The Bomber Mafia: a dream, a temptation, and the longest night of the second World War
(Book)
Author:
Published:
New York : Back Bay Books, Little, Brown and Company, 2022.
Format:
Book
Edition:
First Back Bay books trade paperback edition.
Physical Desc:
xviii, 237 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations ; 21 cm
Status:
Description
An exploration of how technology and best intentions collide in the heat of war
A New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice
Most military thinkers in the years leading up to World War II saw the airplane as an afterthought. But a small band of idealistic strategists, the “Bomber Mafia,” asked: What if precision bombing could cripple the enemy and make war far less lethal?
In contrast, the bombing of Tokyo on the deadliest night of the war was the brainchild of General Curtis LeMay, whose brutal pragmatism and scorched-earth tactics in Japan cost thousands of civilian lives, but may have spared even more by averting a planned US invasion. In The Bomber Mafia, Gladwell asks, “Was it worth it?”
Things might have gone differently had LeMay’s predecessor, General Haywood Hansell, remained in charge. Hansell believed in precision bombing, but when he and Curtis LeMay squared off for a leadership handover in the jungles of Guam, LeMay emerged victorious, leading to the darkest night of World War II. The Bomber Mafia is a riveting tale of persistence, innovation, and the incalculable wages of war.
Copies
Location
Call Number
Status
Last Check-In
Phelps Adult Nonfiction
940.1 GLA
Available
Apr 11, 2023
More Details
Language:
English
ISBN:
9780316296816, 0316296813
Notes
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages 209-229) and index.
Description
"In The Bomber Mafia, Malcolm Gladwell weaves together the stories of a Dutch genius and his homemade computer, a band of brothers in central Alabama, a British psychopath, and pyromaniacal chemists at Harvard to examine one of the greatest moral challenges in modern American history. Most military thinkers in the years leading up to World War II saw the airplane as an afterthought. But a small band of idealistic strategists, the "Bomber Mafia", asked: What if precision bombing could cripple the enemy and make war far less lethal? In contrast, the bombing of Tokyo on the deadliest night of the war was the brainchild of General Curtis LeMay, whose brutal pragmatism and scorched-earth tactics in Japan cost thousands of civilian lives, but may have spared even more by averting a planned US invasion. In The Bomber Mafia, Gladwell asks, "Was it worth it?" Things might have gone differently had LeMay's predecessor, General Haywood Hansell, remained in charge. Hansell believed in precision bombing, but when he and Curtis LeMay squared off for a leadership handover in the jungles of Guam, LeMay emerged victorious, leading to the darkest night of World War II. The Bomber Mafia is a riveting tale of persistence, innovation, and the incalculable wages of war"--,Provided by publisher.
Citations
APA Citation (style guide)
Gladwell, M. (2022). The Bomber Mafia: a dream, a temptation, and the longest night of the second World War. First Back Bay books trade paperback edition. New York, Back Bay Books, Little, Brown and Company.
Chicago / Turabian - Author Date Citation (style guide)Gladwell, Malcolm, 1963-. 2022. The Bomber Mafia: A Dream, a Temptation, and the Longest Night of the Second World War. New York, Back Bay Books, Little, Brown and Company.
Chicago / Turabian - Humanities Citation (style guide)Gladwell, Malcolm, 1963-, The Bomber Mafia: A Dream, a Temptation, and the Longest Night of the Second World War. New York, Back Bay Books, Little, Brown and Company, 2022.
MLA Citation (style guide)Gladwell, Malcolm. The Bomber Mafia: A Dream, a Temptation, and the Longest Night of the Second World War. First Back Bay books trade paperback edition. New York, Back Bay Books, Little, Brown and Company, 2022.
Note! Citation formats are based on standards as of July 2022. Citations contain only title, author, edition, publisher, and year published. Citations should be used as a guideline and should be double checked for accuracy.
Staff View
Grouped Work ID:
05432b6b-8ebd-6f58-7938-7f7e1b411e2f
Record Information
| Last Sierra Extract Time | Apr 22, 2024 06:08:53 PM |
|---|---|
| Last File Modification Time | Apr 22, 2024 06:09:14 PM |
| Last Grouped Work Modification Time | May 02, 2024 12:26:07 PM |
MARC Record
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| 245 | 1 | 4 | |a The Bomber Mafia :|b a dream, a temptation, and the longest night of the second World War /|c Malcolm Gladwell. |
| 250 | |a First Back Bay books trade paperback edition. | ||
| 264 | 1 | |a New York :|b Back Bay Books, Little, Brown and Company,|c 2022. | |
| 264 | 4 | |c 2021 | |
| 300 | |a xviii, 237 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates :|b illustrations ;|c 21 cm | ||
| 336 | |a text|b txt|2 rdacontent | ||
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| 338 | |a volume|b nc|2 rdacarrier | ||
| 504 | |a Includes bibliographical references (pages 209-229) and index. | ||
| 505 | 0 | |a Introduction: "This isn't working. You're out." -- Part one: The dream. "Mr. Norden was content to pass his time in the shop." -- "We make progress unhindered by custom." -- "He was lacking in the bond of human sympathy." -- "The truest of the true believers." -- "General Hansell was aghast" -- Part two: The temptation. "It would be suicide, boys, suicide." -- "If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours." -- "It's all ashes--all that and that and that." -- "Improvised destruction." -- Conclusion: "All of a sudden the Air House would be gone. Poof." | |
| 520 | |a "In The Bomber Mafia, Malcolm Gladwell weaves together the stories of a Dutch genius and his homemade computer, a band of brothers in central Alabama, a British psychopath, and pyromaniacal chemists at Harvard to examine one of the greatest moral challenges in modern American history. Most military thinkers in the years leading up to World War II saw the airplane as an afterthought. But a small band of idealistic strategists, the "Bomber Mafia", asked: What if precision bombing could cripple the enemy and make war far less lethal? In contrast, the bombing of Tokyo on the deadliest night of the war was the brainchild of General Curtis LeMay, whose brutal pragmatism and scorched-earth tactics in Japan cost thousands of civilian lives, but may have spared even more by averting a planned US invasion. In The Bomber Mafia, Gladwell asks, "Was it worth it?" Things might have gone differently had LeMay's predecessor, General Haywood Hansell, remained in charge. Hansell believed in precision bombing, but when he and Curtis LeMay squared off for a leadership handover in the jungles of Guam, LeMay emerged victorious, leading to the darkest night of World War II. The Bomber Mafia is a riveting tale of persistence, innovation, and the incalculable wages of war"--|c Provided by publisher. | ||
| 650 | 0 | |a World War, 1939-1945|x Aerial operations, American. | |
| 650 | 0 | |a World War, 1939-1945|z Japan|x Aerial operations, American. | |
| 650 | 0 | |a Bombing, Aerial|z Japan|x History|y 20th century. | |
| 650 | 0 | |a Aeronautics, Military|x History. | |
| 650 | 0 | |a Precision bombing|x History. | |
| 775 | 0 | 8 | |i Reproduction of (manifestation):|a Gladwell, Malcolm, 1963-|t Bomber Mafia.|d New York : Little, Brown and Company, 2021|z 9780316296618. |
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