World War 2 in the Pacific Collection: Across Wake Island, Bataan, Guadalcanal, Corregidor, and Iwo Jima

Helmet for My Pillow: From Parris Island to the Pacific, The Saga of Pappy Gunn, On Valor's Side, The Coastwatchers, They Call it Pacific, Joe Foss Flying Marine, South from Corregidor, The Story of Wake Island, & Mission Beyond Darkness

By: Robert Lackie, General George C. Kenney, T. Grady Gallant, Eric A. Feldt, Clark Lee, Joe Foss, John Morrill, James P. S. Devereux, J. Bryan

Narrated by: Museum Audiobooks Cast

The Pacific War was the theatre of World War II that was fought in Asia, the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean and Oceania. The Pacific War saw the Allies pitted against Japan, aided by Thailand and its Axis allies, Germany and Italy. Fighting included some of the largest naval battles in history, and the war culminated in the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Book 1: Helmet for My Pillow: From Parris Island to the Pacific is a personal memoir of the war in the Southern Pacific by the World War II United States Marine Corps veteran, author, and military historian Robert Leckie. First published in 1957, the story begins with Leckie's enlisting in the United States Marines after the 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Deployed to Guadalcanal, New Britain, and New Guinea, where some of the war's fiercest fighting took place, he is finally wounded and evacuated from the island of Peleliu. Recounting his service on the frontline and visits to Australia, Leckie paints a realistic portrait of how real warriors are made in a struggle against a deadly enemy.

Book 2: The Saga of Pappy Gunn by George Churchill Kenney. Kenney (1889 -1977) was a United States Army Air Force general during World War II. His book narrates the remarkable life of Paul Irvin “Pappy” Gunn and his exploits during the Second World War. Gunn was an integral part of the war effort in the Pacific during WWII. Besides being a brilliant pilot, he was a formidable aviation engineer, a mechanical genius who could rebuild anything from an electric razor to an airplane engine or any of the plane’s hundreds of accessories. This book makes it clear why many admirals, generals and soldiers considered Gunn as one of aviation's great pioneers.

Book 3: On Valor's Side is an enlisted man’s first-hand account of what it was like to be a Marine in the Pacific during World War Two. T. Grady Gallant was a journalist, editor, columnist, author and editor who took part in the battles of Guadalcanal and Iwo Jima. The first part of On Valor’s Side covers the gruelling training that members of the First Marine Division underwent at Parris Island, whilst the second recounts the unit's travel to New Zealand, Guadalcanal and the Solomon Islands.

Book 4: The Coastwatchers. Commander Eric Augustus Feldt (1899 - 1968) was an officer in the Royal Australian Navy. During the Second World War, until 1943, he was the director of the Coastwatchers organisation. The Coastwatchers’ task was to monitor Japanese activity in the islands that make up the Solomon Archipelago. Feldt code-named his organisation "Ferdinand", a name from a popular children's book about a bull. This book is the account of the Coastwatchers’ many crucial contributions to the war in the Pacific and especially in the Battle for Guadalcanal.

Book 5: They Call It Pacific (1943) is an account of the war in the Pacific from December 1941 to late 1942. The author, a foreign correspondent with the Associated Press, covers events leading up to the war and reports on the battles for the Philippines on Bataan and Corregidor, as well as descriptions of aerial combat over Guadalcanal. The narrative also recounts his escape from the Philippines with the help of the Filipino resistance.

Book 6: Joe Foss Flying Marine. Joseph Jacob Foss (1915 - 2003) was a Marine Corps major and a fighter ace in World War II. He received the Medal of Honor for his role in air combat during the Guadalcanal Campaign. The book deals with the daily bombings and nightly shelling of the field and their camp, the disease, the lack of replacement planes and the valiant stand made by the Marines to keep the Japanese from retaking the field.

Book 7: South from Corregidor is a riveting World War II escape story. On 6 May, 1942, hours after US Army General Jonathan Wainwright surrendered all US and Filipino forces on the island of Corregidor in Manila Bay to the Imperial Japanese Army, 18 US Navy sailors from USS Quail set out on their adventurous escape to freedom. Led by Lieutenant Commander John Morrill, the 18 sailors began their 2000-mile journey to Darwin in Australia in a 36-foot gasoline boat.

Book 8: The Story of Wake Island. James P. S. Deveraux’s gripping book takes one to the heart of the action from the point of view of the commanding officer.

Book 9: Mission Beyond Darkness is about the final phase of the Battle of the Philippine Sea which took place on June 19, 1944. Late that afternoon, United States Navy planes from Task Force 58 attacked a Japanese fleet. The fliers were sent out late in the day, which necessitated a return in the dark. The book takes a detailed look at the heroic fliers who made the effort although many did not make it back to their carriers.

Public Domain (P)2020 Museum Audiobooks

Amazing courage

Their courage was then, and is now, simply inspirational. The best of America. We bow our heads.

Our lost History

The knowledge that these men and women went through the same worries and emotional impacts that we face today yet stepped up to the challenge. This generation needs to listen and learn to grown together as a nation as our forefathers did

Courage of the World War II fighting

This is anyone a new perspective of what our young men went through in World War II to keep America free
Sacrifices they made should be not forgotten

Great stories!

The stories told by these men about their experiences are amazing. The performances were inconsistent and not the best.

Outstanding collection

Some of these tiles, others would not have caught my eye, but all were well worth the time to listen. In fact I listened twice through. Amazing stories of sacrifice and devotion.

WE2 in the Pacific Collection

I liked that you put all 65 hrs together at once. I use your books to fight tinnitus. Rather than the random tones used to keep my mind off of the screaming in my ears, a BOOK gives me something to focus on much better. You should suggest this to other tinnitus patients.

A superb collection of Titles

I was surprised at what a great collection of books this was! I was very glad to have selected it and able to hear it. Very good stories that definitely deserve to be told and remembered. Never Forget 💝

Exactly how it happened!

I loved these books because the authors told the story of the soldiers in the cockpit or trenches exactly how they saw it.

History unfolds

First person memories is historically correct setting. Long “book” but worth every minute. I hope you also enjoy it.

Very cool

Very cool collection of WWII books. Only problem for was forgetting my which book I was on hahaha