Clash of the Carriers: The True Story of the Marianas Turkey Shoot of World War II

Barrett Tillman's Clash of the Carriers: The True Story of the Marianas Turkey Shoot was a book I was looking forward to reading. The "Marianas Turkey Shoot," more properly known as the Battle of the Philippine Sea, was a great though tremendously lopsided carrier battle that was a death knell for the Imperial Japanese Navy and a triumph for the United States Navy. There aren't many books written on the battle, so when I came across this on, it wasn't a difficult decision to buy it (in Kindle form as usual).As far as the information in the book goes, I have no complaints. Tillman does a good job of telling the story of the Turkey Shoot from both the American and Japanese perspective. He gives credit for good decisions and blame for poor decisions on both sides. On both sides, he includes the perspective of not just fleet, task force, and squadron commanders but individual pilots and sailors as well. He doesn't just tell the reader that a ship was sunk, he explains the damage done by the attacks and explains why the ship couldn't be saved. He does a good job of putting you in the cockpit, on the deck, or within the ship depending upon the sailor or officer's job.On the other hand, there are elements of the book that just undermined it for me. One of those things was the jargon/slang Tillman makes frequent use of. He doesn't offer explanations of the terms and that could make for difficult reading by the casual reader. At times, the jargon and some of his descriptions go over the top. Second, he let his objectivity slip in the closing chapters (in retrospect I should have expected it to pop up somewhere given Stephen Coonts' Foreward). I didn't detect a lack of objectivity throughout much of the book, but in the "Where are they now" chapter near the end of the book, Tillman lets his objectivity slip and his politics shine through. As a History major (including a course in Historiography) I found that very unappealing.I had a tough time deciding on how to rate Clash of the Carriers. It provided some good information and good perspectives on the battle, but it could have been written a bit better and Tillman could have left his politics out of it. If Goodreads had a 3.5 that is probably what I would have given it, but the over the top descriptions, jargon, and politics combined with a lack of maps led me to give it three stars. IF the print version has maps I would likely give it four stars (depending upon map quality). If you're a naval/military/aviation history buff looking to read about the Battle of the Philippine Sea I would recommend this book, but I wouldn't to the casual reader.

Tillman has an eye for interesting details that make the history of the battle come alive. Unfortunately, his prose is occasionally jarringly clunky.Also, there is much that he fails to explain - for example, (p.41. softcover) how was the USS England able to sink so many Japanese submarines, i.e. how did she know where to look for them, and why was that significant to the Battle of the Philippine Sea? (answer: the Japanese submarines were put in a patrol line to spy on and attack the sea lanes that the Japanese high command expected the American carrier task forces to travel through before the battle, but American code breakers knew of these orders, and vectored in anti-submarine ships like the England to sink the Japanese submarines before they were able to make an impact on the battle). We can see that some Admiral is kind-hearted because he send a couple "Chamorro" sailors ashore on Guam - what is a "Chomorro", and why does these sailors going ashore mean anything? (because Charmorros are natives of the Mariana Islands, so the admiral must have been giving them time to go look for their families to put their minds at ease). Details and explanations like those are left out on average over once per page.In sum, if you already know the general overview of the battle from past reading that you have done (Samuel Eliot Morison, etc), then this book will provide you with fascinating additional vignettes and information. If you don't have that background, though, I recommend reading something else first.

The Turkey Shoot needs a good book and this is it - the only criticism I have is of a literary nature. Mr. Tillman writes for dramatic effect and at times things become a bit "purple." Beyond that, however, he nicely blends the facts (dates, times, movements, units) with the experience, including some from the Japanese point of view. Keeping track of the moving fleets and swarms of aircraft as well as separating out the claims from the reality is a massive challenge - information is lacking and even the accounts of survivors is marred by both the intensity of combat and the passage of time - but "Clash" does a far better than average job of getting things straight. There is a body of literature about WW II that emphasizes the production capability of the US - and it was incredible - but does so while downplaying the courage of the Americans and emphasizing that of their opponents. Mr. Tillman avoids this trap. His accounting of the production and technological edge of the Americans, and the difficulty of the Japanese to match it, is a vital key to understanding what happened. There is no doubt in my mind that the Japanese were brave and certainly they were brave in facing the Americans in 1944. It is no slight to them to note the accounts of the Americans who faced them in the beginning of the war, when to fly against the Zero was to buck terrible odds or to take a TBD against the Imperial fleet was to almost certainly die, that show bravery was not the province of one side or the other. "Clash of the Carriers" demonstrates the Americans did not win simply because they had more and better equipment but that they had the same courage as their opponents. Having said that, the material production of America, both in terms of quality and quantity, has to give the reader pause and naturally bring forth the question, What were the Japanese thinking in starting the war? Mr. Tillman, of course, in "Clash" can only address that issue briefly (Eri Hotta's "Japan 1941" is a good start).

I enjoyed reading this book and, even if it has some weaknesses, I think that this is a precious position for all military history buffs and a must for all those who are interested in Pacific War (and I plead guilty on both counts).The battle of Philippine Sea (19-20 June 1944) was the greatest carrier battle in history and also THE decisive battle of Pacific War and, as Barrett Tillman very rightly states in this book, there will probably never be another like it. Author described this epic and dramatic fight very comprehensibly, from the first moves to the aftermath with a great detail and with a contagious enthusiasm.As I already said, this is a very good book, but it still has some weaknesses. The big one is the focus on the American view of the battle, with not so much insight into the Japanese perception of the events. A lesser, but still annoying weakness is the absence of maps - but that can be compensated by printing them from internet or even better, by purchasing the relevant volume of Samuel Eliot Morison great history of US Navy operations during WWII. I would also advise to skip Stephen Coonts introduction, as it is rather irrelevant. Finally, especially in the first chapters of this book, author's enthusiasm is a little bit exaggerated...Barrett Tillman very rightly points in this book to two paradoxes. The first is that Ozawa actually performed better than Spruance, even if he lost the battle. Japanese admiral led his forces with a great skill, doing all the right things which Nagumo should have done at Midway - he found Americans first, when keeping his own location for a long time secret and he stayed out of Spruance's reach during the first day of the battle, which allowed him to launch no less than four raids, when not being attacked himself. His forces however were insufficient to beat Americans, who enjoyed a huge numerical and qualitative advantage other their adversaries - and therefore all Ozawa's skill was wasted.The second paradox concerns the submarines. The Japanese always considered their submarines as major warships killers and therefore wasted their enormous potential, when American used their technically inferior submarines mostly against commercial shipping, with devastating results. And yet, during the decisive battle of the war, the most crippling losses Japanese Navy suffered (the loss of "Taiho" and "Shokaku") were inflicted by American submarines...A particularly strong point of this book is the incredible description of nightly landings of American planes in the evening of 20 June. For me it was a more gripping and dramatic read than some of the adventure or crime novels... This chapter contains also surprisingly some pretty humoristic but nevertheless true stories, of which my great favourite was the one about this clueless Japanese pilot who, being clearly hopelessly lost, attempted (without success) to land on no less than FOUR American carriers during this evening, before finally understanding that something was wrong. During every of his valiant attempts American crews were so surprised that finally nobody opened fire, so he escaped with his life and his plane...)))Bottom line, I liked this book, I am very happy that I bought it and it is definitely a keeper. Enjoy!

I cannot fault the research that has gone into this book. Tillman has obviously studied the battle very well. But ultimately the weakness of the book is that the battle itself is a very one sided affair, and it get's rather tedious reading that some fighter pilot or other shot down 3 Zekes (Zero's) in a combat action (one begins to doubt the veracity of the claims, since everyone clearly exaggerates). It is hard to get interested in a battle between a bunch of Japanese airmen who were inexperienced, under-trained, out numbered and flying obsolete aircraft; against well-trained American pilots flying state of the Art aircraft.I recently read 'Battle of Surigao Strait'. This was an equally one sided battle. But because it was told mainly from a Japanese point of view it was far more gripping. What came across was the bravery of the Japanese against insuperable odds. Sadly, this never came across in 'Clash of the Carriers', which is told almost entirely from the American point of view, with only brief references to the Japanese view of the battle.

Barrett Tilman is one of the better authors of the Pacific War and any book of his is always to be welcomed. This book, on the Great Marianas Turkey Shoot, is one of his better efforts. Tilman has an easy writing style & covers the subject from every conceivable angle. He looks, in great detail, at the personalities from both sides, the lead up to & eventual outcome of the greatest carrier air battle in history. Seven indices give extensive coverage of the personnel and list every ship, from both sides that took part in this most momentous battle. If you want one book on the battle this should be it. Very highly recommeded.

This is an excellent book and a must have for anyone interested in the subject. The battle was pivotal in the defeat of Imperial Japan in WWII and saw the most powerful naval battle in history.The invasion of Saipan, in the Pacific ocean, would give the USA airfields from which mainland Japan could be bombed. Prior invasions of lessor improtant islands had saw horrendous casualties. Everything was at stake for both sides; it was inevitable that Japan would use every resource to foil this invasion. That meant throwing its most powerful naval asset into the the fray: its carrier fleet. In return that meant the USA would have to commit itself to defending the invasion with its fleet; but it also represented a chance to inflict a mortal wound on the enemy.Thus was set a clash of the titans as the two most powerful navies rushed at each other and collided in a ferocious battle lasting a couple of days that saw destruction at an unsustainable rate not seen anywhere since.This book is well structured and detailed from both sides of the battle. Every page is made use of, starting with the build up, through the engagement and on to the final result. I found the style of the writing very readable and interesting. Facts and figures are encased in a context that makes this a telling of a story rather than mere spitting out of historical numbers and events.The only downside I can think of is that I would like to have seen more maps and diagrams to help show how the forces moved and attacked during the the various key stages. But there are plenty of photos included.Very informative, on a most important battle that is probably the most neglected battle in terms of historical literature. An essential read for anyone interested in WII Pacific history.

Not since reading Antony Beevor's Stalingrad The Fateful Siege 1942-43 a number of years ago have i enjoyed such a good Second World War account. This is not one of those "academic" books that will bore you. The author has woven in stories of individual USN airmen and a few IJN airmen as well. This gives the story a personal touch. There are accessible descriptions of carrier operations, such as the art of UNREP - underway replenishment of naval vessels and the danger and difficulties of landing and launching from the carriers. I also like how the author has tried to reconcile/compare the kills and losses of both sides.