Into the Rising Sun
World War II's Pacific Veterans Reveal the Heart of Combat
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wish list failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Into the Rising Sun
Buy Now for $21.16
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Jeff Riggenbach
-
Written by:
-
Patrick K. O'Donnell
About this listen
These veterans were often the first in and the last out of every conflict, from Guadalcanal and Burma to the Philippines and the black sands of Iwo Jima. They faced a cruel enemy willing to try anything, including kamikaze flights and human-guided torpedoes. As O'Donnell explains in the introduction, most of the men in this book were at first reticent to talk. Over the course of the war, they had spearheaded D-Day-sized beach assaults, encountered cannibalism, suffered friendly-fire incidents, and endured torture as prisoners of war. Heroes among heroes, they include many recipients of the Navy Cross, the Distinguished Service Cross, the Silver Star, and other medals of battlefield valor, but none bragged about it. As one soldier put it, "When somebody gets decorated, it's because a lot of other men died."
By telling their stories, these men present an unvarnished look at the war on the ground, a final gift from aging warriors who have already given so much. Only with such accounts can the true horror of the war in the Pacific be fully known.
©2002 Patrick K. O'Donnell (P)2002 Blackstone AudiobooksWhat the critics say
"Those seeking the uncensored truth and a dose of military history will not be disappointed." (AudioFile)
"A superior addition to World War II oral archives." (Booklist)
"Succinct historical narratives help set the stage for these eyewitness accounts....This important work preserves these veterans' shocking and moving stories for generations to come." (Library Journal)
What listeners say about Into the Rising Sun
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars
-
Performance3 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Langer MD
- 2022-05-20
History, Horror, and Heroism
Each chapter in this book includes an overview of a specific battle and an outline description of how the combat played out. Readers/Listeners accompany the US Military on their island-hopping journey across the Pacific in the struggle to defeat Imperial Japan: Guam - Leyte - Luzon - Guadalcanal - Iwo Jima - etc.
Patrick K. O'Donnell elaborates on those plans & strategies with anecdotes from the surviving American soldiers that fought in the foxholes.. providing on-the-ground color. The book definitely includes emotion-laden war stories, but often comes across as quite academic - more a rigidly-structured recapitulation of the Pacific campaign than a narrative.
It also largely relegates O'Donnell to the role of curator - essentially compiling direct transcripts from veteran testimony.. so it's hard to evaluate the quality of the writing.
The fairly subpar presentation also doubtless drops my rating of 'Into The Rising Sun':
Don't get me wrong.. Jeff Riggenbach's reading is professional - but his rate of reading is plodding (I found setting playback speed at 1.25X yielded the most comfortable results) and he has an odd lilting cadence that is persistently noticeable - distracting from the text.
Taken altogether, this recording merits 8.5 stars out of 10. The book is full of historical detail but also brings almost inconceivable events to life. The actions of ordinary men in the face of legitimate horror are captivating (whether CMH-worthy valor or distress in the face of nightmarish trauma). Blackstone Audio does a commendable job bringing the book to the audiobook audience, but a text (paper or eBook) iteration might serve you better if you really, really want this book in your library.
Regardless, I am most grateful to Audible for making this selection available as a 'Plus' option (included for free with my subscription) because I may not have tried it otherwise.. and it's actually worth a Credit.
ATTN PRODUCERS: Including a PDF with a Glossary/Timeline/List of Contributing Veterans would improve this product considerably
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 2022-01-21
great but some audio missing
great story with lots of emotions mixed in, Almost completely uncensored. Nothing bad to say other than there was an audio error at 6Hr 41Mins remaining.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- Frank
- 2023-08-16
It's pretty good.
It made me sad what those guys had to go through. Was good to hear to remind me about the horrors of it. There's something wrong in chapter 5 at around 32 minutes 40 seconds. He's talking about a letter then there's a weird noise and it switches to talking about ulcers, I think. Would have been nice to hear the audio that was cut out.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful