By Claude Berube, Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD. (2012). Reviewed By Nathan Albright The Aden Effect is the first novel by Claude Berube, whose varied career has so far taken him into teaching at the Naval Academy, serving in the Persian Gulf, as well as stints in Naval Intelligence and Capitol Hill. He uses this
By Rear Adm. Terry McKnight, USN (Ret.) and Michael Hirsh, Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD. (2012) Reviewed By Nathan Albright Retired Rear Admiral Terry McKnight and Michael Hirsh have written a book about Somali piracy that is both of topical interest and designed to provide a lasting influence on future policy for the United States,
By Bruce Swanson with Vance H. Morrison, Don H. McDowell, and Nancy N. Tomasko, Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD. (2012) Reviewed by Diana L. Ahmad, Ph.D. A Plain Sailorman in China by Bruce Swanson discussed the life of I. V. Gillis, part of a multigenerational Navy family, who became the first United States naval attaché
By John Prados, NAK Caliber Division of New American Library, New York, NY (2011) Reviewed by Captain Roger F. Jones, USN (Ret.) One of the meanings of the word “crucible” is “severe test,” and the Allied invasion of France in WW II was certainly every bit of that for each side. Prados draws on both
By Gina Nichols, Arcadia Publishing, Mount Pleasant, SC, (2011) Reviewed by Charles H. Bogart Written by Gina Nichols, archivist of the U.S. Navy Seabee Museum at Port Hueneme, California, this is another publication in Arcadia Publishing Images of America series. Point Mugu had developed as an upscale fishing camp during the years before World War
By Colonel Wesley L. Fox, USMC (Ret.), Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD (2011) Reviewed by Jan Churchill Medal of Honor Recipient Col. Wesley L. Fox dedicated this book “To the Marines of yesterday whose personal sacrifices demonstrated the leadership traits addressed in this work.” He discusses how his superiors and fellow Marines impressed him with
By First Sergeant Jack R. Ainsworth, USMC, Edited by Ambassador Laurence Pope (Retired), U.S. Marine Corps History Division, Quantico, VA (2011) Reviewed by Colonel Curt Marsh, USMCR Retired This small book Among Heroes, published by the U.S. Marine Corps History Division, is a fairly quick read and well worth the effort. The book is actually
By Angust Konstam, Pen and Sword, Barnsley, South Yorkshire, England (2008) Reviewed by Alberto R Savoretti MD Angus Konstam’s Battle of North Cape brings to light this forgotten engagement with balance and flair. The lack of primary sources of the German side of which there were only a few dozen survivors has made it difficult for historians to
By Andrew C. A. Jampoler, Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD, (2010). Reviewed by Mark Lardas On August 31, 1833 the convict transport Amphitrite ran aground off Boulogne, France. By dawn of the next day, all aboard, except for three crew members, were dead, drowned when the incoming tide swamped the ship and battered the hull
By Gordon Williamson, Osprey Publishing, Oxford, UK, (2011). Reviewed by Captain John A. Rodgaard, U.S.Navy (Retired) E-BOAT vs. MTB is Gordon Williamson’s latest contribution to Osprey Publishing Company’s Osprey’s “Duel” series of short works that emphasize the “…account of machines of war pitted against each other and the combatants who operate them.” With E-BOAT vs.
By Mark Lardas, Osprey Publishing, Oxford, United Kingdom (2010) Reviewed by Diana L. Ahmad, Ph.D. For a book of only forty-eight pages, this publication provides an excellent overview of the Great Lakes ships of the War of 1812. An amateur historian, the author, Mark Lardas, trained as a Naval Architecture and Marine Engineer, but worked
M. J. Pearce and R. Porter, ed., University of Plymouth Press, Plymouth, UK (2012). Reviewed by Richard P. Hallion, Ph.D. The battle for Norway is not one of the more extensively studied campaigns of the Second World War, though it certainly has its share of lessons learned-and-lost that anyone interested in maritime affairs should know.
By Admiral James Stavridis, USN, Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD. (2012) Reviewed by Stephen Phillips Admiral James Stavridis is a prolific writer. Perhaps most well known are his contributions in the U.S. Naval Institute’s Proceedings, and USNI blog. Admiral Stavridis has also contributed to similar publications such as the Naval War College Review and Joint
By Col. Gerald H. Turley, USMCR (Ret.), IUniverse, Inc., (2012). Reviewed by John Grady The Journey of a Warrior is a “friend’s book.” Gerald Turley has known, respected, and worked with and for Al Gray for years. That is both the book’s greatest strength and a weakness. As he wrote, “Again, this is not a
By Mitsuo Fuchida and Masatake Okumiya, Bluejacket Books, Annapolis, MD, (2001). Reviewed by Jason McHale “They had no right to win. Yet they did, and in so doing changed the course of a war…” (Incredible Victory, IX) Walter Lord used these words to describe the American forces that fought at the Battle of Midway. Three
