Thomas F. (hardtack) -
While many of the tales in this book are fascinating, you wonder how many errors there are. I've read two or more of Garrison's books on the Civil War, and there are plenty of errors in those. His stories are often colored with 'facts' straight from what is called "Southern Mythology" on the war.
In this book, Garrison repeats the old story of Florida-born Army Air Corps Captain Colin Kelly bombing and heavily damaging a Japanese battleship in an attack in the Philippines, shortly after Pearl Harbor. The battleship was then reported sinking from the damage.
The truth, known even before World War II was over, is there wasn't even a battleship in the area. Kelly attacked a Japanese cruiser, which was lightly damaged. Kelly received his Medal of Honor for staying at the controls of his heavily damaged bomber so his crew could bail out. Unfortunately, the bomber exploded before this brave man could bail out himself.
In this book, Garrison repeats the old story of Florida-born Army Air Corps Captain Colin Kelly bombing and heavily damaging a Japanese battleship in an attack in the Philippines, shortly after Pearl Harbor. The battleship was then reported sinking from the damage.
The truth, known even before World War II was over, is there wasn't even a battleship in the area. Kelly attacked a Japanese cruiser, which was lightly damaged. Kelly received his Medal of Honor for staying at the controls of his heavily damaged bomber so his crew could bail out. Unfortunately, the bomber exploded before this brave man could bail out himself.
