Skip to content
Home/ Bomber Mafia: A Dream, a Temptation, and the Longest Night of the Second World War
Bomber Mafia: A Dream, a Temptation, and the Longest Night of the Second World War

Bomber Mafia: A Dream, a Temptation, and the Longest Night of the Second World War

by Gladwell, Malcolm
No customer reviews yet ISBN 9780316309851 Little, Brown and Company

Dive into this "truly compelling" (Good Morning America) New York Times bestseller that explores how technology and best intentions collide in the heat of war--from the creator and host of the podcast Revisionist History.

In The Bomber Mafia, Malcolm Gladwell weaves together the stories of a Dutch genius and his homemade computer, a band of brothers in central Alabama, a British psychopath, and pyromaniacal chemists at Harvard to examine one of the greatest moral challenges in modern American history.

Most military thinkers in the years leading up to World War II saw the airplane as an afterthought. But a small band of idealistic strategists, the "Bomber Mafia," asked: What if precision bombing could cripple the enemy and make war far less lethal?

In contrast, the bombing of Tokyo on the deadliest night of the war was the brainchild of General Curtis LeMay, whose brutal pragmatism and scorched-earth tactics in Japan cost thousands of civilian lives, but may have spared even more by averting a planned US invasion. In The Bomber Mafia, Gladwell asks, "Was it worth it?"

Things might have gone differently had LeMay's predecessor, General Haywood Hansell, remained in charge. Hansell believed in precision bombing, but when he and Curtis LeMay squared off for a leadership handover in the jungles of Guam, LeMay emerged victorious, leading to the darkest night of World War II. The Bomber Mafia is a riveting tale of persistence, innovation, and the incalculable wages of war.

About the author

Product details

BrandLittle, Brown and Company
Pub dateApr 27, 2021
ISBN-100316309850
ISBN-139780316309851
LanguageEnglish
Dimensions8.25 × 1 × 5.75 in
Weight1 lb
Last updated 2026-03-18 01:45
$28.39 $38.00 25% off
You save $9.61 · list price $38.00
In stock — ships in 24 hours with free tracking
Delivery by Thursday, September 10, 2026
Qty
Sign in to Add to Saved list
Free delivery on orders over $35.
15-day returns. Any reason.
Secure checkout. We never store card details.

Readers who bought this also bought

More from History | Wars & Conflicts | World War II - Pacific Theater
See all
Burma Road: The Epic Story of the China-Burma-India Theater in World War II
Webster, Donovan
$15.82
Lost in Shangri-La: A True Story of Survival, Adventure, and the Most Incredible Rescue Mission of W
Zuckoff, Mitchell
$14.16
Lost in Shangri-La: A True Story of Survival, Adventure, and the Most Incredible Rescue Mission of W
Zuckoff, Mitchell
$21.00
Rescue at Los Baños: The Most Daring Prison Camp Raid of World War II
Henderson, Bruce
$11.39
Frozen in Time: An Epic Story of Survival and a Modern Quest for Lost Heroes of World War II
<p><strong>#1 <em>New York Times </em>bestseller!</strong></p><p><em>Frozen in Time</em> is a gripping true story of survival, bravery, and honor in the vast Arctic wilderness during World War II, from the author of <em>New York Times </em>bestseller <em>Lost in Shangri-La</em>.</p><p>On November 5, 1942, a US cargo plane slammed into the Greenland Ice Cap. Four days later, the B-17 assigned to the search-and-rescue mission became lost in a blinding storm and also crashed. Miraculously, all nine men on board survived, and the US military launched a daring rescue operation. But after picking up one man, the Grumman Duck amphibious plane flew into a severe storm and vanished.</p><p><em>Frozen in Time </em>tells the story of these crashes and the fate of the survivors, bringing vividly to life their battle to endure 148 days of the brutal Arctic winter, until an expedition headed by famed Arctic explorer Bernt Balchen brought them to safety. Mitchell Zuckoff takes the reader deep into the most hostile environment on earth, through hurricane-force winds, vicious blizzards, and subzero temperatures.</p><p>Moving forward to today, he recounts the efforts of the Coast Guard and North South Polar Inc. - led by indefatigable dreamer Lou Sapienza - who worked for years to solve the mystery of the Duck's last flight and recover the remains of its crew.</p><p>A breathtaking blend of mystery and adventure Mitchell Zuckoff's <em>Frozen in Time: An Epic Story of Survival and a Modern Quest for Lost Heroes of World War II </em>is also a poignant reminder of the sacrifices of our military personnel and a tribute to the everyday heroism of the US Coast Guard.</p>
$13.00
Midnight in Broad Daylight: A Japanese American Family Caught Between Two Worlds
Sakamoto, Pamela Rotner
$14.16