The Bomber Mafia: A Dream, a Temptation, and the Longest Night of the Second World War
- Downloads：8757
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-05-28 08:51:13
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Malcolm Gladwell
- ISBN：0316309303
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
- Download
Summary
How technology and best intentions collide in the heat of war
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。
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。
Reviews
Anas
，
I listened to the audiobook version while commuting to work！
Jesus Sanchez
，
4 stars to the audiobook， 3 stars to the printed version。 The audio is amazing ！ First hand accounts， sound effects， I love this ！
Audrey Knutson
，
Napalm。 This book was only tangentially about WWII and the bombing campaign of the Army Air Corps。 At the center of this book was the battle of ideologies--precision bombing vs。 area civilian bombing。 At one point in 1945 the decision was made to transition from the former to the latter and it changed the course of warfare an humanity forever。 This book wasn't at all what I expected in that it was better and deeper than I could have imagined。 Gladwell， per usual， is writing about a topic of genu Napalm。 This book was only tangentially about WWII and the bombing campaign of the Army Air Corps。 At the center of this book was the battle of ideologies--precision bombing vs。 area civilian bombing。 At one point in 1945 the decision was made to transition from the former to the latter and it changed the course of warfare an humanity forever。 This book wasn't at all what I expected in that it was better and deeper than I could have imagined。 Gladwell， per usual， is writing about a topic of genuine interest to him and also is of a personal nature。 I wouldn't classify this as a book about war per se， but I'd imagine it would appeal to a lot of people only tangentially interested in WWII or history。 It's short and sweet and explains all the context and background of everything you need you know。 Great read。 。。。more
Carolyn Gould
，
Listened to the audio version and it was so educational and engaging。 He is such a great storyteller。 I had no idea about most of this history。
Amylou
，
Malcolm gladwell is a FANTASTIC storyteller。
Mel
，
Fascinating exploration of the advancement of air combat during WWII， the firebombing of Tokyo prior to the dropping of the atomic bomb， and the career collision of two Air Force Generals， Curtis LeMay and Haywood Hansell。 The audiobook 🎧 was exceptional。
Rebecca Montemurro
，
Just finished reading this one。 Totally engaging。 My 16 year old wants to read it next。
Arun Murali
，
The Bomber Mafia is， to put it simply， the original group that made up what would eventually become the US Airforce。 Without making this a lineal history of the evolution of the Airforce， Gladwell tells the stories of how this group of visionaries believed they could change war for the better。 The story ties neatly with the rapid development of airline technology， and the challenges that faced the original group - one that makes complete sense， but is likely something we don't think of often - p The Bomber Mafia is， to put it simply， the original group that made up what would eventually become the US Airforce。 Without making this a lineal history of the evolution of the Airforce， Gladwell tells the stories of how this group of visionaries believed they could change war for the better。 The story ties neatly with the rapid development of airline technology， and the challenges that faced the original group - one that makes complete sense， but is likely something we don't think of often - precision。 While the Bomber Mafia believed it could help shorten wars by taking over from the skies， they faced a major challenge with dropping a bomb from 30 thousand feet and hitting the exact target they wanted。 In fact， they could not do that and it was a problem no one knew how to solve which made their vision one that had to be ignored。 There is discussion in the book about the technology that was designed to solve that problem， but it is， in my opinion， an incomplete story。 However， that technology， which had its limitations， created the need for the visionaries to strategize differently， and for the war tacticians to figure out how to best utilize the Airforce。 We hear the story of different leaders with different approaches - one which was cautious in the hopes of being responsible and not causing unnecessary casualties， and another， who felt the only allegiance was to the American side and that all casualty was just part of the deal。 Gladwell takes us into their minds， and we can almost watch the back and forth thought process for each of those leaders， like watching a tennis match。 Its well done， and for chapters you are locked inside the inner workings that eventually lead to the air war that transpired on our way to winning the pacific side of World War 2。 Here we are， nearly 80 years later， wondering if that victory was won the right way， and whether precision bombing as the Bomber Mafia had envisioned would have changed the way things ended up for the world。 This is a quick and easy， but extremely interesting and well written read for those looking for some good history， and some thought provoking discussion that will make for good dinner conversation。 Enjoy！ 。。。more
Barry
，
The internal fight over how to， what to， and when to bomb in WW II。 First half of book is about Europe; second about Pacific。 Raises many important questions。 A must read for students of WW II。
James Eaton
，
I didn’t think a book about the development of Precision bombing during WW2 would be this interesting。
Evan Kostelka
，
You need to listen to the audiobook of this one， it's like a well produced podcast。Gladwell starts with the beginning of the Air Force and the rise of their belief about ending wars sooner and with less casualties。 However， their technology wasn't able to perform as hoped。 Then， like Jesus in the wilderness， temptation arises to change course。You learn a lot about Carl Norden， Haywood Hansel， and Curtis LeMay in this well researched history of precision air bombing。 You need to listen to the audiobook of this one， it's like a well produced podcast。Gladwell starts with the beginning of the Air Force and the rise of their belief about ending wars sooner and with less casualties。 However， their technology wasn't able to perform as hoped。 Then， like Jesus in the wilderness， temptation arises to change course。You learn a lot about Carl Norden， Haywood Hansel， and Curtis LeMay in this well researched history of precision air bombing。 。。。more
Gary Daly
，
Read on Apple eBooks。 Did not reach the same depth of magic of previous Malcolm Gladwell books。 Nevertheless， an interesting and good look at the minds behind the bombs and bombing war during World War Two。 The technology behind the concept of dropping a bomb into a ‘pickle barrel’ from 35，000 feet wasn’t realised。 Still the lives lost and horror of daily carpet bombing of cities during WW2 lends one to see how little we understand or comprehend the global impact of total war。 An interesting bri Read on Apple eBooks。 Did not reach the same depth of magic of previous Malcolm Gladwell books。 Nevertheless， an interesting and good look at the minds behind the bombs and bombing war during World War Two。 The technology behind the concept of dropping a bomb into a ‘pickle barrel’ from 35，000 feet wasn’t realised。 Still the lives lost and horror of daily carpet bombing of cities during WW2 lends one to see how little we understand or comprehend the global impact of total war。 An interesting brief history of how the rise of the bomber as a means of winning wars quicker。 The thing is we have no idea how long the war would have lasted if it were not for fire bombing and mass destruction and death from above。 Quick read and ideal for long haul flights。 Apple Books， $14。99。 。。。more
Jay Pozo
，
Great read and written in a way only Malcom can do。 It really makes you think of the brutality of war but the consciousness of war。
Vivian Li
，
definitely listen to the audio production。 it was fantastic。
Joanne Gonet
，
I just finished listening to this audio book from the hoopla app with my Sarasota County Library …。 This is a great book for anyone that likes WWII books… It is a true history of the Air Force roles in the European and Pacific theater audio and well worth adding it to you listening library！#hoopladigital
David Vaught
，
Gladwell even traces some of the cultural differences in the armed services to differences in the service academy chapels。 I had not heard that one expressed that way before， but see a grain of truth in it。 Those chapels come as close to an official governmental （or military official） religion as any， and thus their importance。His main point though involves targeting of bombing missions， and his history of the infamous dispute between advocates of air power and other military thinkers is worth a Gladwell even traces some of the cultural differences in the armed services to differences in the service academy chapels。 I had not heard that one expressed that way before， but see a grain of truth in it。 Those chapels come as close to an official governmental （or military official） religion as any， and thus their importance。His main point though involves targeting of bombing missions， and his history of the infamous dispute between advocates of air power and other military thinkers is worth a read。Understanding this history helps create an understanding of U S spending on the largest military budgets in the world。 。。。more
Lorri
，
I like the way Malcolm Gladwell’s writes and the way he builds his case。 This books was no exception。 An added bonus was all the audio clips within the audiobook （it was originally meant as an audiobook）。
Melanie Gardner
，
Do yourself a favor and listen to this on audio！ Listening to the actual voices of those involved， hearing the planes， the audio makes the history come to life。
Ron
，
Wonderful book that digs into the broad subject of Air Force Bomber Culture through a narrow scope。 Highly recommended。
Cielito Merriam
，
First， I love Malcolm Gladwell。 He is so in tune with humanity and he approaches topics and subjects from an angle of understanding。 Non-biased with an open mind。 I listened to the audiobook as it was intended to be an audio book。 I loved the interviews and recordings， I highly encourage the audiobook on this one。
Dominick Ciuffetelli
，
Short book packed with WWII behind the scenes information and best consumed as an audio book because of the archives from the actual generals and reading by the author。
Judy Masters
，
Another audio book for our trip to St。 Louis。 Malcolm Gladwell never disappoints me with his books。 The Bomber Mafia uses real life interviews and statistics to tell a story of bombing during WWII。 Not a bit of boring dialog during the entire book。
GiGi Huntley
，
Worth getting as an audiobook。 Gladwell narrates in the style of his podcast， Revisionist History。 It comes with extra features， so it's an immersive experience。 Worth getting as an audiobook。 Gladwell narrates in the style of his podcast， Revisionist History。 It comes with extra features， so it's an immersive experience。 。。。more
Kathi Johnson
，
different from other Gladwell books。 Learned more about WWII and the pacific theatre。
Stevie Ekkelkamp
，
Classic Malcolm Gladwell！ I didn’t like this as much as some of his other books， and while I love his style of reporting/storytelling， sometimes I feel like he makes mountains out of molehills。 In this case， the story is fascinating and worth the read， I just wished I didn’t listen to his podcast first。
Brandon H。
，
I listened to the audiobook version and the audio production itself was a 5-star experience for me。 However， when it comes to the content there were some holes and inaccuracies in the presentation of historical facts which undermine the main argument of the book。 These issues justify the critical pushback。 Even so， it was a thought-provoking， albeit， short read。 Not Gladwell's best work but it might encourage people to explore the subject more thoroughly。 I listened to the audiobook version and the audio production itself was a 5-star experience for me。 However， when it comes to the content there were some holes and inaccuracies in the presentation of historical facts which undermine the main argument of the book。 These issues justify the critical pushback。 Even so， it was a thought-provoking， albeit， short read。 Not Gladwell's best work but it might encourage people to explore the subject more thoroughly。 。。。more
Annette Murano
，
I wanted to like this， but it had the feel of when I had to write a 20 page paper and used creative formatting and lots of quotes to fill space。 Having read The Tipping Point and Blink， I was excited for this， but ultimately it didn't live up to my expectations。 I wanted to like this， but it had the feel of when I had to write a 20 page paper and used creative formatting and lots of quotes to fill space。 Having read The Tipping Point and Blink， I was excited for this， but ultimately it didn't live up to my expectations。 。。。more
John Gaffney
，
This book was intended to be listened to as an audiobook and it does make a great audiobook with interview recordings， sound effects， music - it’s like a 5 hour long episode of Gladwell’s podcast Revisionist History。
Ron Welton
，
This is one of the most interesting military histories that I have read: The Bomber Mafia is an anecdotal and biographical accounting mainly of two Army Airforce greats， Haywood Hansell， and Curtis LeMay and their leadership of bombing missions during WWII。
Devon Doornbos
，