Driven by extensive Japanese primary sources, Gamble in the Coral Sea  offers an operational analysis of the first clash of aircraft carriers at the pivotal Battle of the Coral Sea from the Japanese perspective, including leadership, tactics, and errors that brought a numeric victory but a strategic loss for Japan that halted their bold advance into the South Pacific and ultimately set the stage for Midway.  The opening salvos of the Battle of the Coral Sea, the first large-scale carrier clash in history, were fired one month before Midway. Gamble in the Coral Sea recounts, for the first time in English, the story of this battle from the Japanese point of view. Based on extensive Japanese-language sources, author Michał A. Piegzik forcefully challenges established Western narratives surrounding this critical engagement in the Pacific War.   Operation MO, the Japanese plan to seize Port Moresby, kicked off in early May 1942. By committing three carriers, including the famous Shōkaku and Zuikaku , the Nippon Kaigun’s command risked a critical part of their fleet just before the envisaged decisive battle at Midway in the Central Pacific, scheduled for early July. The operation was considered a vital part of Japanese strategy. Victory would isolate Australia and New Zealand and extend access to vital resources crucial to Japan’s war effort. Victory, however, would prove elusive after American codebreakers deciphered Japanese radio traffic that revealed their plans in the weeks leading up to the launch of Operation MO.  Using this intelligence to their advantage, U.S forces located elements of the Japanese navy as they steamed through the Coral Sea. Soon after, history’s first carrier battle began. Piegzik combines expertise in military history with mastery of the Japanese language to provide a rare perspective on the Imperial Japanese Navy’s operational choices during the battle. His use of Japanese archival documents and personal testimonies from surviving Japanese crew members uncovers new dimensions to the battle. The clash proved to be a Pyrrhic victory for the Japanese, who sunk the Lexington and crippled the Yorktown but were forced to call off Operation MO due to the severe damage inflicted on Shōkaku and the heavy losses among their aircrews.   Revealed here are the circumstances and actual reasons for the Japanese failure and the revised impact of the Battle of the Coral Sea on the Battle of Midway. Beyond tactical details, Piegzik offers insight into the broader consequences of the battle. He engages with sources previously underexplored and integrates them with Allied perspectives to ensure a well-rounded understanding of the events. A vital addition to any World War II collection, Gamble in the Coral Sea offers a nuanced and thorough exploration of a battle that significantly shaped the trajectory of the war in the Pacific.    "A fascinating look at the Battle of the Coral Sea. Drawing extensively on Japanese sources, Piegzik sheds new light on the world’s first carrier battle and its place in Imperial Japanese strategy. Well worth the read!" ― Trent Hone, author of  Learning War  and  Mastering the Art of Command "Michal A. Piegzik’s excellent new work Gamble in the Coral Sea provides a unique look into the Japanese side of the battle, covering strategic and tactical levels, important personalities, command relationships, and incorporating many first-person accounts. It is indispensable in combination with the wealth of as yet unpublished U.S. aviator recollections for a future comprehensive study of the carrier actions." ― John B. Lundstrom, author of The First Team and Black Shoe Carrier Admiral "In this superb study, Michal Piegzik exploits sources previously untapped by Western historians to illuminate the Japanese perspective on the Coral Sea campaign.  He challenges traditional accounts, showing how and why the outcome was finely balanced, yet also exerted decisive influence on the next phase of the Pacific War." ― Andrew Boyd, author of  The Royal Navy in Eastern Waters  and  Arms For Russia & the Naval War in the Arctic   Michał A. Piegzik is a lecturer at Edinburgh Napier University with a PhD in Japanese private law. He was awarded the Japanese Ministry of Education scholarship for exceptional research results. The Pacific War is his life’s passion. He has published in Poland, Japan, the UK, and the Netherlands. Gamble in the Coral Sea is his debut book in the United States. Piegzik lives in Edinburgh, Scotland. Chapter 1 - Japanese Navy Planning for Operation MO   It is challenging to unequivocally identify the precise moment when the Nippon Kaigun, the Imperial Japanese Navy, realized that the Coral Sea might become the site for a major carrier battle that affected the entire course of the Pacific War. The clash between two carrier task forces in early May 1942, notably the first one in history, undoubtedly resulted from the Japanese plan to seize Port Moresby,