By Brian Rouleau Cornell University Press, Ithaca, NY (2014) Reviewed by Andrew C. A. Jampoler In early June 1867 Samuel Clemens, together with some sixty-five other passengers, sailed in SS Quaker City (late USS Quaker City, during 1861-65 the paddle wheel steamer had participated in the Union’s blockade of the Confederacy) from New York City.
It is with great pleasure that we announce our next three recipients of the Commodore Dudley W. Knox Naval History Lifetime Achievement Award: Dr. Dean Allard, Dr. Kenneth J. Hagan and LCDR Thomas J. Cutler, USN (Ret.). The Knox Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes an individual for a lifetime body of work in the field of
By Alvin Townley, Thomas Dunne Books and St. Martin’s Press, New York, NY (2014) Reviewed by Captain Robert J. Naughton, U.S. Navy (Retired) Defiant is an extremely accurate depiction of the miserable existence prisoners of the North Viet Nam (NVN) endured during the US war in Viet Nam. I know his description is accurate because
By Howard J. Fuller, Routledge, New York, NY (2013) Reviewed by John T. Kuehn, Ph.D. Howard Fuller’s work here has insights for naval thinkers and strategists today. It is a clearly revisionist work and he occasionally overstates his case particularly in the first “part” of the book. There are four parts encompassing an impressive thirty
Edited by Benjamin F. Armstrong, Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD (2015) Reviewed by Nathan D. Wells In the evolution of the United States Navy from a small regional force to a capable global power between the later nineteenth century and the First World War, there are two Naval strategists that rank at the top: Admirals
Edited By B.A. Friedman, Naval Institute Press. Annapolis, MD (2015) Reviewed by Nathan Albright As part of the Naval Institute Press’ 21st Century series on notable naval thinkers, this book provides much of the body of work written by Marine Lieutenant Colonel “Pete” Ellis. Shortly after the Spanish-American War, Ellis enlisted with the Marines, and
By Robert E. Curtis, Casemate Publishers, (2014) Reviewed by Thomas Ostrom In his 24 years in the service, Major Robert F. Curtis flew helicopters for the U.S. Army, Marine Corps, and Kentucky National Guard. Curtis flew in the United States, Britain (with the Royal Navy), Norway, and Vietnam from shore bases and the rolling decks
By John Grady, McFarland, Jefferson, NC (2015) Reviewed by Ingo Heidbrink, Ph.D. While Matthew Fontaine Maury is without a doubt well known among historians of science and in particular historians of oceanography, the general public might not know his name. Many naval historians will not have a real idea about the man who is often
By Brian Lavery. Seaforth Publishing, Barnsley, Yorkshire, U.K. (2014) Reviewed by John R. Satterfield, DBA This slim, nicely illustrated volume by Brian Lavery, Curator Emeritus of the U.K.’s National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, and one of the world’s most respected naval historians, describes the evolution of the ship of the line in the age of
By Andrew Faltum, Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD (2014) Reviewed by Mark Lardas They were the first aircraft carriers designed from the keel up to operate jet aircraft. When they appeared, they were so big a jump over their World War II predecessors; they were considered not just aircraft carriers, but rather supercarriers. And now
By Helen Hiller Frink, Peter E. Randall Publisher, Portsmouth, NH (2015) Reviewed by Ingo Heidbrink, Ph.D. In her book Oil, Ice and Bone, Helen Hiller Frink describes the whaling voyages of Nathaniel Ransom. She begins with his first journey as a fourteen year old boy in 1860 and culminates with the 1871 disaster in which
By Sergeant Major David K. Devaney, U.S. Marine Corps (Retired). Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD (2015) Reviewed by Charles H. Bogart This book is not for the fainthearted to read. Within this book, we encounter fifty-one men, who with the exception of one individual, are all enlisted. The title of the book, however, is slightly
By James A. Hawkins, Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD (2014) Reviewed by Colonel Curt Marsh, U.S. Marine Corps Reserve (Retired) A Common Virtue is the first novel by author James Hawkins, a former Marine who served during the Vietnam War. The story is about a Marine officer and a young enlisted Marine who lead in
By William Weatherly [Capt. George Jackson, USN (Ret.)], iUniverse (2014) Reviewed by Jason McHale What if the Washington Naval Conference collapsed and its terms were never ratified? What if the post-World War naval buildup continued unabated until the Second World War? Sheppard of the Argonne is set in an alternate history where those questions become
By Donald A. Tortorice, Author House, Bloomington, IN (2014) Reviewed by John R. Satterfield, DBA I, Horatio is a fictional autobiography about Horatio Nelson, clearly a subject of note for those who care about naval history. Nelson’s titles were read out loud to an assemblage of mourners at his funeral at St. Paul’s Cathedral in
