Burma '44

April 22, 2024
Allied soldiers are sorely tested over 18 days of vicious and pivotal fighting in this kinetic account from historian Holland (The Savage Storm). In early 1944, General Bill Slim’s Fourteenth Army was tasked with pushing Japanese forces out of northwest Burma after multiple attacks originating from the remote region. Slim’s British, Indian, and West African forces, creeping forward along barely penetrable jungle passes, were ordered to “hold on at all costs.” (It was a matter of honor, Holland suggests; there could be “no running” from “an enemy that British forces had never decisively beaten.”) Soon surrounded in a boggy, bug-infested jungle, the soldiers fell victim to disease and surprise attacks. (In one incident, “the Japanese... bayoneted men in their beds”; in another, radio and typewriter operators fended off an ambush.) Eventually, the Allies’ superior firepower took its toll—entire hills were defoliated to eliminate enemy combatants, finally proving there was “a way to win” in Southeast Asia’s jungles. With a keen eye for detail, Holland highlights how the undaunted performance of routine maintenance, like that of repair crews who kept military vehicles running, set the stage for victory. It makes for a propulsive tale of resourceful protagonists triumphing over terrible odds.

May 1, 2024
The author of Sicily '44, Normandy '44, and other acclaimed works of military history returns with a look at a significant yet overlooked World War II battle. As always, Holland is adept at setting the background for his analysis of the battle. In 1941, a few days after Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, Japanese forces sank the cream of the British Asian fleet, quickly overran the British colonies of Hong Kong, Malaya, and Singapore, and chased British forces out of Burma into India. Preoccupied with Germany, Britain gave its huge Indian army low priority in men and supplies. Recruits were trained in desert fighting and sent to North Africa until its conquest in 1943, when India received more attention. There followed a massive influx of supplies, training (morale was terrible), and better commanders (India was a dumping ground for failed officers from the European theater). Just as the British were completing preparation for their offensive in February 1944, the Japanese launched their own, broke through, and surrounded a number of units and their headquarters deep in the jungle. There followed 15 days of brutal fighting which, unlike previous encounters with the Japanese, succeeded. This Battle of the Admin Box is considered the turning point in the India-Burma campaign. Holland, a meticulous researcher, excels in describing the lead-up to the battle and the quality of the leadership--Briton William Slim was certainly the most competent Allied general facing Japan--and he includes many lively anecdotes on individual fighting men. WWII buffs will enjoy a detailed account of the climactic battle without making much sense of it, since the fighting took the form of a series of bloody, small-unit actions in a confined area. The author's extensive maps don't fully explain the minutiae, but he does ably capture the abundance of heroism and the satisfying outcome. A lesser-known campaign receives well-deserved attention.

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Starred review from April 1, 2024

Historian Holland (The Savage Storm) persuasively argues that the February 1944 Battle of the Admin Box in Arakan was a turning point on World War II's Burma front. His book indicates that the Imperial Japanese forces looked to capitalize on their long string of successes in Burma by invading India. Of three possible invasion routes, the Arakan coastal strip had the necessary infrastructure to support an invading army. Over 14 days, the determined resistance of a hastily assembled Allied force of British, Gurkha, Sikh, and Burmese soldiers demonstrated that the Japanese were not invincible. The Battle of Admin Box denied the Japanese an invasion route, as well British supplies they'd planned to capture, and dealt heavy casualties to the Japanese forces. The introduction of newer, more agile Spitfire planes to squadrons nudged the state of the air war into the Allies' favor. Relying heavily on British sources, Holland does an excellent job of highlighting the contributions and bravery of the Gurkha and Sikh forces. VERDICT A thrilling account of a little-known but vital battle, for readers interested in World War II history, especially the Pacific Theater of Operations.--Chad E. Statler

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