The fleet at flood tide - James D. Hornfischer

Timed to coincide with the 75th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, an unprecedented account of the monumental Pacific War campaign that brought the U.S. Navy to the apex of its power and supremacy and established the foundation for America as the dominant global superpower, from the New York Times bestselling author cited as "doing for the Navy what Stephen Ambrose did for the Army" (Rocky Mountain News).Distilling thousands of pages of primary-source research, here is an extraordinary narrative orchestration of the most strategically vital operation of the Pacific War: the U.S. Fifth Fleet's seizure of the Marianas, a multi-faceted exhibition of the new state-of-the-art in warfare. It was the Navy's first use of men who were the forerunners of today's SEALs. It marked the emergence of America's capacity to launch cross-hemispheric expeditionary operations. It saw the flowering of American naval aviation and aircraft carrier power. And shortly after a classified aviation outfit completed its secret training, Marianas-based U.S. airpower would shock the world with a first glimpse of nuclear fire.From the epic seaborne invasion of Saipan, to the stunning spectacle of the aerial battles of the Marianas Turkey Shoot, to the grinding fight ashore between American and Japanese troops-and the largest suicide attack of the war-to the devastating bombing campaign that culminated with Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Marianas were the fulcrum of the Pacific, conquered by naval, air, and ground-force warriors who revolutionized warfare. Filled with memorable action set pieces and closely observed portraits of the most compelling warriors and commanders of the day, The Fleet at Flood Tide is the broadly encompassing story of the most consequential campaign of WW2.