Customer Reviews

Crash Dive

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While the editorial description of this book sounded interesting, the book itself was an extremely boring disappointment. The bulk of this book deals with what the author ate and when he slept and how much he missed his wife. The actual battle descriptions are rushed through, sometimes in two or three sentences, while the author's personal daily routine goes on and on for pages. It is interesting to note that although the HMS Safari is touted as one of England's most deadly subs, the majority of it's sinkings were of small craft and schooners by gun action. Even enemy ships which ran themselves aground to escape being torpedoed are counted by the Brits as tonnage sunk! Overall, I couldn't wait for this book to end. BORING!

My father was a submariner on this boat and received the DSM for service in action. Obviously this means the book is of personal interest to me however it is a great insight into life on a sub during WW2. Day to day life was tedious and monotonous they weren't always fighting. However this diary provides the reader with a ratings view of the war. Something that was technically not allowed.
As a personal perspective it is a worthy historical document.

I have read a number of books on submarines and submarine action. This book I found very moving, the author was a very young man when the experiances within the book occured. One can sense his very real fears and hopes within his words. The events within the book were recorded in real time as they were unfolding. The life on board a submarine in wartime was not all action and gunfighting. This is effectively conveyed through out the book. To summerize; a very real, true to life depiction of life on and off board a British sub at war.