Book Review – Harry Turtledove’s “Days of Infamy”
The other day I finished Harry Turtledove’s alternative history novel, Days of Infamy.
Ask yourself this question: On December 7, 1941, the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, was attacked by the nation of Japan in a devastating aerial raid. What if the Japanese carrier task force was also accompanied by two divisions of soldiers?
Harry Turtledove attempts to answer that question in his book, Days of Infamy.
Set primarily on the Hawaiian island of Oahu, Days of Infamy begins shorty before the sneak attack on Pearl Harbor. We’re introduced to a few of the island’s residents, including an American surfing instructor, the wife of an Army soldier, and a Japanese fisherman and his two sons. Each has his or her own story to tell about the American style of life in Oahu in 1941.
Don’t worry about that part of the story being too long or boring. The air attack on Pearl Harbor is already taking place about thirty pages into the 520-page book. The main split between history and fiction also takes places around that early point in the book, guaranteeing the readers a TON of new scenarios throughout the remainder of the story.
Apart from the inbound Japanese amphibious force, the readers will quickly notice that the Japanese navy launches a third wave of attacks upon Pearl Harbor. Around that time period in the book, the U.S. navy’s carrier, USS Enterprise, is sailing back towards the island and launching its own wave of fighters. In no time, a squadron of F4F Wildcats is caught up in a massive dogfight with Japanese A6M Zeros in the sunny skies over Hawaii.
And virtually all of the Wildcats are shot down. Although the Wildcats had better armor and firepower, the Zeros were faster and more maneuverable. It wouldn’t be later in the war before Wildcat pilots developed an effective combat strategy against the Zeroes. For the time being, the Japanese Zero pilots had no difficulty shooting down the American fighters.
After the crushing air attack in which the Japanese navy destroyed critical American forces and earned total air superiority over Oahu and the Hawaiian islands, the Japanese amphibious forces made their beach landings. The Japanese soldiers marched right onto the beaches and jungle terrain of Oahu.
The American defenders make a tough stand at first. They concentrate their forces on the expected route of the Japanese army. What they soon discover is that the Japanese troops choose to navigate the difficult mountainous terrain and outflank the defenders rather than give them a straight-up fight. As a result, the Americans are continually pushed further and further across the island, retreating and giving up valuable ground.
Just when all hope is lost, the American forces surrender Oahu to the Japanese. At that point the citizens of Hawaii and captured Americans learn new definitions of pain and suffering.
For the citizens, the suffering comes from food rationing, surrendering of personal radios, and of course, bowing down and showing respect to Japanese soldiers passing down the street. Failure to abide by the rules resulted in beatings and executions.
The American soldiers were subject to extreme levels of food rationing and starvation by the hands of their captors. We quickly see that the Japanese viewed surrendered troops as the absolute lowest form of life on earth, devoid of honor and unworthy of receiving the time of day, let alone barely enough food to delay starvation.
The majority of Days of Infamy takes place under Japanese occupation of Oahu. It’s interesting reading about the occupation through the eyes of average Japanese soldiers and citizens of Hawaii. As we read, the only people who have any hope of living a “normal” life are those who are able to escape into the Pacific Ocean for brief periods of time: i.e. the fishermen and surfers.
So are all of the Hawaiian citizens upset that the nation of Japan now occupies the islands?
No. For many of the Japanese-born citizens, the Japanese troops are seen as liberators and freedom fighters. No longer are the Japanese people going to be treated like second-class citizens as it appeared during American occupation. They know that times are tough now, but after the war it’ll improve.
Do the Americans take back Oahu and free the citizens from the Japanese occupiers?
Around halfway through the book we read of an American attack on the island. A flight of B-25 bombers makes a surprise attack. It isn’t enough to really damage the Japanese forces, but it’s a significant morale booster for the P.O.W.s and citizens on the island.
The end of the book involves an American task force intent on taking back Oahu. It ends up being a three-on-three aerial battle between Japanese and American aircraft carriers, the first supposed carrier-to-carrier battle during the war. Both sides lose a significant of aircraft and pilots, but it’s the Americans who lose two carriers and almost lose their third.
Be warned: This story continues on to a second book. This is just the start of a series.
Harry Turtledove’s Days of Infamy would most likely best be enjoyed if you have some knowledge of World War 2 history, especially naval aviation and warfare. Turtledove’s scenes of aerial combat felt fairly accurate, and it was easy to imagine myself in the cockpit of both the Grumman F4F Wildcat and Mitsubishi A6M Zero.
When I picked up Days of Infamy, it looked like a standalone book. The book’s cover didn’t give any mention of it being part of a series. I’m not the biggest fan of books being in series, especially lengthy books like this one. But Days of Infamy was an interesting story, and I’m curious to see what happens next in this alternate telling of World War 2 history. I’ll have to keep an eye out for the second book, End of the Beginning.
