Includes bibliographical references (p. 391-402) and index.

Doubting superman -- Damn the torpedoes -- Long John Silver and confucius -- Pop goes the weasel -- The department of dirty tricks -- The shattered gem -- Big blue fleet -- Sho-go -- A fatal misunderstanding -- Ships in the night -- Surprise at dawn -- They were expendable -- The world wonders -- The mysterious telegram -- The last kamikaze -- Why they fought.

Journalist and historian Thomas writes with a knowing feel for the clash of cultures as he follows four men through the naval war of 1941-1945 in the South Pacific: Admiral William ("Bull") Halsey, the macho, gallant, racist American fleet commander; Admiral Takeo Kurita, the Japanese battleship commander charged with making what was, in essence, a suicidal fleet attack against the American invasion of the Philippines; Admiral Matome Ugaki, a self-styled samurai who was the commander of all kamikazes and himself the last kamikaze of the war; and Commander Ernest Evans, a Cherokee Indian and Annapolis graduate who led his destroyer on the last great charge in the Battle of Leyte Gulf, the biggest naval battle ever fought. From new documents and interviews with American and Japanese veterans, Thomas was able to piece together and answer mysteries about the battle that have puzzled historians for decades.--From publisher description.