As World War II came to a close in Europe, it became evident that defeating Japan would require an unrelenting attack to break its national spirit, and so the Allies planned an operations base on the island of Okinawa in anticipation of a full-scale invasion of Japan. What resulted was the largest amphibious operation of the Pacific War and the greatest air-land-sea battle in history, mobilizing 183,000 troops for 83 blood-soaked days, as the fighting plumbed depths of savagery. Providing perspective on this turning point, the author of The Force surveys the toll that the conflict took on soldiers from both sides but especially on civilians, whom the Japanese forced to fight and encouraged to commit suicide when defeat was imminent.