We have just returned to the mainland from our first ever trip to Hawaii. We stayed at a wonderful B & B on Oahu, where we found the Frommer's guide to Honolulu, Waikiki and Oahu along with many other guide books, but we found it to be the best. This book was a fabulous guide, with all the maps and notes of places to go and things to see. We used it like a bible. It helped to make our trip very memorable.

I read the second edition of this book before moving to Honolulu three years ago, and still find it a very useful reference. Joe Bisignani gives you tons of interesting and useful information in an enjoyable writing style that captures the mood of the islands. Anyone who is the least interested in exploring Oahu beyond Waikiki Beach will find this book useful. Unlike the writers of some competing guidebooks, Bisignani is honest about labeling expensive tourist traps as such (it is telling that most of them have also shown up in the "Honolulu Weekly" annual readers' choice of "Best place to cruelly misdirect tourists"). Inbetween all the hard facts, Bisignani also manages to give the reader an accurate portrayal of the social climate of Oahu. Unlike most guidebooks, this one has an extensive and excellent history section, and there are also many references to fascinating Polynesian legends throughout the book. Warmly recommended!

I recently had the opportunity to read "'O Au No Keia: Voice's From Hawaii's Mahu and Transgender Community". As someone with no transgender feelings, it was a glimpse into a part of our community that I knew very little about. Its a very real book, written by the transgendered people themselves. Mr. Matzner interviewed a number of transgendered people on O'ahu, edited what they had wrote and then gave them a chance to review, correct and add to what they had said. So rather than being a book about transgender people, its really a book by transgendered people.

Their stories were real and often touching. Their feelings and lives, while outwardly very different than what I've ever experienced, were so real and human that it would be almost impossible to not understand and feel for them. They openly share both the good and bad parts of the lives in an effort to get those of us outside the transgender community to see how their stories could be anyone's story. They succeed. Its not an cheap book (almost [$$$]) but its worth every penny if you want to better understand our friends in the trangender community.

I recently read and used the 93' version of the book. This is a great hiking manual for the island of Oahu. The author does such a great job of describing each step of your hike that you can't make a mistake. In the reading you can visualize what the hikes will entail before deside which one you would like to take. Whether you are a beginner or an experienced hiker this book will be of much value to you. The revision should have valuable information about certain changes to the trails listed as well as some additions. May the 8 people who lost thier lives at Sacred Falls in early 1999 rest in peace and my deepest regards to thier families.

Pearl Harbor Recalled with text by James P. Delgado and illustrations by Tom Freeman places the attack in a new perspective. In place of multiple poor quality black and white prints which is all we have to envision the Day of Infamy, Tom Freeman has supplied a visually stunning chronology of the attack beginning with aerial views of the harbor as the attack commenced and ending with a beatiful view of the battleship Arizona as she lies today in the mud of Pearl Harbor. Each episode in the drama is portrayed from the sailing of the Kido Butai (First Striking Force) to the launching of the midget submarines to the first skirmish with the latter and Tone's scout plane confirming the presence of the fleet in harbor. Freeman then potrays the assaults on US airfields preventing any air opposition and then the smashing of battleship row, culminating with a breathtaking portrayal of the Arizona blowing up at approximately 810 am. Individual heroics are portrayed with one G.I. firing his .45 caliber pistol at an A6M Zero as it races close overhead and firemen putting out fires at Hickam Field.
The vast expanse of the fiery inferno is vividly portrayed and places the attack on Pearl Harbor in the world of color for I believe the first time. If not the first, then it is certainly the best artistic impression made of the attack, well researched and executed. Mr. Delgado's narrative is informative and complements the paintings extremely well. This is an excellent book which I would recommend to any naval student, wargamer or naval historian.

After recently watching the much hyped movie Pearl Harbor, I realize my knowledge of the history of Pearl Harbor was woefully lacking. My search for information led me to this wondeful book by Walter Lord. Rather than a historical narrative of dry facts, it is a collection of individual stories, relating the experiences of the common ordinary soldier, sailor, marine, or civilian in the hours before the attack through the end of the day on 12/7/41.

Some of the tales are heroic, some comical, and many tragic, but they are all fascinating. One of the things that struck me was number of people who couldn't comprehend the fact they were under attack by an enemy force, even as bombs and bullets rained down on them. And the wild tales and rumors that spread throughout Hawaii in the aftermath of the attack are just incredible and laughable looking back on it now.

For those wanting more of a general overview of the battle, and a listing of historical facts, they may be disappointed by this book. But I highly recommend it for anyone wanting to learn more about the people involved on that fateful day.

This was the first non-kids book I ever read. That was back in the 3rd Grade. And years later I still look at this book as one of my favorites.

Walter Lord does not break any new ground in this classic but older story of the bombing of Pearl Harbor. But what he does do is give you a perfect description of what happened and how it happened.

Walter Lord is one of those historians that puts you there. And thats what he does in this book. You are there as the Japanese attack Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941.

I highly recommend this book.

As an introduction to what the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor was like, and how it affected many of the men and women involved in that morning's events, Lord's 'Day of Infamy' hard to beat.

Although it's hard to find fault with Lord's recitation of facts, an in-depth historical study of what-happened-and-why is not really what Lord is after here. Instead, he approaches this mainly as a storyteller, presenting us with 'a moment in time' (as cheesy TV anchor-people might put it) in the lives of real people. People like me interested in root causes will do well to study Prange and Toland and Stinnett and all the rest. But keep coming back to Lord, to remind you that for all the talk of geopolitical strategy, individual human lives were changed (or ended) forever because of the attack.

If you're not interested in wading through thousands of pages of historical argument and just want a vivid portrait of the day of the attack, I cannot recommend Lord too highly. It's a great place for anyone interested in the attack to discover, or rediscover, what happened that fateful morning.

Where was this book when I was planning my trip to Oahu?? I actually ran across it upon my return and immediately ordered it to plan my next trip.

This is one of the most concise and easiest guidebooks I have ever seen! It actually doubles as a great coffee table book loaded with gorgeous pictures and information on every area on the island.

The book literally takes you on a tour around Oahu, dividing the island's shores beginning with the South Shore. Filled with graphic organizers of parks in that particular shore to weather-it is handy to glance for quick info. A detailed description of sites accompany pictures and info on traveling. There is just so much info jammed in the pages, it is hard to list all of it but it is organized neatly! The maps are right on the money!

In researching travel books about the island of Oahu for an upcoming vacation, I found this publication to be outstanding. I checked out several titles from the public libraries, tried to plan a one week itinerary, and found myself confused and unsure of what we would be doing until I picked up Driving & Discovering Oahu by Richard Sullivan. It was just what I needed! He divides the island into manageable sections, includes pertinent maps, bus info, and sightseeing musts, all amidst breathtaking photographs. This is a real gem!

Debbie Somchay somchada@email.rosary.edu

I found this book by accident on the internet while researching places to go and see while planning our Hawaii vacation. I ordered it and used it during our vacation. This is a great book with fantastic ideas of interesting and beautiful places to see and things to do. It also has detailed maps and beautiful pictures. We really enjoyed our vacation on Oahu and this book definitely was very helpful. We are planning another visit in a couple of years and I have already ordered the Maui book to help me plan. Planning is really important because their are so many things to do and if you have the information to make your personal choices ahead of time--you will get the most enjoyment of your visit to the islands. Aloha!

How to Transcend the Present and Record the Past for the Future Or, Prange's Present toPosterity Seth Hieronymus History of PearlHarbor Abroad November 22, 1997 Principia College, Elsah, IL, 62028 At Dawn We Slept: The Untold Story of Pearl Harbor, by Gordon W. Prange, manages to break new ground in history writing. Although the manuscript in this form was authored primarily by two of Prange's ex-students Dr. Donald Goldstein and CWO (USAF Ret.) Katherine V. Dillon, due to Prange's enormous contribution, At Dawn We Slept is truly his tale. Prange endeavored to write the most complete work on the subject extant, an inside look from both the Japanese and American points of view. In his own words, "I [Prange's italics] am the only individual who has come to grips with the entire Pearl Harbor problem and conducted extensive research and interviews on both sides of the Pacific." Prange, through his research and his use of both the Japanese and American perspectives, has succeeded brilliantly in writing this unbiased look at Japanese / American relations leading up to, and immediately following the December 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor. Prange's story starts in Japan, New Year's Day, 1941, with its 2601st birthday, and ends in 1946, with the conclusion of the Joint Congressional Committee Investigation into the attack at Pearl Harbor. , , Even though At Dawn We Slept contains several historical references outside this timeframe; for instance, Commodore Mathew Perry's expedition in 1895 that normalized Japanese-American relations, they serve mainly as background information that support the main story. Similarly, although the book briefly mentions the Atlantic theatre and events in Washington, it does not try to expand its focus beyond its original purpose, the Pacific, from Japan to Pearl Harbor. What makes this book great are not the dry facts about who was involved, and where or when it happened, but rather how it tells the events. It is arranged much like two trains, one Japanese and one American, that stop every so often to trade passengers, but inexorably race on to a truculent collision on December 7, 1941, at Pearl Harbor. The language of the book lets the reader look through the eyes of the characters, lets him feel their emotions, and gives him a first-hand look at the events. For instance, speaking of Japanese ships, "[Abukuma] led nine of the newest and best destroyers under the Rising Sun flag... Nagumo's trouble-shooters... could spring to battle at a moment's notice," and later: On Nagumo's shoulders rested a responsibility and a burden such as few commanders had ever borne in the history of naval warfare. The venture ripped out all the pages of Japanese naval tradition, violated their basic rules of strategy, and tossed into the classified waste the plans which Japan had long formulated to fight the U. S. Navy. , The word pictures that At Dawn We Slept paint personalize the history, and make it more accessible and enjoyable. Furthermore, the pictures, although rather sparse, give a visual perspective that speaks out from the past, for instance Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto's stately demeanor and Lt. Commander Shigekazu Shimazaki's smug confidence. As with any historical work, research forms its backbone and determines its credibility. The contribution of Prange's own history should not be forgotten, because his background determines the skills and opportunities that he brought to the investigation. Born in Iowa, on July 16, 1910, Prange taught history at the University of Maryland from 1937 to 1980, when he died. Beyond that, he was Douglas MacArthur's chief historian from 1946 to 1951, and had a chance to talk to the participants first-hand. How often are people in the right places at the right times that they are able to record the events of history for posterity? Prange was. Because he spent 37 years of his life gathering first- hand, eye-witness accounts for this book, Prange forces us not only to trust him, but to actually relive the events, as they happened. His hundreds of interviews consisted of individuals who actually participated in the history, from the lowest ranks of the military to the highest, and many of the civilians. The sheer magnitude of his work is an essential element in this book's appeal. For example, Prange met with Commander Minoru Genda -- the main author of the Japanese attack -- a total of 72 times, and Commander Mitsuo Fuchida, the flight leader, 50 times. , Prange's original plan was to write a book solely from the Japanese perspective. Consequently, a bias could have been introduced as Prange did not interview many of the American participants until much later. In one case, the commander of the Hawaiian Department, Lt. General Walter C. Short, whom the Inquiry Board found partially responsible for the attack, died on September 3, 1949, before Prange even had a chance to interrogate him. However, the magnitude of Prange's research and interviews enabled him to find the germane facts in people's otherwise embellished tellings. In this way, Prange minimized distortion of the actual events, and thereby minimized any bias introduced. This is not to say the book falls short of placing both blame and praise for the attack. Of Short, and Admiral Husband E. Kimmel, "Both Kimmel and Short exercised poor judgment in this crisis." And about Genda, and Commander Mitsuo Fuchida: From the moment Genda explained his assignment, Fuchida brought a new dimension to the Pearl Harbor picture. Henceforth he and Genda formed a unique team - Genda the creative genius supplying the original ideas, Fuchida the aggressive activist hammering them into reality. At Dawn We Slept essentially becomes Prange's thesis about the how historical events leading up to Pearl Harbor occurred - on both sides of the Atlantic. However, the book does more: It goes beyond dates and places, and instead brings the history alive. This book, in doing so, becomes a model for its contemporaries and a benchmark for the future. End Notes Gaddis Smith, "Remembering Pearl Harbor," The New York Times Book Review 29 November 1981: 3. Donald Goldstein, Telephone Interview, November 20, 1997. Goldstein Interview. Gordon W. Prange, Donald Goldstein and Katherine Dillon, ed. At Dawn We Slept: The Untold Story of Pearl Harbor (New York: Penguin, 1991) 814. Prange 3. Prange 722. Prange 842. Prange 392. Prange 395. Prange 1st Picture Set. Prange Cover. Goldstein Interview. Prange 821-825. Prange 827. Prange 829. Prange 728-729. Prange 410. END

While science is my area of expertise, I have a continuing interest in history. That interest lead me to pick up Prange's book. Gordon Prange has devoted years to accumulating information about the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. That information includes interviews and military and government information from the USA and Japan. That accumulated information was then boiled down into this final work -- completed after Prange's death.

While there have been many books and theories proposed about why and how the debacle at Pearl Harbor took place, Prange's approach is well documented, and includes details of the pre-attack politics of the USA and of Japan. His book also includes detailed information about the attack itself, gleaned from interviews with those on both sides who actually participated in the event. But, even with that level of detail, I must admit that the most compelling part of the book for me is the section that follows the actual attack -- when the US government and the military were trying to figure out what actually happened, and who was to blame.

The final series of chapters of the book provide insight into the thoughts and tactics of Adm. Kimmell (CincPAC) and Gen Short (Commanding General of army at Hawaii), the two primary "interested parties" in the event.

Before reading the book, I had a tendency to believe that there may have been something of a conspiracy by the Roosevelt administration to get us into WWII, but after reading this account of Pearl Harbor, I am more likely to believe that the great success, including complete surprise by Japanese naval aviation was the result of a series of ill-advised decisions by the commanders at Hawaii rather than by any entity in Wash DC.

The sticky point in the whole affair was "magic" the US's code-breaking machine that allowed us to monitor coded diplomatic messages sent between Tokyo and some of its embassies. While "magic" was the source of a great deal of information that may have resulted in a different outcome at Pearl Harbor if the commanders there had access to it, we will never really know.

If you are interested in looking in repurcussions from the attack at Pearl Harbor, or if you have an interest in thinking about the whys and hows of the US entry into WWII, I urge you to read this book.

The writing is passable, though sometimes quite dry. The information is well documented, and is believable. This is not, however, a quick read -- there is a lot of meat in this book to be digested as you go along.

All in all an outstanding contribution to the telling of a sensitive piece of American history.

5 stars for content and believability.

Alan Holyoak

While there have been many books written on the story of Pearl Harbor, this is by far one of the most detailed accounts. The book portrays fair and accurate detail from all sides and all perspectives. Gordon Prange's analysis from pre-attack to aftermath is thorough and complete, leaving the reader with much to comtemplate and digest. I certainly found the book to be presented in an objective and analytic manner. The writing style is rather wordy and scattered; however, the content more than compensates for the lack of quality editing skills. If you are an avid war buff or have a personal interest in Pearl Harbour, you will want to read this book. It is, however, quite lengthy and thought-provoking; therefore, the type of book one wants to peruse and digest slowly.

H.P. Willmott's "Pearl Harbor" is for the most part a lavish, clear-headed and distilled view of the many aspects of the attack on Pearl Harbor. It is marred only by the limitations of the author's expertise and some peculiarly low-quality art-work selections.

Where this volume is of tremendous value is its examination of the air organization and materiel of the attack. This is an area where Willmott and his co-authors have amassed a singular degree of detail, much of which is compiled in a wonderful series of appendices. This material particularly concerns the composition of the Japanese air groups and the targets they attacked.

Willmott also provides some concise, but extraordinarily cogent examinations of the controversies surrounding a potential follow-up strike by the Japanese and the conspiracy-theory obscured issues of what information was available to U.S. commanders, leaders and intelligence services. These both deserve careful reading.

Where this work falters is in the details of the damage done to the ships, and the too-ready acceptance of a questionable new theory. The details of the damage have been available for years in the shape of Homer Wallin's account of the salvage work, and the recent reconstructive work of Tony De Virgilio and his associates, so this oversight is surprising. The count of bomb hits on the Nevada is wrong, and the idea that torpedoes struck the Arizona has been discredited for years.

While Willmott appears to have missed those facts, he has all but swallowed a recent (and highly questionable) analysis of a photograph purporting to show one of the mini-submarines launched by the Japanese torpedoing two of the battleships. The impression one is left with is that Willmott and his co-authors were primarily concerned with the air aspects of the attack and neglected the surface and surbmarine elements, leading to detail errors about the hits obtained and damage suffered, and the efficacy of the mini-sub attack.

Although the book contains many lavish and large renderings of well-known photographs and several very nice charts, it also features some crude illustrations that were obviously computer generated. Some of the luster of a detailed illustration of the flight paths of the attacking aircraft is lost when those aircraft look like balsa toy gliders with two-dimensional fuselages. A detail of the harbor suffers massively when the ships are represented by rude, boxy renderings with no resemblance to the ships themselves. A diagram of the torpedo attack in profile is thoroughly marred by contrived head-on images that again are not those of the battleships themselves and would also only be correct for a torpedo attack against the ships' starboard sides.

Regardless of its--for the most part--minor flaws, this is a book well worth reading for what it does right.

This is a big, good-looking book on a familiar subject yet it contains a substantial amount of material new to this reader. Few would have thought that so much fresh research would appear on Pearl Harbor 60 years later.
I concur with most of the other review comments, but readers with a naval aviation orientation should know that Willmott has obtained a surprising amount of "nuts and bolts" material about the way the IJN worked its carriers. Tactical air ops, launch-recovery cycles, and other data will be relished by those of the tailhook persuasion. Similarly, the tables and appendices constitute a "one-stop shopping center" for IJN units and commanders in Operation Hawaii.
Willmott's forte' is analysis, and his insightful comments at the tactical and strategic levels are well worth considering. In carrier terms, "Pearl Harbor" is an OK-3.

This commentary appears in its second printing to receive renewed recognition and attention for new audiences. The author analyzes the move of Japan to bomb Pearl Harbor in a title packed with black and white photos and in-depth coverage. If only one memoir of Pearl Harbor were to be purchased, this should top the list.

This book has taken us thorugh tropical rain forests, dense valleys, and sun-parched craters. The variety of hikes is wonderful. There is something for everyone in here, well, everyone except the beginner hiker. It seems even beginning hikes in the book are a bit challenging. This is because Oahu has such a varity of terrain. However, if you are looking to take a relaxing stroll through the woods this book will be of no use to you. We have children so we only do the novice hikes and even those are challenging, but fun and dirty! This is probalby for more serious hikers and some of the hikes mentioned are 12 miles long! That takes a long time in Oahu's terrain! The author always write in interesting tidbits of info in his hike description which I like. Things such as the where the strawberry guava trees are, where the WWII tunnel is, etc...The one negative to this book is that many of the hikes the author writes about are closed to the public and you have to write for permission to hike them. To me, this is a pain and I am not organized enough to plan ahead and do this. If you are better organized than I, I am sure you would enjoy them. We are just a bit more spontaneous. Enjoy!

Working as an outdoor guide in Hawaii for a summer gave me a chance to discover the island of Oahu. It also helped me realize the that is the ONLY guide to hiking on Oahu that is worth buying. Not only do you get VERY accurate trail descriptions, you also get driving directions, directions from TheBus and information on flora and fauna in the area. I dare you to try and get lost!

I won a copy of the first edition of this book in a contest in 1994, and since then it has helped me find dozens of beautiful and enjoyable trails.

For example, one of the trails we found was a great hike in Wahiawa through the back country of an Army training base. As the author suggested, we wrote to the commander and we got permission to do this hike that rambles over hills and across streams, and all at the cool elevation of Wahiawa.

Some of the highlights of the book include great descriptions of the flora along the trail, reproductions of topo maps for each hike that show you the pitch of the trail(although you should probably get the real topo if you plan to get lost), clear route descriptions that show that the author has been on these trails many times, and a wonderful layout.

It is the best hiking book I have ever read (although I've probably only read about a dozen). It is without equal among O`ahu hiking books.

I just bought the second edition, and if possible, it's even better than the first one.