In this gripping narrative, the author reviews the decisions made by Admiral Nagumo, the Japanese strike force commander, and his chief of staff, Admiral Kusaka, and examines the battle of Midway, in this light. He also considers what a third Japanese attack on Oahu might have accomplished, had the Japanese pressed their offensive advantage to substantially cripple the united States Navy. Their failure to do so might be considered the "fatal blunder" that cost them the Second World War. Black-and-white photographs depict the damage wrought by the Japanese air strikes, which launched the United States unto one of history's bloodiest conflicts.