Bowfin: The True Story of a Fabled Fleet Submarine in World War II (Classics of War) [Paperback]

Edwin P. Hoyt (Author)

Book Description

Series: Classics of War | Publication Date: March 17, 1998

For the legions of submarine enthusiasts, here is an unforgettable account of submarine warfare.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Edwin P Hoyt

Product Details

• Paperback: 264 pages
• Publisher: Burford Books (March 17, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1580800572
• ISBN-13: 978-1580800570
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,071,922 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars So so, April 14, 1999

By 

Tom Munro "tomfrombrunswick" (Melbourne, Victoria Australia) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Bowfin: The True Story of a Fabled Fleet Submarine in World War II (Classics of War) (Paperback)

Prior to reading this book I read another submarine book "take her deep" by Galantin. The author of that book had served on a submarine the Halibut and told in a vivid way of his time on her. The book was fascinating.

Bowfin by comparson was dissapointing. The writer is either a historian or journalist who simply has written a book based on some secondary sources. It makes rather dull reading. Another weakness is that the unlike "take her deep" there is no real effort to work out what had really happened during the combat patrols. One example of this was an encounter in which the crew of the sub thought that they sank a battleship. Galantin did a fascinating reconstruction to show that the ship sunk was probably a destroyer and illustrates in some detail why mistakes such as that were made.

In Bowfin the author makes no real attempt to look at the reasons why post hostilities evaluations of sinkings were different from those claimed in the war.

In sum give it a miss there are better books.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A vivid accurate account of one subs career in the Pacifc., December 29, 1998

By 

Irnmn72 (Chicago) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bowfin: The True Story of a Fabled Fleet Submarine in World War II (Classics of War) (Paperback)

I've read many sub books from WW2 to present and this one stands out. It takes you from one end of the Pacific all the way to the Sea of Japan on nine patrols. I especially liked the detailed accounts of what went wrong during the sub war. The author is not shy to admit that we weren't perfect especially with the mark XIV torpedoes that most of which never hit the targets! Easy to read and understand making the story flow smoothly. I highly recommend this one.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very Good, Informative History, January 11, 2010

By 

cpt matt (tanktown, DE) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Bowfin: The True Story of a Fabled Fleet Submarine in World War II (Classics of War) (Paperback)

One of the other reviewers made a good observation about lack of primary sources from the author Edwin Hoyt. Author Hoyt does say in the into that the book is based on Naval records of WW2 and personal interviews. The maps and small but sufficient, the photos are hard to see.

Having said that, there are several things that make this a very good read. The US submarine Bowfin operated in the "south Pacific Theater" meaning General Douglas McAruther's back yard. In fact, the navy called ships that operated there "McArthur's Navy". So this book gives you a different aspect of the Pacific War that is often overlooked. The naval war on the Central Pacific got more coverage and glamor - the Carrier Wars were fought there.

The book was very open and honest about US Submarine flaws (mostly torpedo problems), good Officers, bad Officers - some were aggressive, some were not. It realy gives an accurate idea of what life was like for the sailors who went out on the "pig boats" and many times did not return.

There are some photos, which in the paperback version are small, grainy - mostly of the crew. I would have liked to see more of the Sub, but this is not a technical book on subs, it's an account of one pretty successful Submarine in WW2. I would not call it the most entertaining of all history books, but the facts alone are pretty gripping. The author does not need to embelish.

The US Navy made Japanese merchant shipping a priority. That lack of supplies and the ability to stop Japanese reinforcements getting places helped win the war. Sometimes it was exciting, and sometimes it was not. But this is a good addition to your library and certainly worth the time to read.