Gordon W. Prange (1910-1980) was a professor of history at the University of Maryland and a World War II veteran. He served as the chief historian on General Douglas MacArthur's staff during the postwar military occupation of Japan. His 1963 Reader's Digest article "Tora! Tora! Tora!" was later expanded into the acclaimed book At Dawn We Slept. After Prange's death, his colleagues Donald M. Goldstein and Katherine V. Dillon completed several of his manuscripts, including At Dawn We Slept. Other works that Goldstein and Dillon finished include Miracle at Midway; Pearl Harbor: The Verdict of History; December 7, 1941: The Day the Japanese Attacked Pearl Harbor; and Target Tokyo: The Story of the Sorge Spy Ring. Donald M. Goldstein is a retired United States Air Force officer, professor emeritus of public and international affairs at the University of Pittsburgh, where he taught for thirty-five years, a winner of two Peabody Awards, and author of many books. He has also taught at the Air Force Academy, the Air War College, the Air Command and Staff College, the University of Tampa, and Troy State University. He is considered the leading authority on the Pearl Harbor attack. He lives in the Villages, Florida. Katherine V. Dillon (1916-2005) was a chief warrant officer, United States Air Force (retired), and longtime collaborator with Gordon W. Prange and Donald M. Goldstein on their work. She served during World War II and the Korean War.

Seven months after blitzing Pearl Harbor, the Japanese commander, Admiral Yamamoto, prepared to finish his work. He targeted a smaller United States force commanded by Chester Nimitz, a junior admiral. Given the superiority of the Japanese fleet, Yamamoto had every reason to expect victory. But we had broken the Japanese code and Nimitz learned of Yamamoto's plans. He responded with tactics of beautiful flexibility. The Japanese, ablaze with confidence, suffered a crippling reverse. Midway put our navy back on its feet. Based on original archival research as well as exclusive interviews with survivors on both sides, this book is a majestic sequel to AT DAWN WE SLEPT, also by Gordon W. Prange.