Strike South:
An Annotated Bibliography

The following books were significant sources of information for the battles in the latest Second World War at Sea title, Strike South — the history, units involved and detailed action reports. Each entry provides a brief description relating to readability and use as a detailed source, as well as the number of photos, maps, appendices, etc. Anyone interested in detailed research on the early battles in the Philippines, Malaya, Java and Northern Australian would do well to begin with these titles.

Anon., NAVAL CHRONOLOGY, WORLD WAR II, United States Printing Office, 1955, 214p, 2 maps. Day-by-day accounting of events relevant to U.S. naval operations. One of a couple of good sources for ships damaged and sunk. Available used.

Chesneau, Roger (editor), CONWAY’S ALL THE WORLD’S FIGHTING SHIPS 1922-1946, Conway Press Ltd., 1980, 456p, numerous photos and drawings. The single best source of ship data for the period. There are errors and omissions, but they are minor and do not reduce the value of the information contained in the title. Available used.

Carter, Kit C. and Robert Mueller, COMBAT CHRONOLOGY, U.S. Government Printing Office, 1973, 991p. A volume of the The Army Air Forces in World War II, the chronology covers USAAF and allied air operations in every theater of the war. Useful, but not sufficiently detailed as to numbers of aircraft involved in most cases. Available used.

Craven, Wesley Frank and James Lea Cate, THE ARMY AIR FORCES IN WORLD WAR II: PLANS AND EARLY OPERATIONS JANUARY 1939 TO AUGUST 1942, U.S. Government Printing Office, 1983, 788p, 62 photos, 31 maps, 3 appendices. A reprint of the original 1948 edition, this volume includes four chapters covering the loss of the Philippines and Java and the defense of Australia in the early months of the war. Written so soon after the war, it suffers from inaccuracies. Useful, but more information can be found in the Shores set. Available used.

Dull, Paul S., THE IMPERIAL JAPANESE NAVY (1941-1945), Naval Institute Press, 1978, 402p, 41 photos, 42 maps, 2 appendices. The best English-language source on Japanese naval operations, the book is based almost solely on Japanese records. The early years of the Pacific War are covered in great detail and in some cases differ from previous accounts.

Torpedo damage to HMAS Hobart.
Her sister Perth was lost in the East Indies.

Gill, G. Hermon, ROYAL AUSTRALIAN NAVY 1939-1942, Australian War Memorial, 1985, 689p, 83 photos, 49 maps. The first of the Royal Australian Navy volumes in the Australia in the War of 1939-1945 series, the book covers in great detail the operations of Australian and, to a lessor extent, other Allied and Japanese ships in the Japanese onslaught in the opening months of the war. Three of seventeen chapters are devoted to the period. An essential reference. Available used.

Gillison, Douglas, ROYAL AUSTRALIAN AIR FORCE 1939-1942, Australian War Memorial, 1962, 786p, 65 photos, 50 maps. The first of the Royal Australian Air Force volumes in the Australia in the War of 1939-1945 series, the book describes RAF operations in the opening phase of the war. Twelve of the 32 chapters cover the Far East in great detail. Required reference. Available used.

Gray, Randal (editor), CONWAY’S ALL THE WORLD’S FIGHTING SHIPS 1906-1921, Conway Press Ltd, 1985, 439p, numerous photos and drawings. The single best source of ship data for the period covered in the title. As noted with the 1922-1946 volume, there are errors and omissions, but they are minor. Available used.

Kelly, Terence, BATTLE FOR PALEMBANG, Robert Hale, 1985, 205p, 58 photos, 4 maps. A personal account by one of the RAF pilots in Sumatra. Not particularly useful. Available used.

Kirby, Major-General S. Woodburn and others, THE WAR AGAINST JAPAN Volume I, Her Majesty’s Stationary Office, 1957, 568p, 26 photos, 29 maps, 27 appendices. Another volume in the British Official History of the Second World War, it covers the fall of Singapore, Hong Kong, Burma and Java. Useful in the overall air campaign and understanding the crumbling Allied position in the East. Available used in select book stores.

A Japanese airman took this shot of HMS Prince of Wales,
left, with Repulse behind her. A British destroyer is in the foreground.

Middlebrook, Martin & Patrick Mahoney, BATTLESHIP: THE SINKING OF THE PRINCE OF WALES AND THE REPULSE, Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1979, 302p, 34 photos, 6 maps. Detailed account of naval operations of Force Z and the loss of the two British capital ships. Useful in understanding the situation that faced the British when the reinforcing the Far East in the face of growing Japanese aggression. Available used.

Morison, Samuel Eliot, THE RISING SUN IN THE PACIFIC 1931 - APRIL 1942, Atlantic Little, Brown, 1968, 411p 31 photos, 27 charts. Covering the years up to the opening months of the war, this, the third volume in the history of the U.S. Navy in World War II devotes 168 pages to the Japanese campaign in the Philippines and Java. A good source of information, the reader must be wary of Japanese ship names and American claims listed as the former are sometimes wrong and the latter regularly do not match up with post-war assessments of damage. Despite the errors, a must-have for the movement of American forces and an examination of the doomed strategy imposed on the Allies. Available as a reprint in most book stores.

Messimer, Dwight R., IN THE HANDS OF FATE: THE STORY OF PATROL WING TEN: 8 DECEMBER 1941 - 11 MAY 1942, Naval Institute Press, 1985, 350p, 52 photos, 6 maps. Excellent source of information on the principle reconnaissance unit of the Allied air forces, Patrol Wing Ten in their fighting withdrawal from the Philippines. Also cover flying boat operations of the Dutch. Available used.

Messimer, Dwight R., PAWNS OF WAR: THE LOSS OF THE USS LANGLEY AND THE USS PECOS, Naval Institute Press, 1983, 228p, 46 photos, 8 maps, 1 appendix. Detailed source of information on the operations of aircraft transport Langley and oiler Pecos, especially in the closing days of the fight for Java. The author contends that the two ships were sacrificed as a result of multiple errors in judgment, mostly resulting from the nature of the multi-national command in Java. Available used.

Naval Intelligence Division, NETHERLANDS EAST INDIES, 1944, 525P + 514P, 115 + 129 photos, 142 + 122 maps and diagrams. One of the British Geographical Handbook series, these two volumes encompass the sum of Allied knowledge of Java, Borneo, Celebes, Sumatra and the minor islands of the Netherlands East Indies in extravagant detail. Not really necessary for designing the game, the books are a treasure of information on the area, people, climate and more. Difficult to find.

Probert, Henry, THE FORGOTTEN AIR FORCE: THE ROYAL AIR FORCE IN THE WAR AGAINST JAPAN 1941-1945, Brassey’s, 1995, 381p, 51 photos, 10 maps, 6 appendices. Valuable examination of the British position in the Far East and the air force collected by the RAF in Malaya and Burma before and the battle during the first few months of the war. Four of 14 chapters cover the period. Available used.

Robson, R.W., THE PACIFIC ISLANDS HANDBOOK 1944, The MacMillan Company, 1945, 371p, many maps and tables. The best single source of information on the islands, peoples and resources of the Pacific. Useful in port and airfield location information. Available used.

The Lucky Chokai, Japanese heavy cruiser.

Rohwer, J. & G. Hummelchen, CHRONOLOGY OF THE WAR AT SEA 1939-1945: VOLUME ONE 1939-1942, Ian Allen (English), 1972, 88p, 78 photos. The single best source for naval operations of all parties in the Second World War. What it does not provide is any detail of nonoperational movements or strategy. Available used in several formats.

Roskill, Captain S.W., THE WAR AT SEA 1939-1945, volume I, Her Majesty’s Stationary Office, 1954, 664p, 54 photos, 43 maps, 17 appendices, 26 tables. The first volume of the sea series of the British Official History of the Second World War, the first chapter is devoted to the naval actions of the Royal Navy in January 1942. Other than these few pages, the volume covers later actions around the world. Available used and in reprint form.

Roskill, Captain S.W., THE WAR AT SEA 1939-1945, volume II, Her Majesty’s Stationary Office, 1956, 523p, 64 photos, 42 maps, 15 appendices. The second volume of the sea series of the British Official History of the Second World War, the last chapter is devoted to the opening naval actions of the Royal Navy in the Pacific. Useful, but not required. Available used and in reprint form.

Salecker, Gene Eric, FORTRESS AGAINST THE SUN: THE B-17 FLYING FORTRESS IN THE PACIFIC, Combined Press, 2001, 464p, 44 photos, 7 maps. Detailed accounting of the role of the B-17 in the Pacific War, especially the first few months. A must-have book for identifying the number and arrival times of the big bomber and the missions undertaken by its crews. Available from new book stores.

Shimada, Koichi, AIR OPERATIONS IN THE PHILIPPINES, U.S. Naval Institute Press, unknown. Actually an article originally published the Institute’s magazine Proceedings and later in the book, The Japanese Navy in World War II, presents a detailed accounting of the 1941 Japanese air operations against the Philippines. The article proved very useful in identifying Japanese air units involved. It will be necessary to purchase the book to get the article, but is worth it. Available in an expanded format, more articles, used and new.

Shores, Christopher, Brian Cull & Yasuho Izawa, BLOODY SHAMBLES, Grub Street, 1992 and 1993, 392p + 494p, 133 + 203 photos, 4 + 5 maps, 21 + 23 tables. The source for air operations over the Philippines, Malaya, Java, Burma and Australia through May 1942. If air operations are of interest to you, this is a must-buy. The composition, location and operations of individual squadrons can be followed through the opening of the Pacific War in the Far East.

United States Strategic Bombing Survey (Pacific), INTERROGATIONS OF JAPANESE OFFICIALS, United States Government Printing Office, 1946, 576p, numerous, maps, tables, charts and appendices. This two-volume set is a collection of 118 interrogations of Japanese military and civilian leaders, conducted for the purpose of analyzing the effects of strategic bombing. The interrogations provide much more than that, however and 9 of the 118 are directly related to the operations depicted in Strike South. The two volume set is a wealth of information that requires a bit of sifting, but is worth doing so. Available used.

United States Strategic Bombing Survey (Pacific), THE CAMPAIGNS OF THE PACIFIC WAR, United States Government Printing Office, 1946, 389p, numerous, maps, tables, charts and appendices. One of several volumes produced after the war and making use of Japanese sources and Allied analysis of operations, it details Japanese plans and the units executing them. Only about 20 pages are devoted to the Strike South period, but still a valuable source of information of the details of the Pacific naval and air battles, but not necessarily the plans and movement between them. Available used.

Watts, A.J. & B.G. Gordon, THE IMPERIAL JAPANESE NAVY, Doubleday & Company Inc., 1971, 529p, numerous photos and drawings. The single best source of information Japanese warships and used as the bible when it comes to the English language spelling of Japanese names. Incredible detail from the 1867 ironclad Adzuma to the never-built battlecruiser type B-64 (something you will find in Leyte Gulf). From initial design considerations to the vessels final fate, this book gives the reader everything. Available used.

FDR shows off his catch aboard USS Houston, 1938.

Winslow, W.G., THE FLEET THE GODS FORGOT, THE U.S. ASIATIC FLEET IN WORLD WAR II, Naval Institute Press, 1982, 327p, 24 photos, 1 map. Very detailed account of the operations of the U.S. Asiatic Fleet and the Allied ships that operated with them in the opening months of the war. The author was an air operations officer on the Houston and survived her sinking. Invaluable as a source of information on the minor units such as tenders and gunboats. Available used.

Brian Knipple
April 2005