The Bomber Mafia: A Dream, a Temptation, and the Longest Night of the Second World War

Malcolm Gladwell

Apr 2021 · Pushkin Industries · Narrated by Malcolm Gladwell

About this audiobook

In The Bomber Mafia: A Dream, a Temptation, and the Longest Night of the Second World War, Malcolm Gladwell, author of New York Times bestsellers including Talking to Strangers and host of the podcast Revisionist History, uses original interviews, archival footage and his trademark insight to weave 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. As listeners hear these stories unfurl, Gladwell examines 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 had a different view. This “Bomber Mafia” asked: What if precision bombing could, just by taking out critical choke points — industrial or transportation hubs – cripple the enemy and make war far less lethal?

In Revisionist History, Gladwell re-examines moments from the past and asks whether we got it right the first time. In The Bomber Mafia, he employs all the production techniques that make Revisionist History so engaging, stepping back from the bombing of Tokyo, the deadliest night of the war, and asking, “Was it worth it?” The attack 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 more by averting a planned US invasion.

Things might have gone differently had LeMay’s predecessor, General Haywood Hansell, remained in charge. As a key member of the Bomber Mafia, Haywood’s theories of precision bombing had been foiled by bad weather, enemy jet fighters, and human error. 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.

Ratings and reviews

Incredible storytelling and historical accuracy. Really informative on how our U.S. air force came to be and what caused major events to transpire during WWII

Great history of the development of high altitude precision bombing. More about napalm than the atom bomb though, which was my initial impression.

Another Gladwell success!

About the author

Malcolm Gladwell, non-fiction writer and journalist, was born in England on Sept 3, 1963. He was raised in rural Ontario and graduated from the University of Toronto, Trinity College, with a degree in History. Gladwell was previously a business and science reporter for the Washington Post and is currently a staff writer with the New Yorker magazine. He is well-known for his many New York Times bestselling books: Blink, The Tipping Point, Outliers, What the Dog Saw, and David and Goliath. His writing is often a product of sociology and psychology with implications for the social sciences and business. Gladwell became a successful public speaker after writing his bestselling books. In 2005, Time Magazine named Gladwell one of its 100 most influential people. Gladwell's most famous quote comes from his book, Outliers; he states that "It takes about 10,000 hours of practice to become an expert..." at any competition or task. Gladwell was appointed to the Order of Canada on June 30, 2011. Gladwell describes himself as a Christian. He was raised in the Mennonite tradition, and wandered away from his Christian roots when he moved to New York, only to rediscover his faith during the writing of David and Goliath and through his encounter with Wilma Derksen. In 2005, Gladwell commanded approximately $45,000 for his speaking fee. His books include: Outliers, Blink, What the Dog Saw, and David and Goliath.