The Battle of Midway - book review

In The Battle of Midway, the author presents one of the most important naval battles of the Second World War—a clash that, in a remarkably unexpected way, altered the balance of power in the Pacific. The once-feared main striking force of the Japanese Empire was annihilated, and for the first time the initiative in the war passed into American hands.

The book was written by Craig L. Symonds, a distinguished, retired professor of the United States Naval Academy and first published in 1996. The review is based on the polish translation from 2011 by Społeczny Instytut Wydawniczy Znak.

The content of the book can be divided into two roughly equal parts. The first part (chapters 1–8) provides historical background and strategic context, explaining the situation in the Pacific prior to the battle. The narrative begins with Admiral Chester A. Nimitz’s arrival at the U.S. Navy base in Pearl Harbor following the disgraceful Japanese attack of December 1941. Symonds describes the key events leading up to the climactic confrontation, including the first carrier battle in the Coral Sea and Jimmy Doolittle’s daring bombing raid on Tokyo. The author also illustrates the pace of Japanese expansion, both eastward and westward from the home islands. Considerable attention is given to the people involved in the conflict—commanders, staff officers, and ordinary servicemen alike.

The second part of the book (chapters 9–16) offers a very detailed and analytical account of the Battle of Midway itself. The author begins by outlining the sequence of decisions and the tactical and strategic moves that preceded the clash. The reader learns, among other things, about operations in the Aleutians and the Kuril Islands, as well as the reasons behind the deployment of specific units. In the following chapters, Symonds breaks down the battle stage by stage—from the Japanese attack on Midway, through the infamous “flight to nowhere,” to the sinking of the Japanese Empire’s main carrier striking force.

Also worthy of mention is a solid set of appendices. These include basic information on American and Japanese carrier task forces, aircraft carriers, and combat aircraft. The book also features a fairly detailed Order of Battle, along with two short supplementary chapters devoted to the work of cryptologists and to discrepancies found in the reports of American commanders.

The author convincingly demonstrates that the defeat of Japan’s main striking forces was not the result of pure chance—as is often claimed—but rather a combination of Japanese overconfidence, tactical errors, effective intelligence work (including the breaking of the JN-25 code), and the tactical superiority of American naval aviation. Symonds does not deny that chance played a role on more than one occasion, but he clearly shows that far more was required to deal such a devastating blow to the enemy. In this respect, he is credible and strives to remain objective when analyzing the key moments of the battle. While the American perspective naturally dominates, the Japanese point of view is not neglected. The author also does not shy away from commentary, emphasizing the importance of specific decisions.

The book is written in a very accessible and readable manner. For the most part, the author follows a chronological sequence of events. An exception is the depiction of the battle itself, where certain events are sometimes presented from multiple perspectives. This approach allows the reader to better understand the decisions made at crucial moments of the engagement. The pace of the narrative is also well judged—it clearly accelerates as the story approaches its climax, further encouraging the reader to continue.

I must admit that the book fully satisfied my thirst for knowledge about the Battle of Midway. This was my first in-depth study of these events, and in my opinion Craig Symonds set the bar quite high. It is a solid, richly detailed work, supported by an extensive bibliography, which paints a realistic picture of the Midway campaign. Finally, it is worth noting that the book may not appeal to readers looking solely for a dry, purely factual account—the author offers much more, from a thorough analysis of the battle’s origins to engaging anecdotes and lesser-known stories from the battlefield.