On Friday, September 23, at 7 p.m. Eastern, the 2022 History Book Festival Keynote Address featured Buzz Bissinger, author of The Mosquito Bowl: A Game of Life and Death in World War II (HarperCollins, 2022).

The Keynote Address was presented by Dogfish Head.

About the book
When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, college football was at the height of its popularity.  As the nation geared up for total war, one branch of the service dominated the aspirations of college football stars: the United States Marine Corps. Which is why, on Christmas Eve of 1944, when the 4th and 29th Marine regiments found themselves in the middle of the Pacific Ocean training for what would be the bloodiest battle of the war — the invasion of Okinawa — their ranks included one of the greatest pools of football talent ever assembled: former All Americans, captains from Wisconsin and Brown and Notre Dame, and nearly 20 men who were either drafted or would ultimately play in the NFL.   

When the trash-talking over who had the better football team reached a fever pitch, it was decided: The 4th and 29th regiments would play each other in a football game as close to the real thing as you could get in the dirt and coral of Guadalcanal. The bruising and bloody game that followed became known as “The Mosquito Bowl.” Within a matter of months, 15 of those 64 players would be killed at Okinawa, by far the largest number of American athletes ever to die in a single battle. This is the story of those who survived and those who did not, and the families and landscapes that shaped them.

About the author
Buzz Bissinger is a Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist and author of several best-selling works of nonfiction, including Friday Night Lights, which has sold over two million copies and inspired a film and TV franchise; Three Nights in August; A Prayer for the City;  Shooting Stars; Father’s Day; and After Friday Night Lights. He is a contributing editor for Vanity Fair and a sports columnist for The Daily Beast. Bissinger has written for The New York Times, The New Republic, The Wall Street Journal, and many other publications. In 1987, he and two colleagues at The Philadelphia Inquirer won a Pulitzer Prize for an investigative series on the Philadelphia court system.

Purchase the book
Please help support local independent bookstores by purchasing this book at Browseabout Books, official bookseller of the History Book Festival. Online sources and digital versions are tempting; however, supporting local brick and mortar shops helps to preserve our vibrant main streets. Drop by Browseabout, order books online, or call the store at 302-226-2665. You also may purchase a copy at biblion in Lewes.

About the Festival
With the help of our presenting sponsors—Delaware Humanities and The Lee Ann Wilkinson Group, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices I PenFed Realty—as well as our community partners and volunteers, the 2022 History Book Festival was full of great discussions with authors of newly published narrative nonfiction and historical fiction.

Special thanks to Lewes Public Library, for venue and assistance with event promotion; to Browseabout Books in Rehoboth, our official bookseller; and to the Cape Gazette and Delmarva Public Media, our media partners.

Mark your calendars for the 2023 History Book Festival. Join our authors, interviewers, and other attendees at live events throughout the weekend of September 29, 30, and October 1.