- Hardcover: 209 pages
- Publisher: Greenwood Press; 1st edition (30 Mar 1996)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0275953556
- ISBN-13: 978-0275953553
- Product Dimensions: 2.4 x 1.7 x 0.3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
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1,015,103 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #74 in Books > History > World History > World War II 1939-1945 > Countries > Japan
Zero Fighter
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More About the Author
Product Description
Review
.,."makes a number of highly interesting points...information is woven nicely into the book, and has a great deal to say about the startling quality of Japanese wartime industry....The book is a moving picture of the patience of the Japanese in the face of adversity, but perhaps the most important, Zero Fighter is Japanese. It is not often that a Japanese book is encountered here that divulges intimate knowledge about such a fascinating subject. There is significant value in this as we enter an era in which the Japanese and American people must share and respect each other's cultural point of view."-Asian Reporter
Product Description
This technohistory, a genre invented by the author, is the history of the production and use of the famous Zero fighter aircraft, the finest "dogfighter" in the air for most of World War II. Written with an eye to detail and to poignant moments in the Zero's history, the narrative presents World War II from the Japanese point of view. Ultimately more than the history of an airplane - though the Zero is presented with due respect - this book offers a presentation of the Japanese character and world view.
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
Just after 7 P.M. on March 23, 1939, two oxcarts emerged from the gates of the Nagoya Aircraft Works of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
Just after 7 P.M. on March 23, 1939, two oxcarts emerged from the gates of the Nagoya Aircraft Works of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. Read the first page
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Concordance
Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
The first 5 pages of the book are the best. The contrast of a sophisticated new fighter plane being transported to the airfield for its maiden flight on two oxcarts is beautifully described. Unfortunately, the book goes downhill from there. The author seems too emotional about the A5M and A6M fighters. He describes them as the best and fastest fighters in the world. "Best" is arguable, but "fastest" is not. For instance, in 1939 the Messerschmitt Bf109E and Spitfire I were clearly faster than the A6M2 Zero was in 1940. The translation is awful. It seems to have been carried out in two stages by a Japanese and by a native English speaker. The latter was obviously unfamiliar with standard technical terms. For instance, he refers to "7.7 millimeter aperture" instead of "7.7 caliber" machine guns. A particularly funny error was the statement that the "German" F3F was the standard fighter in the U.S. Navy at some point; it was actually the Grumman F3F. On the political/historical side, I found it interesting that the author correctly pointed out that Japan was forced into an impossible situation in 1941 by the embargo of raw materials by Great Britain, the Netherlands and the United States, and that this led to Japan's attacks on Pearl Harbor, Malaya and the Dutch East Indies. However, the author glosses over the fact that the reason for the embargo was Japan's brutal aggression against China, a war that according to the author just ... "happened". He paints the Japanese government as eager to stop the war against China, and complains that no agreement could be reached with the Chinese because the Western powers were supplying weapons to them. I don't know if views such as these are common in Japan today. If they are, this would contribute to explain why so many Asian countries are unhappy with Japan's lack of acknowledgement of responsibilities in regard to WW2.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I have to admit to reading this entire treatise. This book reviews the history of the development of the WWII military aviation technology of Japan. There is much detailed credit and history of this sort recanted. When it comes to the exploits of the Zero, the author appears to go by the hyped up press releases of the Japanese of the time, and the usual reference to the allies attaches adjectives of "terrified", and "horrified", to the degree that it is obvious and insulting. Frequently, the translation is so course that it reads like a cheap VCR manual, but often it is clear that the writing was just poorly organized and disjointed.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
6 reviews
27 of 28 people found the following review helpful
a book with many flaws, but still interesting
4 Feb 1999
Format:Hardcover
The first 5 pages of the book are the best. The contrast of a sophisticated new fighter plane being transported to the airfield for its maiden flight on two oxcarts is beautifully described. Unfortunately, the book goes downhill from there. The author seems too emotional about the A5M and A6M fighters. He describes them as the best and fastest fighters in the world. "Best" is arguable, but "fastest" is not. For instance, in 1939 the Messerschmitt Bf109E and Spitfire I were clearly faster than the A6M2 Zero was in 1940. The translation is awful. It seems to have been carried out in two stages by a Japanese and by a native English speaker. The latter was obviously unfamiliar with standard technical terms. For instance, he refers to "7.7 millimeter aperture" instead of "7.7 caliber" machine guns. A particularly funny error was the statement that the "German" F3F was the standard fighter in the U.S. Navy at some point; it was actually the Grumman F3F. On the political/historical side, I found it interesting that the author correctly pointed out that Japan was forced into an impossible situation in 1941 by the embargo of raw materials by Great Britain, the Netherlands and the United States, and that this led to Japan's attacks on Pearl Harbor, Malaya and the Dutch East Indies. However, the author glosses over the fact that the reason for the embargo was Japan's brutal aggression against China, a war that according to the author just ... "happened". He paints the Japanese government as eager to stop the war against China, and complains that no agreement could be reached with the Chinese because the Western powers were supplying weapons to them. I don't know if views such as these are common in Japan today. If they are, this would contribute to explain why so many Asian countries are unhappy with Japan's lack of acknowledgement of responsibilities in regard to WW2.
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Some accurate detailed history,some hype,not well translated
29 Jan 1999
Format:Hardcover
I have to admit to reading this entire treatise. This book reviews the history of the development of the WWII military aviation technology of Japan. There is much detailed credit and history of this sort recanted. When it comes to the exploits of the Zero, the author appears to go by the hyped up press releases of the Japanese of the time, and the usual reference to the allies attaches adjectives of "terrified", and "horrified", to the degree that it is obvious and insulting. Frequently, the translation is so course that it reads like a cheap VCR manual, but often it is clear that the writing was just poorly organized and disjointed.
9 of 12 people found the following review helpful
Lighting the Way
28 Feb 2001
Format:Hardcover
The book Zero Fighter is about the hard work it took to build the Type 96 land-based torpedo bomber and the Zero fighter and the impact they made on the world. The book starts off telling the reader how the fighter planes were transported by oxcart from the construction yard to the airfield. This book made me realize the amount of researching and planning that goes into the creation of a plane. This book explains the steps Japan went through to try to take over the Pacific. I've learned things about World War II and some of the things that Japan had gone through to fight the U.S. It was hard to get into some parts of the book but, overall, I think it was a pretty good book. You should get it.
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