Given Up for Dead: America's Heroic Stand at Wake Island

Given Up for Dead: America's Heroic Stand at Wake Island
- Used Book in Good Condition
A gripping narrative of unprecedented valor and personal courage, here is the story of the first American battle of World War II: the battle for Wake Island. Based on firsthand accounts from long-lost survivors who have emerged to tell about it, this stirring tale of the â€œAlamo of the Pacificâ€ will reverberate for generations to come.

On December 8, 1941, just five hours after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Japanese planes attacked a remote U.S. outpost in the westernmost reaches of the Pacific. It was the beginning of an incredible sixteen-day fight for Wake Island, a tiny but strategically valuable dot in the ocean. Unprepared for the stunning assault, the small battalion was dangerously outnumbered and outgunned. But they compensated with a surplus of bravery and perseverance, waging an extraordinary battle against all odds.

When it was over, a few hundred American Marines, sailors, and soldiers, along with a small army of heroic civilian laborers, had repulsed enemy forces several thousand strongâ€“â€“but it was still not enough. Among the Marines was twenty-year-old PFC Wiley Sloman. By Christmas Day, he lay semiconscious in the sand, struck by enemy fire. Another day would pass before he was foundâ€”stripped of his rifle and his uniform. Shocked to realize he hadnâ€™t awakened to victory, Sloman wondered: Had he been given up for deadâ€”and had the Marines simply given up?

In this riveting account, veteran journalist Bill Sloan re-creates this history-making battle, the crushing surrender, and the stories of the uncommonly gutsy men who fought it. From the civilians who served as gunmen, medics, and even preachers, to the daily grind of life on an isolated islandâ€”literally at the ends of the earthâ€”to the agony of POW camps, here we meet our heroes and confront the enemy face-to-face, bayonet to bayonet.

From the Hardcover edition.
Country USA
Brand Bantam
Manufacturer Bantam
Binding Mass Market Paperback
Color Multicolor
ReleaseDate 2008-01-29
UnitCount 1
EANs 9780553585674

Country	USA
Brand	Bantam
Manufacturer	Bantam
Binding	Mass Market Paperback
Color	Multicolor
ReleaseDate	2008-01-29
UnitCount	1
EANs	9780553585674

Given Up for Dead: America's Heroic Stand at Wake Island

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