A narrative account of the historical origins of World War II and of the political, economic and military action of the war in the Pacific.

Destiny made manifest -- Scraps of paper -- Foreign wars -- Europe first -- "A sinister twilight" -- "National Hara-Kiri" -- "A date which will live in infamy" -- Direct shocks -- The Somber panorama -- Standing on the defensive -- The cataract of disaster -- Victory disease -- Taking a beating -- The hidden victory -- Calculated risks -- "Give 'em the works" -- "We must attack! attack! attack!" -- "Everybody hopes that we can hold on" -- "The fork in the road to victory" -- "The end of the beginning" -- "Combined deadlock" -- Trying to run two wars at once -- "Keep 'em dying!" -- Crippling blows -- Cracking the Japanese shell -- Common fronts -- The common cause -- Decisive battles -- Moral obligations -- "The flowers of death" -- "A determined fighting spirit" -- Uncommon valor -- Floating chrysanthemums -- The awful way -- The miracle of deliverance -- "This is the payoff" -- An after-action report -- Pearl Harbor: warning or decision?