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Title: Corsairs and Flattops: Marine Carrier Air Warfare, 1944-1945 by John P. Condon, John Pomeroy Condon ISBN: 1-55750-127-0 Publisher: Naval Institute Press Pub. Date: 01 November, 1997 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $29.95

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Average Customer Rating: 2.5 (2 reviews)

Rating: 4
Summary: A good short history of USMC carrier ops late in WWII.
Comment: I believe this book does what it set out to do - to give a short history of Marine Corps carrier operations in the final months of World War II. It is not long on detail, but it does fill a void.
General Condon, the author, points out that having Marines fly from fleet carriers was a weapon of expediency. Additionally, the Marines wanted to experiment with having their own "all Marine" torpedo bombing and fighter squadrons on escort carriers, to give better support to Marines and Army troops on the ground during invasions.
Gen. Condon died before the book came into print, which may explain why it is thin in places. But I believe the book is rich enough in the details it does give.
The author flew from the carrier Essex as one of the carrier-based Marines, and participated in operations against Formosa, Indo China (Vietnam), the first and second strikes on Tokyo and the invasion of Iwo Jima. Here is where the majority of his facts are.
Gen. Condon also traces the history of Marines on carriers. He shows that in the 1930's many carrriers had a temporary detachment of a Marine fighter squadron. Late in World War II, the Navy was short a few fighter squadrons to combat the Kamikazes. More fighters were suddenly necesary for the survival of carriers - about 72 versus the 36 fighters that had been standard by the summer of 1944. The Marines were called upon, and stepped forward to fill a temporary void. At different times from late 1944 to May 1945, Marine Corps Corsairs made up about half of the total fighters on the carriers Wasp, Essex, Franklin, Bunker Hill, and Bennington.
This book is not a "be-all, end-all," work. There are some gaps, and one probably needs other books to supplement this one concerning the late war time frame. But I feel that it is a most worthwhile volume, and gives a USMC perspective on the latter war in the Pacific.

Rating: 1
Summary: Not much for the money.
Comment: This slim little volume would have made it better as a couple of magazine articles, and is really only 118 pages if you don't count the appendices. A considerable use of of not very interesting photos, white space and charts enhance the impression that you've bought a bunch of fluff. To make matters worse, the text of the card catalog insert is both inaccurate and misleading. In summary, spend your money on a volume with higher value. I guarantee you can do better with a random choice from the booklist.