The webmaster does not claim that this is a complete listing of books on or related to the story of the Doolittle Raiders. It is a listing of the ones the webmaster has or has read and all comments are the webmasters own opinions and views.
The Doolittle
Raid
Four Came Home
Deshazer
Jimmy Doolittle:
Master of the Calculated Risk
Destination Tokyo
Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo
Not As Briefed
First Over Japan
The First Heroes
I Could Never Be So Lucky Again
Lt. Bill Farrow Doolittle Raider
Tall and Free As Meant By God
Target Tokyo
Doolittle's Tokyo Raiders
We Were Guests of the Kremlin
The Doolittle Raid by Duane Schultz
If you have read one of these books and would like to submit a review, please email the webmaster at the address below.
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The Doolittle Raid This is probably the best overall book available on the Doolittle Raid. Col. Glines is the Raider's official historian and has access to virtually all of the documents as well as personal testimony from the Raiders. Gen. Doolittle personally sent him many of the documents needed to piece together the Raiders' incredible story. Webmaster's rating. ***** |
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| Four Came Home by Col. C. V. Glines (Ret.) This is the overall story of the two crews who were captured by Japanese forces after the Raid. It covers the events from just before the Doolittle Raid through the men's release, and a brief postwar section. This is a must read for any Doolittle Raider student, and is a sobering reminder of the danger that any member of our military might face. Webmaster's rating ***** |
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| DeShazer By C. Hoyt Watson First published in the 1950s this is the true story of Sgt. Jacob DeShazer, the bombardier on the 16th and last aircraft to leave the Hornet's deck. He was one of the 8 men captured by the Japanese and spent over 40 months in prison. This paperback book tells the story of that time and beyond including his return to Japan. It has been updated from the original. Webmaster's rating. ***** |
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| Jimmy Doolittle: Master of the Calculated Risk
Information not posted yet Webmaster's rating. |
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| Destination Tokyo By Stan Cohen This book is published by Pictorial Histories and is mainly just that - a picture book with a good deal of interesting and informative text. It is sort of jumbled, but still very readable and enjoyable. It has a nice selection of pictures and a good supplement to C. V. Glines books. Webmaster's rating: ***½ |
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| Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo By Ted Lawson and Robert Consadine This book was reprinted last year in a new updated version of the 1942 (?) original. It is truly a classic book on the Raid from the perspective of a Ted Lawson, who was the pilot of the 7th aircraft off the Hornet's deck. Well written and a good read. The story was also turned into a fairly accurate film by the same title during the war. Webmaster's rating: ****½ |
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| Not As Briefed By Col. C. Ross Greening Compiled by Dorothy Greening and Karen Morgan Driscoll This is a compilation of material that Raider Ross Greening had on the Raid and his life. This book strays quite a bit from the Raid and is really more of a wartime biography. It is a good book with some VERY interesting tales and some neat artwork that he painted while in a German prison camp. The book is a good read and interesting. The beginning of the book also includes some interesting stories about the 17th Bomb Group before the Raid. Webmaster's rating: **** |
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| First Over Japan By Jack Sims and Al Cook This is a biography of Jack Sims who was a copilot on the 14th aircraft. It basically chronicles his life through the time of the book's printing. The copy of the book that I have is not of quite the same quality of printing that the vast majority of Raider books, but is still informative. It details some of the events after the Raid as the men left China. Webmaster's rating: ***½ |
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| The First Heroes By Craig Nelson What shall I say about this book... It's an interesting read, and does cover a lot of ground. I personally don't like the style of the book and feel that a lot of the material was already out there in other books. To me it just doesn't have the right "flow" to it. There are also some things in the book that are just plain weird such as calling the B-25 a "Billy". True, the B-25 was nicknamed after Gen. Billy Mitchell, but I don't know any current pilots or veterans who called it a "Billy." There are a few other things I don't care for in the book, but some others I know have enjoyed the book. Webmaster's rating: ***½ |
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Books thought to be out of print:
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Tall and Free as Meant by God By Margaret Meadows Stem This is an interesting book about Lt. William Farrow (Pilot of aircraft #16) by his aunt. The book follows him from his birth to his execution by the Japanese. It is an interesting story of this little-known Raider. Some of the book appears to be conjecture and must therefore be taken with a grain of salt. Also some of the philosophizing in the book seems a bit confused to me (I'm coming from a bit of a different Christian background), but probably reflects on his aunt's beliefs and just has to be worked around. It's a sad story, but worth the read. Webmaster's rating: ****½
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Target Tokyo By James Merrill This is another version of the Doolittle Raid story. It is generally well written and informative. Publisher: Rand McNally Information pending |
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I Could Never be So Lucky Again
Information pending
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Jimmy Doolittle, Daredevil Aviator and Scientist
Information pending
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Doolittle's Tokyo Raiders
Information pending
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We Were Guests of the
Kremlin
Information pending |
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The Doolittle Raid by Duane
Schultz
Information pending
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The webmaster is always interested if you know of another Raid-related book not mentioned here.