Sign-In
Cart
Blunting the Spear: The Pacific Carrier War from Pearl Harbor to the Doolittle Raid
Hardcover
Military StrategyNaval History
Publisher Price: $44.95
Publisher: Naval Institute Press
Published: Sep 15 2026
Pages: 312
Weight: 1.20
Height: 1.00 Width: 6.00 Depth: 9.00
Language: English
This compelling book explores the first four months of fighting in the Pacific between the United States and its Allies against Japan, focusing mainly on the aircraft carrier action of the respective navies in the Pacific Theater.
In the chaotic months after Pearl Harbor, the Pacific War was anything but certain. The U.S. Navy, reeling from sudden loss, scrambled to slow Japanese momentum, while the Imperial Japanese Navy pressed outward, convinced that seizing Southeast Asia's resources was essential to survival. This book captures that dangerous, uncertain moment--from December 1941 through April 1942--when the outcome of the Pacific War remained very much in doubt.
Moving across a vast maritime battlefield, Blunting the Spear centers on early carrier operations and surface actions that tested new doctrines, unproven leaders, and their fleets. From American raids on the Marshalls and Gilberts to clashes near Rabaul, Port Darwin, and Lae and Salamaua, the book shows how both sides adapted to fast-moving air-sea combat while operating at the edge of logistical reach. These encounters were improvised, risky, and often misunderstood at the time.
The story is driven by the people who shaped these early campaigns. Commanders such as Wilson Brown and William Bull Halsey navigated uncertainty, scarce intelligence, and unfamiliar demands of carrier warfare. U.S. Navy aviator Edward Butch O'Hare's lone stand against incoming Japanese bombers demonstrated how individual action could alter events in minutes. Japanese fighter pilot Nagahama Yoshikazu's combat over Port Darwin reveals the skill and confidence of an adversary still near the height of its power. Author Robert C. Stern also examines the planning and execution of the Doolittle Raid, a strike whose material damage was limited but whose psychological impact reverberated through Tokyo and Washington alike.
By connecting early raids, defensive actions, and leadership choices to the larger arc leading toward Coral Sea and Midway, this book reveals how the Pacific carrier war was forged during these early months of uncertainty. Stern offers a tightly drawn account of how the earliest battles helped determine the war that followed. Perfect for history enthusiasts, military buffs, and anyone fascinated by the Pacific Theater, Blunting the Spear offers a fresh perspective on the early days of the carrier conflict.
2 different editions
Also available
Blunting the Spear: The Pacific Carrier War from Pearl Harbor to the Doolittle Raid
Stern, Robert C.
Audio Book
Blunting the Spear: The Pacific Carrier War from Pearl Harbor to the Doolittle Raid
Stern, Robert C.
Audio Book
Also from
Stern, Robert C.
Scratch One Flattop: The First Carrier Air Campaign and the Battle of the Coral Sea
Stern, Robert C.
Hardcover
Knife's Edge: South Pacific Carrier Battles from the Eastern Solomons to Santa Cruz
Stern, Robert C.
Hardcover
Super Destroyers: From the Torpedo Boat Era to the Dominant Surface Warship of Today
Stern, Robert C.
Hardcover
Blunting the Spear: The Pacific Carrier War from Pearl Harbor to the Doolittle Raid
Stern, Robert C.
Audio Book
Blunting the Spear: The Pacific Carrier War from Pearl Harbor to the Doolittle Raid
Stern, Robert C.
Audio Book
Also in
Naval History
Hostage on the Yangtze: Britain, China, and the Amethyst Crisis of 1949
Murfett, Malcolm H.
Hardcover
The Last Flight: The Untold Story of the Search for JFK Jr. and the Race Against the Atlantic
Webster, W. Russell
Webster, Theresa M.
Hardcover
It's Your Ship: Management Techniques from the Best Damn Ship in the Navy
Abrashoff, D. Michael
Hardcover
The Finest Hours: The True Story of the U.S. Coast Guard's Most Daring Sea Rescue
Tougias, Michael J.
Sherman, Casey
Paperback
Indianapolis: The True Story of the Worst Sea Disaster in U.S. Naval History and the Fifty-Year Fight to Exonerate an Innocent Man
Vladic, Sara
Vincent, Lynn
Paperback
The Last Stand of Tin Can Sailors: The Extraordinary World War II Story of the U.S. Navy's Finest Hour
Hornfischer, Estate Of James D.
Hardcover
Letters to Myself: A Collection of Life Lessons Shared with My Younger Self
Cordle, John P.
Paperback
Blind Man's Bluff: The Untold Story of American Submarine Espionage
Drew, Christopher
Sontag, Sherry
Paperback
Ghosts of Panama: A Strongman Out of Control, a Murdered Marine, and the Special Agents Caught in the Middle of an Invasion
Harmon, Mark
Carroll, Leon
Paperback
The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors: The Extraordinary World War II Story of the U.S. Navy's Finest Hour
Hornfischer, James D.
Paperback
In the Hurricane's Eye: The Genius of George Washington and the Victory at Yorktown
Philbrick, Nathaniel
Paperback
Fighting Fifteen: The Navy's Top Ace and the Deadliest Hellcat Squadron of the Pacific War
Moore, Stephen L.
Hardcover
Wielding the Trident: Admiral Raymond A. Spruance and America's Victory in the Pacific
Blackley, Andrew K.
Hardcover
Shipwrecks and Lost Treasures: Great Lakes: Legends And Lore, Pirates And More!
Varhola, Michael
Paperback
Gamble in the Coral Sea: Japan's Offensive, the Carrier Battle, and the Road to Midway
Piegzik, Michal A.
Hardcover
Thunder Below!: The USS *Barb* Revolutionizes Submarine Warfare in World War II
Fluckey, Eugene B.
Paperback
Annapolis Goes to War: The Naval Academy Class of 1940 and Its Trial by Fire in World War II
Symonds, Craig L.
Hardcover
Phantom Fleet: The Hunt for Nazi Submarine U-505 and World War II's Most Daring Heist
Rose, Alexander
Hardcover
Ghosts of Panama: A Strongman Out of Control, a Murdered Marine, and the Special Agents Caught in the Middle of an Invasion
Carroll, Leon
Harmon, Mark
Hardcover
So Others May Live: Coast Guard's Rescue Swimmers: Saving Lives, Defying Death
Ridge, Tom
Laguardia-Kotite, Martha
Paperback
Sailing the Graveyard Sea: The Deathly Voyage of the Somers, the U.S. Navy's Only Mutiny, and the Trial That Gripped the Nation
Snow, Richard
Paperback
Mahan on Naval Strategy: Selections from the Writings of Rear Admiral Alfred Thayer Mahan
Mahan, Alfred Thayer
Paperback
Erasing the Liberty: The Battle to Keep Alive the Memory of Israel's Massacre on the USS Liberty
Gahary, David R.
Tourney, Phillip F.
Paperback
Holocaust on the High Seas: An Eyewitness Account of Israel's 1967 Attack on the USS Liberty
Tourney, Phillip F.
Paperback
Clash of the Carriers: The True Story of the Marianas Turkey Shoot of World War II
Tillman, Barrett
Paperback
Samurai!: The Autobiography of Japan's World War II Flying Ace
Saito, Fred
Sakai, Saburo
Caidin, Martin
Paperback
The Death of the USS Thresher: The Story Behind History's Deadliest Submarine Disaster
Polmar, Norman
Paperback
Sailors to the End: The Deadly Fire on the USS Forrestal and the Heroes Who Fought It
Freeman, Gregory A.
Paperback
Japanese Destroyer Captain: Pearl Harbor, Guadalcanal, Midway--The Great Naval Battles as Seen Through Japanese Eyes
Hara, Tameichi
Paperback
Operation Catapult: Winston Churchill and the British Attack on the French Navy at Mers-El-Kébir
Whiteside, Bill
Hardcover
Kaigun: Strategy, Tactics, and Technology in the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1887-1941
Peattie, David
Evans, David C.
Paperback
Lords of the Sea: The Epic Story of the Athenian Navy and the Birth of Democracy
Hale, John R.
Paperback
Battleship Commander: The Life of Vice Admiral Willis A. Lee Jr.
Stillwell, Paul L., Usnr (Ret ).
Hardcover
A Hoot in Hell's Island: The Heroic Story of World War II Dive Bomber Lt. Cmdr. Robert D. "Hoot" Gibson
Warner, Kirk
Gibson, Robert D.
Hardcover
Raising the Hunley: The Remarkable History and Recovery of the Lost Confederate Submarine
Hicks, Brian
Kropf, Schuyler
Paperback
Patriot Pirates: The Privateer War for Freedom and Fortune in the American Revolution
Patton, Robert H.
Paperback
The Sailing of the Intrepid: The Incredible Wartime Voyage of the Navy's Iconic Aircraft Carrier
Williams, Montel
Hardcover
The Sailing of the Intrepid: The Incredible Wartime Voyage of the Navy's Iconic Aircraft Carrier (Large Print Edition)
Fisher, David
Williams, Montel
Hardcover
Mastering the Art of Command: Admiral Chester W. Nimitz and Victory in the Pacific
Hone, Trent
Paperback
A Game of Birds and Wolves: The Ingenious Young Women Whose Secret Board Game Helped Win World War II
Parkin, Simon
Paperback
Escape from the Deep: The Epic Story of a Legendary Submarine and Her Courageous Crew
Kershaw, Alex
Paperback
All Hands on Deck: A Modern-Day High Seas Adventure to the Far Side of the World
Sofrin, Will
Paperback
Imperial Japanese Navy 1932-1945 Warships and Colours: With Japanese Army Vessels and Three Special Bonus Pages
Wright, Malcolm
Paperback
Kaga and Akagi: Aircraft Carriers in the Imperial Japanese Navy
Ahlberg, Lars
Lengerer, Hans
Hardcover
The Devil's Own Purgatory: The United States Mississippi River Squadron in the Civil War
Gudmestad, Robert H.
Hardcover
Brain Games - U.S. Navy Word Search - Large Print
Brain Games
Publications International Ltd
Paperback
The Last Days of the Schooner America: A Lost Icon at the Annapolis Warship Factory
Gendell, David
Hardcover
Guardians of the North: Canadian Warships and Maritime Aircraft, 1910-2025
Gimblett, Richard H.
Gagnon, Karl
Hardcover
The Ice Diaries: The True Story of One of Mankind's Greatest Adventures
Anderson, William R.
Paperback
Through the Yellow Visor: The Life and (Mis)Adventures of a US Navy Fighter Pilot
Aiello, E. Vincent Jell-O
Paperback
Life and Death at Cape Disappointment: Becoming a Surfman on the Columbia River Bar
D'Amelio, Christopher J.
Paperback
Give Me a Fast Ship: The Heroic Actions of Ernest Evans and the Crew of USS Johnston
Cutler, Thomas J.
Hardcover
Iron Dawn: The Monitor, the Merrimack, and the Civil War Sea Battle That Changed History
Snow, Richard
Paperback
The Last Shot: The Incredible Story of the C.S.S. Shenandoah and the True Conclusion of the American Civil War
Schooler, Lynn
Paperback
Devil's Fire, Southern Cross: The Conclusion of the Guadalcanal-Solomons Campaign, October 1943-February 1944
Cox, Jeffrey
Hardcover
A Rage to Conquer: Twelve Battles That Changed the Course of Western History
Walsh, Michael
Hardcover
War Beneath the Waves: A True Story of Courage and Leadership Aboard a World War II Submarine
Keith, Don
Paperback
The Battle of Salamis: The Naval Encounter That Saved Greece -- And Western Civilization
Strauss, Barry
Paperback
This Great Contest Afloat: The Civil War on the Seas, Coastline, Rivers, and Oceans
Chatelain, Neil P.
Paperback
Italian Adriatic Fleet 1915-18: The Fierce Naval War with Austria-Hungary
Cernuschi, Enrico
Paperback
Iron Coffins: A Personal Account of the German U-Boat Battles of World War II
Werner, Herbert A.
Paperback
Battle of the Atlantic (2): From Operation Drumbeat to the Defeat of the Wolfpacks, 1942-43
Stille, Mark
Paperback
Empires of the Sea: The Siege of Malta, the Battle of Lepanto, and the Contest for the Center of Theworld
Crowley, Roger
Paperback
Perilous Fight: America's Intrepid War with Britain on the High Seas, 1812-1815
Budiansky, Stephen
Paperback
Halsey's Typhoon: The True Story of a Fighting Admiral, an Epic Storm, and an Untold Rescue
Drury, Bob
Clavin, Tom
Paperback
The Fleet at Flood Tide: America at Total War in the Pacific, 1944-1945
Hornfischer, James D.
Paperback
Revolution on the Hudson: New York City and the Hudson River Valley in the American War of Independence
Daughan, George C.
Paperback
No More Napoleons: How Britain Managed Europe from Waterloo to World War One
Lambert, Andrew
Hardcover
All the Gallant Men: An American Sailor's Firsthand Account of Pearl Harbor
Stratton, Donald
Gire, Ken
Paperback
Sentinels by the Sea: Coastal Fortifications of Colonial New England and Nova Scotia
Laramie, Michael G.
Hardcover
Arresting Ecologies: Global Literature Across Air, Land, and Sea, 1926-2014
Rizzuto, Nicole M.
Hardcover
Benedict Arnold's Navy: The Ragtag Fleet That Lost the Battle of Lake Champlain But Won the American Revolution
Nelson, James L.
Hardcover
Forgotten Island: The WWII Story of One Sailor's Survival on Japanese-Occupied Guam
Domagalski, John J.
Paperback
A Visual History & Reference for Submarine Insignia of the World
Lukas, Lee
Walker, Christopher
Hardcover
Across the Wing: Stories of Navy Carrier Combat Squadrons in the Vietnam Theatre
Heller, Dan
Paperback