On the eve of World War II, the national interests of Japan, the United States, and the Soviet Union collided in the North Pacific. Alaska's Hidden Wars tells, for the first time, the story of this war–a story of savage weather, isolation, and sacrifice.

Two tiny island chains--the Aleutians and Kuriles--became the focus of a series of major campaigns that pitted the Americans against the Japanese. Alaska's Hidden Wars chronicles the role of Japanese-AMerican intelligence specialists and details a Japanese eyewitness account of the defense of Attu. Two virtually unknown aspects of the North Pacific war are also exposed: the brutal North Pacific weather and the internment of American airmen in Kamchatka.

In 1942, the Japanese raided Dutch Harbor in the Aleutian Islands and occupies the islands of Kiska and Attu. The Americans mounted a vigorous campaign and the Japanese retreated to the Kuriles. For the next two years, the Japanese launched air raids and fleet bombardments, while American soldies maintained lonely outposts along Aleutian coasts. But in 1945, when Japan finally surrended, the Kuriles were taken, not by the waiting Americans, but by the Soviets.

Alaska's Hidden Wars is a fast-moving history that brings decalssified archival sources to light and draws the reader to the lonely, bitter war fought in the North Pacific.

Author Otis Hays, Jr. served in Alaska as an intelligence staff officer during World War II.