Bathtub Admirals (Hardcover)

by Jeff Huber (Author)
Key Phrases: stick boy, general quarters, fag hag, Wild Bill, Fix Felon, Zach Taylor (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Retired navy commander Huber's debut novel is a profane and hilarious parody of the post–Cold War navy. Huber's hero is Jack Hogan, a straight arrow trying to keep his sanity in a bureaucratic culture where connections and politics trump competence. Hogan's career appears bright during the waning days of the Cold War, but when the iron curtain crumbles, the sandbox generals and bathtub admirals are reduced to playing war, and Hogan's stock sinks while that of careerists like his friend Buzz Rucci rises. Huber is funniest when satirizing the bureaucratic infighting and petty rules ingrained in naval culture, but he also scores direct hits on feminism, politicians and the military's policy toward homosexuals. Populated by outrageous characters and fueled with pompous outrage, Huber's irreverent broadside will pummel the funny bone of anyone who's served. (Apr.)
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From Booklist
Jack Hogan and Buzz Rucci are a couple of buddies in the modern U.S. Navy. They signed up to risk their lives defending their country, but instead they’re risking their sanity playing at war in a series of military maneuvers and preparedness exercises. They are “bathtub admirals,” performing meaningless exercises in the name of global peace . . . or something like that. In the spirit of Phillip Jennings’ recent Nam-A-Rama (2005), or Joseph Heller’s classic Catch-22 (to which Huber makes a brief reference, acknowledging his novel’s pedigree), this is a witty, wacky, wildly outrageous novel that skewers just about anything you’d care to name, from military budgets to political machinations to America’s success as the self-appointed guardian of the world. Considering that Huber, a career navy man, has mostly written for military publications and Web sites (although he has turned out some short satirical pieces), and especially considering that this is his first novel, it is a remarkably accomplished book, striking just the right balance between ridicule and insight. --David Pitt

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Kunati Inc. (April 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1601640196
• ISBN-13: 978-1601640192
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #482,733 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars In Praise Of "Bathtub Admirals", March 31, 2008

By	Suzie Q (Ohio) - See all my reviews

Being retired Navy, I'm always a bit suspect when given military novels. I've been disappointed on more than one occasion. However, my wife took a leap of faith and bought me "Bathtub Admirals" recently. I must say that this is the first book in a very long time that I actually could not bring myself to put down once I started it. Anyone who was in the military in the 1980's and 1990's will immediately recognize the "Through the Looking Glass" twisted logic world we lived in during those years. Hilarious, insightful, riveting. I hope there is another novel in the works by CDR Huber. Thank you for an incredible reading adventure!

Bill "BC" Combs
CDR USN (Ret)

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A unique and refreshing naval satire, April 21, 2008

By	K. Custer (Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I wasn't really sure what to expect when I first started in on this book. As a former carrier aviator during the period in which the book is set, I often find myself disappointed by many of the authors in the military genre who seem to keep cranking out "naval thrillers" that all to often seem to involve poorly developed characters trying to stave off World War III. I found Bathtub Admirals to be refreshingly unique in that it was the most accurate depiction of shipboard life on a carrier that I have ever read in a work of fiction. That said, one should not mistake this for anything close to a dry or antiseptic read. This book is first and foremost a comedic satire. While the accounts of shipboard routine were spot on, the witty and profane dialogue realistically captures the camaraderie shared between shipmates on a long cruise. This left me thinking wistfully back to old friends and good times spent at sea, while at the same time reminding me exactly why I decided to get out!

The clear, dialogue-driven writing style makes Bathtub Admirals a real page-turner. If I were back at sea, I probably would have powered through this book in a few days on the transit back home from an overseas deployment. As it is, I ended up devouring this book over the course of a few late nights over a long weekend, and found myself disappointed to arrive at the end.

Cdr Huber has hit a home run with his debut novel and I am already anticipating his next effort.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Catch-22, updated, April 26, 2008

By	David Tonhofer (Luxembourg/Europe) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Anyone who has read Heller's Catch-22 (or Stephenson's Cryptonomicon) will recognize the style, and the author clearly acknowledges Heller's ancestry. Still, this book is shorter, less shark-jumpingly outrageous, both funnier and sadder than Heller's novel. Follow the US Navy career of Jack Hogan as he makes it from youthful Cold-War "Hawkeye Man" Lieutenant (junior grade) to disillusioned Commander, forced to take the fall for the latest retarded exercise blunder -- in a Navy that has no other enemy left except politicking, incompetence, inter-service rivalry and the looming swamp of the War on Evil. Contains deliciously explicit language, adult scenes and references to people like "Admiral Fix Felon" (pulling Fix Felonies of course), "Senator Ex-Prisoner-of-War", "Senator Tailhook", and "General F. Lee Kent" (SACEUR during Allied Force) and tall Sea Stories.

Disclosure: Haven't been near a Carrier, ever.