Superior military history: Lucid, spare, focused, free of rhetorical flourishes. Like the earlier reviewer, I was flummoxed by the appearance of Byron de la Beckwith, with no mention of his subsequent infamy (well-known by the time this book was published).

5289. Line of Departure: Tarawa, by Martin Russ (read 7 Jul 2015) Even though I read One Square Mile of Hell on 20 July 2007 when I saw this book I decided to read it. It tells well the story of the brutal battle in November 1943, which lasted only 76 hours but in which 1027 Marines and Navy corpsmen died, as did 4,690 Japanese. As a side note, there is an account of the exploits of a Marine corporal, Byron de la Beckwith, who went on to earn infamy on June 13, 1963, when he shot from ambush Medgar Evans. He in 1994 was convicted of the murder and sentenced to life in prison, dying 21Jan 2001. The Mississippi Supreme Court opinion affirming his conviction can be read at 707 So. 2nd 547. I put State v. Byron de la Beckwith into Google and was able to read the entire opinion and the dissent. The author does a workmanlike job in the book telling of the fierce battle which was Tarawa. ( )