This'n'That; May Eighth #1; Another Great Book!

A Real 'Page-Turner!'
    After having put nearly 13 years in the Air Force and nearly 5 years in the Army Reserve, I still have great affinity for all things-military.  To that end, I'm a sucker for practically any books on the military, even those branches I've never served.  When I was a shy--somewhat introverted--high school senior, I looked toward various branches of the services as my relief from smalltown 'hickness,' from a self-perceived life working in some factory somewhere.  I gotta tell ya.... in 1964, two things kept me out of the Navy; being a poor-to-non-swimmer and the bell-bottomed pants the enlisted men wore!!  Anything more ridiculous than that?!?
    The book....?  Oh, yea....THE BOOK!!  The title is "In Harm's Way," by Doug Stanton, first published in 2001.  I got my copy from a brother-in-law who actively searches discount stores, used book sellers, yard sales, et al, for things to read both for himself and family members.  I found the book a great read; a real page-turner from end-to-end.  It only took me a day-and-a-half to read the over 380 pages of text.  I then spent another half-day or so, reading all the survivors' interview material, research material and official Department of the Navy findings on the incident.
    I'll try not to spoil the book for any potential readers.  "In Harm's Way" had a rather gruesome start with one of the main players in later life during the late 1960s and then into the past, to the vastly important latter stages of World War II in the Pacific Theatre.   The main 'character' is the U.S.S. Indianapolis (CA-35), a crucial, integral player in the end-days of Japan's war-making capabilities, the destructive royal mindset. 

U.S.S Indianapolis (in 1937) at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii

    The ship's real 'claim-to-fame' was it's use as the mode of transportation for 'Little Boy,' the early atomic bomb that devastated Hiroshima, Japan, on August 6, 1945. 

Hunter's Point, Ca., (in 1971-with the carriers Ranger, Hancock and Coral Sea)

All done in the tightest of secrecy and security, the 'Indy' picked up the bomb in pieces (one crate; one cannister) at the Hunter's Point Naval Shipyard, San Francisco Bay, Ca., on July 16, 1945.  The ship delivered this cargo to Tinian Island (a part of the Northern Mariana Islands chain with Guam, Siapan, et al) on July 26, 1945.  Tinian is approximately 1,600 miles south of the Japanese home islands.

The actual 'Little Boy' as prepped for loading onto the 'Enola Gay' for delivery over Hiroshima

    After said delivery at the Tinian Island naval facilities, the U.S.S. Indianapolis departed later that evening for Guam (120 miles) then 1,300 more miles to Leyte, an island in the Phillipine Sea.  The U.S.S. Indianapolis departed Guam on Saturday, July 28th with an ETA to Leyte of the following Tuesday, July 31st.  During the Guam-to-Leyte leg, the fecal matter hit the air-circulation device!!
    From there until the raw deal the Department of the Navy handed the Indianapolis' commanding officer is a blow-by-blow of how the ship was torpedoed and sunk, the officers and men rescued and the Navy shafting Captain McVay with a courts-marshal.
    All in all, an excellent read!! 
Next, I'm looking forward to reading "Tiger Force, a true story of men and war," by Michael Sallah and Mitch Weiss.  Good or not-so-good, I shall report.
Til Nex'Time....
http://product.half.ebay.com/In-Harms-Way-The-Sinking-of-the-Uss-Indianapolis-and-the-Extraordinary-Story-of-Its-Survivors-by-Doug-Stanton-2001-Hardcover/1818669&tg=info
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Indianapolis_(CA-35)
http://www.atomicarchive.com/Photos/Tinian/index.shtml
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hunters_Point_Naval_Shipyard
http://www.commandposts.com/2011/07/uss-indianapolis-trinity-and-little-boy/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:USS_Indianapolis_(CA-25)_Memorial.jpg


The U.S.S. Indianapolis National Memorial located on the Canal Walk, Indianapolis, Indiana