War at the End of the World: Douglas MacArthur and the Forgotten Fight for New Guinea, 1942–1945

Historian Duffy (Lincoln’s Admiral) recovers from the annals of nearly lost history the decisive WWII campaign to secure New Guinea from Japanese forces. Duffy’s clear, concise, and comprehensive history, based primarily on secondary sources, begins with the Japanese invasion of New Britain (in the Bismarck Archipelago off the coast of New Guinea) in 1942 and ends with the last major operations on the western end of New Guinea in August 1944. He addresses the strategic and tactical aspects of the campaign through the experiences of senior leaders such as General MacArthur as well as the common soldiers in combat. Duffy also includes the Japanese and Australian perspectives of the campaign, equally important. The New Guinea campaign, which lasted more than two full years, is not that well known because it didn’t produce a large casualty count. This doesn’t diminish its strategic importance. Had the Japanese been successful in New Guinea, the use of Australia as a base for an Allied offensive against Japan would have been impossible. Duffy makes a strong case that MacArthur’s generalship is a major reason for the campaign’s success. The book lacks some deep analysis, but it is a good introduction. Maps. (Jan.)