In the first twenty years after the World War II any serious discussion of the December 7, 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor brought one question, “Did the American Government have prior knowledge of the Japanese intentions?” Several government commissions haggled over this after the war without providing definitive answers. There was a reluctance to prove that FDR did anything that was not above board. As a student of the history of the era, I have no doubt Roosevelt, Hull, and quite a few others in our government strongly suspected an attack was coming. They had ample indications from the Japanese government that a state of hostilities could begin at any time. Billy Mitchell had predicted fifteen years before that this would be where Japan would strike.

If they thought the attack would come, this raises a very serious question. Did these men lack the will to do act. What we know of the players makes that conclusion ludicrous. Is it more likely that they felt that taking action at that time wouldn’t be prudent? I personally believe they could not bring themselves to act, still hoping against hope up till that fateful day. And only when the attack was history could they begin a war. Like others I’ve asked myself, “What if they’d dispatched the fleet on December 6, 1941 to meet the threat? What if a firm response had been made that day?” Many believe the Japanese thrust would have been blunted. I don’t share that view. On the contrary, I believe that a response from the French when Germany moved into the Rhineland in 1936 it may have caused Hitler’s fall at that time.

In December 1991 my son and I spent about three hours debating the results of such action, this book is the result of that interchange. He believes the move would have been imprudent but he thinks I paint too bleak a picture. I will remind the reader of the battles from Pearl to the Coral Sea. The American Navy never came out of any fight with its proverbial shirt. The Guadalcanal sea battles of late 1942 were mostly disasters. Only the Cactus Air Force on the island prevented total defeat. Unfortunately, it wasn’t just bad luck. We were unprepared for war, from the lowest private in the army to the Commander in Chief. Coral Sea was at best a draw and Midway was a win, not because of our abilities, but because of a series of very lucky breaks.

This story takes only very limited license with history and technology. First, I have the American government take decisive action against the Japanese on December 6, the premise of the book. Secondly, Admiral Yamamoto is replaced by the Japanese just before the Pearl. This is not an improbability because it almost happened. He wasn’t trusted by the hard liners in Japan. He opposed starting a war he knew Japan could never win but like Robert E. Lee, when his country decided to fight, he gave it his best. Thirdly, some technological advances are developed and utilized a little earlier in the book than in history but they are technologies that could have been advanced if they were pursued. These include the snorkel for the submarine and mid-air refueling of aircraft. Both were possible at the time. The snorkel was only utilized by the Germans later in the war. Mid-air refueling was proven before the war but was not utilized until after the war. Although it plays an important role, the development of the atomic bomb could not have been advanced. It was built on a crash program and it is doubtful it could have been completed earlier, the big limitations were the building of the fuel enrichment plants. Several others like the direction finding on the ocean is possible technically, and was with the vacuum tube technology of 1943. Any of my conclusions can be questioned individually, but my story is plausible.

The following is a table of contents for the chapters. 

World War II – a Novel Chapter One

World War II 2: Off Japan in 1946

World War II 3: The Greyfish Retreats

World War II Four: The Army Air Corps Readies for War

World War II – a Novel Chapter Four the Threat

World War II 6

World War II 7

World War II 8

World War II 9

World War II – A Novel Chapter 10

World War II – A Novel Chapter 11

World War II – A Novel Chapter 12

World War II – A Novel Chapter 13

World War II – A Novel Chapter 14

World War II – A Novel Chapter 15

World War II – A Novel Chapter 17

World War II – A Novel Chapter 18

World War II – A Novel Chapter 19

World War II – A Novel Chapter 19

World War II – A Novel Chapter 20

World War II – A Novel Chapter 21

World War II – A Novel Chapter 25

World War II – A Novel Chapter 24

World War II – A Novel Chapter 23

World War II – A Novel Chapter 22

World War II – A Novel Chapter 26

World War II – A Novel Chapter 27

World War II – A Novel Chapter 28

World War II – A Novel Chapter 29

World War II – A Novel Chapter 30

World War II – A Novel Chapter 31

World War II – A Novel Chapter 32

World War II – A Novel Chapter 33

World War II – A Novel Chapter 34

World War II – A Novel Chapter 35

World War II – A Novel Chapter 36

World War II – A Novel Chapter 37

World War II – A Novel Chapter 38

World War II – A Novel Chapter 39

World War II – A Novel Chapter 40

World War II – A Novel Chapter 41

World War II – A Novel Chapter 42

World War II – A Novel Chapter 43

World War II – A Novel Chapter 44

World War II – A Novel Chapter 45

World War II – A Novel Chapter 46

World War II – A Novel Chapter 47

World War II – A Novel Chapter 48

World War II – A Novel Chapter 49

World War II – A Novel Chapter 50

World War II – A Novel Chapter 51

World War II – A Novel Chapter 52

World War II – A Novel Chapter 53

World War II – A Novel Chapter 54

World War II – A Novel Chapter 55

World War II – A Novel Chapter 56

World War II – A Novel Chapter 57

Other novels by Ralph Brandt

Denise Chapter 01: Success in Hollywood

Jan Chapter 01: School Days

Alpha Four Chapter 01: Two Autopsies

The First Family: Chapter 1 – Introduction

World War II – a Novel Chapter One

The Handshue Sect 1

Sandra Chapter 01: the Accident

Laura Chapter 1

Karen: Chapter One – The Attack

Kathy’s Legs: Chapter One, The Accident