Black Snow : Curtis LeMay, the Firebombing of Tokyo, and the Road to the Atomic Bomb

Scott, James M.

ISBN 10: 1324002999 / ISBN 13: 9781324002994

Published by W. W. Norton & Company, 2022

About this Item

Signed by the author on title page. No other markings.

Seller Inventory # 530245

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Black Snow : Curtis LeMay, the Firebombing of Tokyo, and the Road to the Atomic Bomb
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
• Publication Date: 2022
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1324002999
• ISBN 13: 9781324002994
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: First Edition
• Condition: Very Good
• Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good
• Signed: Signed by Author(s)

About this title

Synopsis

Seven minutes past midnight on March 9, 1945, nearly 300 American B-29s thundered into the skies over Tokyo. Their payloads of incendiaries ignited a more than 1,800-degree firestorm that liquefied asphalt and vaporised thousands; sixteen square miles of the city were flattened and more than 100,000 men, women and children were killed. Black Snow is the story of this devastating operation, orchestrated by Major General Curtis LeMay, who famously remarked: “If we lose, we’ll be tried as war criminals.” James M. Scott reconstructs in granular detail that horrific night, and describes the development of the B-29, the capture of the Marianas for use as airfields, and the change in strategy from high-altitude daylight “precision” bombing to low-altitude nighttime incendiary bombing. Most importantly, the raid represented a significant moral shift for America, marking the first time commanders deliberately targeted civilians―which helped pave the way for the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki five months later.

 

About the Author

James M. Scott is the author, most recently, of Rampage and Target Tokyo, a Pulitzer Prize finalist. He lives in Charleston, South Carolina.