Top 16 Books About Pearl Harbor Attack Updated 04 /2024

During a surprise air strike on December 7, 1941, the Japanese Navy hit the US naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, at 7:48am. In the surprise attack, more than 2,400 American servicemen were killed, and the U.S. was forced into the deadliest war in history: World War II.

For over 75 years, no one has talked about the attack, but it can't be forgotten. For people who fought and died, we've put together this list of Pearl Harbor books. Each one takes a close look at that day in December and looks at everything from how it affects you to how it fits into the bigger picture of history.

Day of Infamy

By Walter Lord

Lord is a well-known historian and the author of a best-selling book about World War II. He shows how the bombing affected people on both sides of the war. Lord uses both primary and secondary research to highlight moments of heroism and sacrifice, which helps to bridge the gap between the past and the present and make the tragedy more relatable.

Pearl Harbor: Final Judgement

The success of the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor was a big mistake for the United States. Pearl Harbor: Final Judgment looks at the opportunities that could have stopped the attack, as well as how and who made them. Though Pearl Harbor had a lot of different factors and causes, Clausen and Lee's book points out some important things to think about and remember.

Sunday in Hell

McWilliams' book looks at the events of December 7 minute-by-minute. It breaks them down in that way. When he pays attention to small things, he conveys a sense of how quickly the attack happened. Dozens of perspectives show the attack from different angles, giving a complete picture of what happened.

Pearl Harbor

By Donald M. Goldstein, Gordon Prange and Katherine V. Dillon

This book, like Pearl Harbor: Final Judgment, looks at how American intelligence failed before the attack. Why did the United States not see the dangers facing their Pacific fleet? Yes, Pearl Harbor could have been stopped. Prange and his co-authors have the benefit of hindsight, but their analysis is level-headed and fair. This is because they have looked back at the past.

At Dawn We Slept

By Gordon W. Prange

People think Prange's At Dawn We Slept is the best book about Pearl Harbor. Everybody should read this book, which is 900 pages long, because Prange is so good at talking about his subject that everyone should read it.

All the Gallant Men

By Donald Stratton and Ken Gire

It's a new book in the Pearl Harbor literature because it was written by a person who was on the USS Arizona when it was hit by a plane. This is the first book of its kind. During the attack, its author, Donald Stratton, was badly burned, and his story is an inside look at what happened on that day.

Pearl Harbor: From Infamy to Greatness

By Craig Nelson

bestselling author Craig Nelson looks at the event in a wider historical context. He talks about how the USS Arizona was built in 1914, when Franklin D. Roosevelt was a young boy. He also talks about the attack itself. Pearl Harbor: From Infamy to Greatness covers it all and makes the history easy to read in one book.

The Attack on Pearl Harbor

By Alan D. Zimm

Pearl Harbor was a big event in history, but it was also very simple: a military strike. Alan D. Zimm, an author, looks at the attack from this point of view. He looks at Japanese strategies and the common belief that the attack was flawless in its planning and execution. The book gets rid of myths and emotions, and instead takes a more "tactical" approach that will be interesting to military fans.

Pearl Harbor Ghosts

By Thurston Clarke

It is one of the best books about Pearl Harbor because Clarke tells the stories of everyone who was there. In it, he talks about how it affected Navy servicemen, people who lived in Honolulu, and Japanese-Americans who saw their lives change for the worse.

Countdown to Pearl Harbor

By Steve Twomey

The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise, but Japan's plan was not completely unknown. We came close to sabotaging the whole thing, but we had conflicting information and didn't communicate well. As a thriller, Twomey's account of events before the worst military disaster in US history reads like a good book. It also treats the subject with a lot of respect.

Brothers Down

by Walter R. Borneman

At Pearl Harbor, many people died. Many of the men on the US military's ships, and many of the men who died, were also brothers. Those men's stories are very sad. Brothers Down is about them In this book, historian Walter R. Borneman tells the story of Pearl Harbor through the eyes of the men who served on the USS Arizona at the time. It was on the Arizona, where there were 1,117 people who died, that sixty-three of them were brothers. Using firsthand accounts and material that hasn't been made public, Borneman weaves their stories together with those of their wives, parents, and other relatives. As a result, the film looks at how the attack took a toll on people across the country.

Code Girls

by Liza Mundy

The soldiers who fought in World War II are well-known and rightly praised for their service. But a lot of people helped the war effort, too, like the thousands of women who worked as codebreakers. These women haven't been given much attention or recognition, even though they played an important role in the war. Liza Mundy tells the stories of these women in Code Girls. She shows how they did amazing and brave things. All over the country, these young women were hired as codebreakers. They moved to Washington, where their work saved lives and helped secure victory, while changing the field of cryptanalysis for good, as well. Drawing on interviews from surviving code girls and full of original research, Mundy's book is a compelling story of American ingenuity and service, and a must-read for anyone interested in the full history of World War II.

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