The Japanese Army in World War II: The South Pacific and New Guinea, 1942, 43

This is another of the Osprey series of books on military history, and, as such, is filled with photos and information. It also has a lot of maps showing military actions, and breakdowns of Japanese military units. The book is more for people interested in the details of the fighting, rather than just looking for an overall summary of what happened.

One of the interesting things the author discusses is the declining production of military goods by Japan as the war went on.

The author summarizes Japanese tactics:

1.A preference for offensive operations.
2.A heavy reliance on strength of will (spiritual strength)
3.Emphasize surprise and rapid movement.
4.Preference for encircling the enemy rather than using frontal attacks.
5.Preference for moving in two or three columns.

The second one is what caused the Japanese untold trouble, of course. They believed that by sheer strength of will they could overcome U.S. advantages in military equipment. That didn't really work, and as the war went on, it worked even less well. Eventually it became a series of battles in which the Japanese had virtually no hope of winning; the main idea was to take as long to be defeated as possible, and kill as many Americans as possible, hoping that the U.S. citizens would become tired of the war and demand their government negotiate some kind of ending.