Edited by G H Bennett Ph.D, Plymouth University Press, England, (2012) Reviewed by David Kronenfeld Hunting Tirpitz is a new work in a series of books recently released by the University of Plymouth Press. The series is entitled Britannia Naval Histories of World War II and comprises declassified government documents describing various naval operations during
By G. H. Bennett (editor), Britannia Naval Histories of World War II, University of Plymouth Press, Plymouth, UK (2012). Reviewed by Charles C. Kolb, Ph.D. This volume is one of the first in a new series of books on Royal Navy engagements with the Axis Powers during World War II. Battle Summaries from the archives
By Vincent P. O’Hara. Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD, (2011). Reviewed by Simone C. De Santiago Ramos Much has been written about the German warships Bismarck, Graf Spee, and Scharnhorst and their mêlées while overlooking the lesser known battles during World War II. Vincent O’Hara, an independent scholar tries with his text The German Fleet
By James Pritchard, McGill-Queen’s University Press, Montreal & Kingston, (2011) Reviewed by Phillip G. Pattee, Ph.D. Prize winning scholar James Pritchard, professor emeritus of history, Queens University, has published his third book. His previous works, Anatomy of a Naval Disaster: The 1746 French Expedition to North America, and Louis XV’s Navy, 1748-1762, both deal with
By Ian W. Toll, W.W. Norton Company, New York, London, (2011). Reviewed by Rear Adm. Richard Gentz, USN (Ret.) Do not expect an objective review to follow! I was an immediate fan of Ian Toll when I found his first book Six Frigates in a gift shop on the Newport, Rhode Island waterfront. The continued
By Marcus Faulkner, Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD. (2012). Reviewed by Mitchell Yockelson, Ph.D. The War At Sea: A Naval Atlas, 1939-1945, is a mammoth undertaking. Within its 275 pages author Marcus Faulkner covers most of the naval engagements of the Second World War, as well as amphibious landings, convoys, sieges, skirmishes and sinking’s with
Float Planes & Flying Boats: The U.S. Coast Guard and Early Naval Aviation By Captain Robert B. Workman, Jr., USCG (Ret.), Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD (2012). China Clipper – The Age of the Great Flying Boats By Robert Gandt, Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD (2010).
By Richard Freeman, Self-Published, Great Britain, (2012) Reviewed by Nathan Albright Richard Freeman is a historian of several (mostly self-published) books, including The Great Edwardian Naval Feud, Britain’s Greatest Naval Battle, and A Close Run Thing: the Navy and the Falklands War. It is clear that much of the research for this book flowed out
By Brian Lavery, Naval Institute Press, (2012) Reviewed by Capt. Winn Price, USNR (Ret.) The book jacket informs us that Brian Lavery is a Curator Emeritus of the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, England. Able Seamen is the second in a series of three studies of enlisted life or ‘the lower deck’ in the Royal
By David Fitz-Enz, Taylor Trade Publishing, New York, (2012). Reviewed by Thomas Sheppard While the literature on the War of 1812 is extensive – and growing rapidly amid bicentennial celebrations – David Fitz-Enz laments that few have the time or inclination to wade through most of the books published on the conflict, leading to widespread
By Tim MacGrath, Westholme Publishing, Yardley, PA, (2010). Reviewed by Mark Lardas John Barry and John Paul Jones are the twin pillars underpinning the foundations of the United States Navy. Their naval careers created a heritage used by the Navy to the present. Jones’s life and exploits have inspired hundreds of books. Sadly, Barry’s appeal
On Thursday 25 October, NHF Historian Dr. David Winkler addressed the U.S. and Russian Navy delegations during concluding ceremonies of the 40th Annual Incidents at Sea Agreement Review that was held at the Naval Observatory. Dr. Winkler’s 1998 dissertation at American University covered the history of the Incidents at Sea Agreement that was negotiated between
By Mark Stille, illustrated by Paul Wright, Osprey Publishing, UK, (2011) Reviewed by Alberto R Savoretti, MD Mark Stille’s latest installment is a delightfully refreshing work far and above what its easy reading Osprey/Vanguard primer format suggests: you can’t judge a book by its cover! This work brings new or largely undiscovered material to the
This week, the legendary aircraft carrier USS Enterprise (CVN 65) completes her final journey. Her return to her Norfolk, VA homeport this weekend will mark the end of 51 years of active service with the United States Navy, and 25 overseas deployments. Enterprise, the world’s first nuclear powered aircraft carrier, was commissioned in 1961. She
By Steven J. Zaloga, Osprey Publishing, Oxford, UK, (2011) Reviewed by Rear Admiral Ed Keats, U.S. Navy (Retired) In 1944, the Japanese high command realized they had been defeated in the war against the United States. Their efforts then concentrated on procuring the best post-war terms they could gain. They believed the optimum way was
