The fishermen convert their boats to sail and keep on fishing. Older Japanese residents in Hawaii identify with the invaders, but find that most of their children consider themselves to be Americans. Some Japanese residents are designated as village overseers by the occupying army, but are often more sympathetic toward their neighbors than the occupation troops. However, the haoles still consider themselves to be superior to any colored races; nevertheless, they quickly learn that the Japanese also have racial prejudices. This novel is basically fiction, but the habits of Japanese occupation armies in the Phillipines and elsewhere have been well documented. The attitudes depicted herein are truly characteristic of the Japanese at all levels. The Japanese still exhibit racial prejudices toward their own minorities and other nationalities. Then, too, other races and nationalities return the favor; the Okinawans were less than pleased about their return to Japanese rule in 1972. And many Filipinos, Koreans and other nationalities still hate the Japanese. Of course, the perseverance and creativity of the Japanese are

Pushed into a corner by America's embargo--and by their costly war in China, Japan decides to strike back, hitting the American fleet in Pearl Harbor. In a twist that transforms the story from history to alternate history, however, the Japanese decide to follow up on their attack, occupying Hawaii and turning it into a bastion and shield against America. Rather than a single 'day of infamy,' the Japanese plan and carry out an invasion that results in days and months of infamy. The Americans fight back hard against the Japanese invaders but the loss of their land-based aircraft hurts them. What hurts them even more is the loss of their carriers when these huge warships sail back toward Pearl Harbor and attempt to meet the Japanese invasion. With the air completely under Japanese control, two Japanese divisions land and beat back the American defenses. With occupation comes hard times for the locals, whether of American, native Hawaiin, or even Japanese descent. One of the mysteries of World War II is why, if they were going to strike, the Japanese didn't finish the job. It would have been tough. The Americans would have fought back hard. But leaving Hawaii hit but not occupied had to be a mistake. Author Harry Turtledove builds on this concept, creating a convincing alternate world where the invasion took place--and succeeded. Japanese death-camps, harsh treatment of prisoners, hunger for both prisoners and locals, and other inhumanities follow--while mainland Americans hope to fight back, but continue to underestimate the determination and technical prowess of the Japanese forces. I have my problems with Turtledove's style--he has a tendency to repeat information too many times (do we really need to hear about the Japanese sacrificing armor for speed this many times?), and a habit (which his editors should pick up on and fix) of structuring sentences like 'he could have done comething, could have but didn't' way too often. That said, DAYS OF INFAMY is compelling alternate history. Turtledove took a reasonable possibility out of history. Japan was overstretched with its conquests, but it fielded a huge army in China. A couple of divisions wouldn't make much difference in China, but could make a huge difference in Hawaii. The American overconfidence is certainly historically valid. The details of the occupation of Hawaii are painfully similar to occupations that Japan did undertake, brought much more home by placing them in what is now an American state. If you're a fan of alternate history and you enjoy Turtledove, DAYS OF INFAMY is one you'll want to read. Although some may be offended by the idea that Japan had some motivation to go to war with the U.S., Turtledove definitely doesn't play with history with this aspect.

The Japanese plan to bomb Pearl Harbor when Commander Genda persuades Admiral Yamamoto to also occupy Hawaii. That would enable the Japanese to extend their territorial base and make for ease to bomb the American far west and cut the enemy off from allies like Australia and New Zealand. His superiors approve the daring plan. Whites control Hawaii with Japanese treated as third class citizens. When the attack occurs, the Americans are taken by surprise and react in a disorganized manor, even the soldiers.. Their weaponry is destroyed. The bombardment is followed up with precise military action and the Japanese Army force the Americans to surrender. POWs are treated with contempt and abuse while those Japanese who have lived on Hawaii for years collaborate with their conquering brethren. The local Americans on bended knees to the invaders look to the forty-eight states hoping they will make a move to liberate them. Harry Turtledove, the grandmaster of alternate history, has written an exciting military thriller that answers the what if question of what would happen if Japan invaded and occupied Hawaii not just bombing Pearl Harbor? Most readers will believe after an early bout of skepticism that the events in DAY OF INFAMY could have happened. Most interesting is the outlook of Japanese living in Hawaii as the parent generation believes they are Japanese while their children feel American. This is another triumph from Mr. Turtledove. Harriet Klausner