Customer Reviews

Final Patrol: True Stories of World War II Submarines

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is an extremely interesting look at World War II submarines that nearly all made significant contributions to the outcome of the war. Better yet, the subs in this book are still around, converted to museums and open to the public. I've been to a few of the subs listed in this book, but I didn't get the full picture of exactly what they had done in the war until I picked this up. A must for any WWII buff.

Though small in number, U.S. submarines accounted for 55% of Japanese shipping losses in World War II. Few WW2-vintage subs survive to memoralize the gallant efforts of those men. The service careers of 16 U.S. and one German submarine who escaped the shipwrecker's torch to become memorials are chronicled in this account by author Don Keith.

The 16 U. S. submarines covered in FINAL PATROL include both distinguished combat vets like 'Silversides,' 'Cavalla' and 'Batfish' and those boats commissioned too late to see combat. The 17th submarine is the German U-505. Keith relates the career of each boat in a workmanlike fashion. He also includes a very useful index describing Naval & Maritime Museums and Memorials and a brief summary of the 52 U. S. submarines lost in the war.

Naval enthusiasts will enjoy this educational and informative book.

I have lots of submarine books, but this one gave me a real kick. You could spend ours on the internet to figure out which subs survive, their history, and where they are today. The author has put all of this at your fingertips, plus put a ton of information for contacts and web sites in the appendix. Each sub has a nice one page summary, also, which is a nice touch. I would like to have seen a few more photographs, although every sub is pictured. This really isn't a big deal, however, as the author provided so many web sites in the book, that he more than takes care of this aspect. Nicely done.

I didn't know what to expect from this one. I bought it impulsively when it was on sale, caught by the lure of WWII history and, more importantly, a book about submarines, a subject of which I knew nothing about. At first I was a little taken aback as it was written as though it were a novel in some parts, with the key players in that particular sub as characters in a book, but this is quickly resolved as a literary method to help bring the reader into that sub's stories.

And there are a lot of very interesting stories about the exploits of these silent stalkers. We vividly see how they caught their prey, how they attacked and fled to the depths in order to escape the angry wrath of destroyers and other ships in response to the attack.

Although he goes into some about the subs, I would have liked more of a background on subs themselves, in how they worked and so on. Granted, that wasn't the intention of this book, but it could have helped nonetheless.

Anyway, I think this is a nice solid work that brings the stories of the important subs to life. I particularly liked the story on how the German U-boat was captured. If you are looking for something a bit more deep on the subject, look elsewhere, but this is a great companion to add stories to the lives of American WWII subs and the men who operated them. I would recommend.

4 stars.

for someone like myself who doesn't know much about subs, this book was a great overview of the remaining subs in america. very cool to know the amazing feats that took place on these few surviving war heroes. once you start it you can't put it down!

Very interesting and informative book. Alot of information I didn't know. Easy and interesting to read.

Couldn't put it down. A very exciting, educational read. It is intereresting to know where these pieces of history are now and where I can visit them.

As curator of one of the submarines mentioned in this paperback I was disturbed at the glaring number of errors contained in the text, both for my boat and others I am familiar with. The author did not give us an opportunity to vet the text prior to publication. It would not make my list of the top 50 sub books. It does provides a bit of insight into the diversity of service these proud vessels provided our Nation over 50 years of service and careers that continue today as memorial ships.

I've read accounts about the more famous subs, like Wahoo, Tang, and Barb - but I didn't know much about others. I think this book covers 17 subs, and how they also contributed to the war effort.

As previously noted, each sub's current location is listed, and how it got there.

Great book!

The good thing about THIS book is that, EVERY SUBMARINE about which he writes is ON DISPLAY for public viewing somewhere.