Fire and Fortitude

The US Army in the Pacific War, 1941-1943

By: John C. McManus

Narrated by: Walter Dixon

An engrossing, epic history of the US Army in the Pacific War, from the acclaimed author of The Dead and Those About to Die.

"This eloquent and powerful narrative is military history written the way it should be." (James M. McPherson, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian)

"Out here, mention is seldom seen of the achievements of the Army ground troops," wrote one officer in the fall of 1943, "whereas the Marines are blown up to the skies." Even today, the Marines are celebrated as the victors of the Pacific, a reflection of a well-deserved reputation for valor. Yet the majority of fighting and dying in the war against Japan was done not by Marines but by unsung Army soldiers.

John C. McManus, one of our most highly acclaimed historians of World War II, takes listeners from Pearl Harbor - a rude awakening for a military woefully unprepared for war - to Makin, a sliver of coral reef where the Army was tested against the increasingly desperate Japanese. In between were nearly two years of punishing combat as the Army transformed, at times unsteadily, from an undertrained garrison force into an unstoppable juggernaut, and America evolved from an inward-looking nation into a global superpower.

At the pinnacle of this richly told story are the generals: Douglas MacArthur, a military autocrat driven by his dysfunctional lust for fame and power; Robert Eichelberger, perhaps the greatest commander in the theater yet consigned to obscurity by MacArthur's jealousy; "Vinegar Joe" Stillwell, a prickly soldier miscast in a diplomat's role; and Walter Krueger, a German-born officer who came to lead the largest American ground force in the Pacific. Enriching the narrative are the voices of men otherwise lost to history: The uncelebrated Army grunts who endured stifling temperatures, apocalyptic tropical storms, rampant malaria and other diseases, as well as a fanatical enemy bent on total destruction.

This is an essential, ambitious book, the first of two volumes, a compellingly written and boldly revisionist account of a war that reshaped the American military and the globe and continues to resonate today.

©2019 John C. McManus (P)2019 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"A very fine account of war in the Pacific founded on wide research and excellent judgement." (Antony Beevor, New York Times best-selling author of D-Day: The Battle for Normandy and Ardennes 1944: The Battle of the Bulge)

"This eloquent and powerful narrative is military history written the way it should be. John C. McManus has seamlessly blended the strategic and tactical story with deep analysis of the political context and social composition of armies that embodied the cultures of the nations from which they were formed. During the two years covered by this book, American forces in the Pacific theater transitioned from fighting on a shoestring defensive to the beginning of mighty offensives that would prove irreversible." (James M. McPherson, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Battle Cry of Freedom)

“An expert, opinionated World War II history with some unsettling conclusions.... Entirely engrossing.” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review)

A great telling of U.S. Army history in the Pacific

A solid first swing at telling a piece of Army history which has largely been given over to the Marines. The Army had over three times the forces that the Marine Corps had in the Pacific theater. A story that needs to be told

Great overview of the pacific with new information

This book can be tough at times due to the sheer brutality of the pacific, but this is well worth it. Walter Dixon’s delivery perfectly encapsulates the emotions of soldiers quoted in this book.

Even more refreshing is the inclusion of Japanese and Chinese perspective of the time. They have gone ignored/forgotten/untranslated for far too long, and it adds yet another level of depth to a far more complicated theatre of war than was commonly thought.

Brilliant book on the War in the Pacific

I thoroughly enjoyed this book on the war in the Pacific. Although I am quite knowledgeable about the war itself, this author really dove into it thoroughly and gave you the perspective of what happened during the war from soldiers and sailors and nurses on ratings. Having known a man who spent some time at Cabanatuan During the war, this book gave me an opportunity to understand more thoroughly what he went through. He does a very thorough examination of Douglas MacArthur, whom I always knew to be a vainglorious, self-righteous, narcissistic commander, the author goes into great detail about how spurious his command really was. That’s not to say that he wasn’t brilliant, he was just a diva in uniform just like another brilliant General George S Patton. I really like this book.

Phenomenal work

Walter Dixon, does a superior job here and the book is very good for indeed!

Sharpens Focus on Army’s Role in Pacific War

After three generations have passed, the Pacific War comes sharply in focus from the US Army’s point of view. Excellently written, Joh Mc Manus’s first volume concentrates on Generals Douglas MacArthur, Joseph Stilwell, and their staffs and subordinates. Yet much of the story is told from the diaries and memoirs of everyday soldiers, both American and Japanese. Truly global in literary scale, this book is an indispensable addition to any military Historian’s library.

Unmatchable!

McManus rocked thos book! I read his book on the Big Red One and it was superb!
This book was phenomenal!! No one ever gave such a detailed description of the New Guinea campaign that'll Mr. McManus has here. Oh my goodness his descriptions of the battles and all of the generals and troop conditions are superb. I cant wait to read the next in the series here!

Eye Opener

Fire and Fortitude opened my eyes to the battles that the Army fought in the Pacific. Too many times we hear about what the Marines accomplished, but hardly ever do you hear about the Army in the Pacific theater. I think this book is a must read for anyone interested in military history.

Very good,

Had many details that are not usually in found in pacific war books. I did think that the author made so many excuses for the Jap cruelty and the horrific treatment of the POWs.

Excellent study as far as it went

A lot of new material on an under studied and under appreciated contribution of the US Army in the Pacific. Two things detracted from an otherwise Stirling effort: 1) Technical inaccuracies that would have surely been eliminated had a knowlwdgible combat veteran proof read the manuscript and the collarary that some or most technical data would have benefitted from some elaboration, and 2) as problems presented themselves in this truly unique trifecta of technology, terrain and long distance logistics no discussion of solutions or in some cases any acknowledgement that there was a problem. Hopefully this will solved in a follow-up volume; book only went through 1943. The narration was excrllant, and the pronunciation of Pacif Island names used was the same as commonly used by US forces without attempting to change emphasis or split syllables. Having grown up an Army brat with a father that fought under MacArthur and later served in the USMC and lived in base housing where every street was a Pacific Island, battle or campaign its disconcerting to hear an extra syllable added to Tarawa, or mangling Entiwetok to be unrecognizable. I appreciate the use of common American pronunciations.

Great look at land/Island operations

Great look at land operations in the Pacific Theater during 1941-1943. Perfect on its own but also an excellent companion to Ian W. Toll's Pacific War Trilogy.