The Pacific: Hell Was An Ocean Away

Sidney C. Phillips, an easygoing Alabama teenager, enlisted along with a buddy. "Manila John" Basilone was the son of immigrants who found happiness in the rough-and-ready life of a marine. Eugene B. Sledge watched his best friend and his brother go off to war-and finally rebelled against his parents to follow them. "Shifty" Shofner was the scion of a prominent family with a long record of military service. Ensign Vernon "Mike" Micheel left the family farm to complete flight school. Here, Hugh Ambrose focuses on their experiences and those of their fellow servicemen, enhancing and expanding upon the story told in the HBO miniseries.

Drawn from military records, letters, journals, memoirs, photos, and interviews, The Pacific offers a unique perspective on the war against Japan. These were the men who put their lives on the line; who were dispatched to the other side of the world to fight an enemy who preferred suicide to surrender; who suffered in POW camps and witnessed casualties among soldier and civilian alike; and whose medals came at a shocking price-a price paid in full by all.

Made in the USA. 508 pages.