Book excerpt: Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Sample Book Insights: #1 The war in the Pacific cost the army 57,137 lives. The Eighth Air Force suffered 26,000 airmen deaths in Europe, and the merchant marine lost 4,780 people when their ships sank or they were blown overboard. #2 The United States suffered a lot of civilian casualties during World War II, but compared to the countries that suffered the greatest slaughter, Russia, China, Germany, Poland, and Japan, it might seem like the United States got off easy. #3 The deaths of the Japanese military and civilians during World War II were tragic, but the Allied bombings of Japanese cities and the use of American B-29 Superfortresses to firebomb them was the deadliest night of the war, claiming more lives than Dresden, Hiroshima, or Nagasaki. #4 The final death toll for all countries lies between about 50 million and 100 million deaths. However many died, they were more than statistics on a sheet of paper.