The moment the Japanese fighter-planes emerged from the clouds above Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the course of history was fundamentally changed. With this one surprise attack, previously isolationist America was abruptly and irrevocably thrown into the fray and World War II had begun in earnest. This detailed guide examines each of the major battles American wuold fight in the ensuing conflict against Imperial Japan. From the dramatic naval clash at Coral Sea to the desperate, bloody fighting on Okinawa, each chapter reveals both the horrors of battle and the Allies' grim, yet heroic determination to wrest victory from what often seemed to be certaind defeat. Including an astonishing collection of wartime photographs and full-color maps, this is an invaluable history of the long struggle for victory in the Pacific.