Gannon, Michael V. 1927-

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Gannon, Michael V. 1927-

PERSONAL:

Born 1927.

ADDRESSES:

CAREER:

University of Florida, Gainesville, associate dean of College of Liberal Arts and Science, 1986, emeritus Distinguished Service Professor and former director of Early Contact Period Studies, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

WRITINGS:

Rebel Bishop: The Life and Era of Augustin Verot, foreword by John Tracy Ellis, Bruce Publishing (Milwaukee, WI), 1964, published as Rebel Bishop: Augustin Verot, Florida's Civil War Prelate, University Press of Florida (Gainesville, FL), 1997.

The Cross in the Sand: The Early Catholic Church in Florida, 1513-1870, University of Florida Press (Gainesville, FL), 1965, 2nd edition, 1983.

Operation Drumbeat: The Dramatic True Story of Germany's First U-Boat Attacks along the American Coast in World War II, Harper & Row (New York, NY), 1990.

Florida: A Short History, University Press of Florida (Gainesville, FL), 1993, revised edition, 2003.

Secret Missions, HarperCollins (New York, NY), 1994.

The New History of Florida, University Press of Florida (Gainesville, FL), 1996.

Black May, HarperCollins (New York, NY), 1998.

Pearl Harbor Betrayed: The True Story of a Man and a Nation under Attack, Henry Holt (New York, NY), 2001.

The Florida Catholic Heritage Trail = El camino de la herencia catolica en la Florida, Florida Catholic Heritage Trail (Sun City Center, FL), 2005.

Michael Gannon's History of Florida in Forty Minutes, University Press of Florida (Gainesville, FL), 2007.

SIDELIGHTS:

Michael V. Gannon is professor emeritus of history at the University of Florida. Many of his works focus on the history of the state of Florida; other Gannon books delve into the history of World War II. In Pearl Harbor Betrayed: The True Story of a Man and a Nation under Attack, the historian explores in depth the events that led up to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Gannon offers a "meticulous analysis of December 7, 1941, and a ringing defense of Adm. Husband E. Kimmel, the man who faced the blame for that day's stunning Japanese success," related a Kirkus Reviews critic. He looks carefully at the many events and disparate personalities that led to the bombing of Pearl Harbor, but remains adamant in his defense of Kimmel, whom he believes was unfairly accused of the dereliction of duty that allowed the Pearl Harbor attacks to succeed. Though some have suggested that Kimmel was a peacetime admiral who was overwhelmed by all-out war, Gannon suggests that his court martial made him a scapegoat for persons in higher levels of government who should have been better prepared. Failures of diplomacy and intelligence, the author suggests, were largely at the heart of the Pearl Harbor disaster.

In the end, Gannon asserts, it was the U.S. attention on potential war with Germany that allowed relations with Japan to deteriorate to the point of attack. He also notes that Japan's decision to go to war with the United States was not forced solely by American behavior but was part of a carefully considered plan to pursue Japan's vital interests. With his look at an infamous episode in American history, Gannon "has succeeded in recreating the dramatic events so that they can be understood by a careful reader," according to Library Journal reviewer Stanley L. Itkin. Jay Freeman, writing in Booklist, called Gannon's book a "well-researched and well-argued contribution to the debate" over what really brought the U.S. and Japan into conflict in World War II.