The U.S. Marine Corps in World War II: The Stories Behind the Photos

This book contains 60 black and white photographs of the Marine Corps in WWII. A few of the photographs are famous, such as the Rosenthal photograph of the flag raising on Iwo Jima, but most are not that well known. Most of these photographs were taken during famous engagements such as that on Guadalcanal, Tarawa, Saipan, Guam, Peleliu, Iwo Jima and Okinawa. Two pages are devoted to each photograph. One contains the photograph and on the opposite page is a smaller version on which important features are noted. Under this smaller version is an explanation of the notations, which include, among other things, items associated with the uniforms and military equipment. In a few cases the names of those shown are identified. The photographs also include the identification of the unit involved and some history of the fighting that is depicted, but this is limited to only a few sentences. This is a book that I would recommend to those with a serious interest in the details of WWII and the Marine Corps. I found the descriptions of the military kit and equipment to be very informative, especially when the evolution of things such as rifles that were used and the type of helmet that was worn are discussed (but the discussion is very brief, amounting to only a few sentences or less). I rate this as 4* instead of 5 because of the specialized appeal of this book.