THIRTY SECONDS OVER TOKYO

In competition with an extraordinary record of topnotch reporting, this personal record of the Doolittle raid over Tokyo stands out as one of the most stirring of them all. It is a grim reminder of what war in the Pacific means in terms of ""blood, sweat, toil and tears"". Ted Lawson piloted one of the planes. He achieved his objective, escaped, and crashed in water off the coast of occupied China; he and his crew were rescued, concealed by guerilla bands, made forced marches under incredible hardships, one jump ahead of the Japs -- and scarcely that ahead of death from injury and subsequent infection. He tells of the months leading up to the raid, with every aspect studied, with meticulous and specialized training of picked men. He tells of the voyage out by carrier, and the tension of waiting. He tells of the mischance that precipitated the raid, 400 miles farther from the goal, and by daylight. This is a realistic blend of adventure and unaccented heroism, another panel in the chart of the war. It is not Lawson's story alone, but the story of his crew, and the story of the other pilots and their crews. A postscript supplies the factual record as finally released, and letters and material regarding the various crews. Sixteen full pages of illustrations; end paper maps.....The recent release of the horror story of the murder of the captured fliers has brought this dramatic episode before the public again. This is the first book to give the intimate details of the raid.