Fortress Rabaul: The Battle for the Southwest Pacific, January 1942-April 1943 - Bruce Gamble [pdf]

The winner of the Gold Medal (Military Writers Society of America) and Editor's Choice Award (Stone & Stone Second World War Books) is now available in paperback format. Since its 2010 release, Fortress Rabaul has been hailed as the triumphant midpoint of Bruce Gamble's award-winning military nonfiction trilogy, following his critically acclaimed Darkest Hour (December 2006) and preceding Target: Rabaul (November 2013). In this, the Zenith Press series' renowned second installment, Gamble chronicles the crucial role of Japan's island stronghold - Fortress Rabaul - located in the Southwest Pacific during World War II. For most of the war, the mere mention of Rabaul sent shudders through thousands of Allied airmen. With millions of square feet of housing and storage facilities supporting a hundred thousand imperial Japanese soldiers and naval personnel, Simpson Harbour and the airfields there were the focus of hundreds of U.S. Air Force missions. Recounted through Gamble's meticulous, airtight research and told in his signature accessible narrative style, you'll quickly see why Colonel Walter Boyne, USAF (Ret.), has called Fortress Rabaul his "tour de force."