Customer Reviews

The Last Patrol

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This book gives 2 or 3 page brief accounts of the launching, service history, and demise of every US submarine lost in WW2, including the old S-boats left over from the 'between wars' years that saw action in the early days of WW2. The author has done a thorough job of corroborating theories of how certain submarines "died" by comparing official US Navy documents with IJN reports.

While the writing doesn't compare with the "you are there" styles of "Thunder Below", "Clear The Bridge!", and "Wahoo" by other authors, this book does do a good job of reporting the too-brief combat careers of US submarines. Pictures accompany the text for each submarine and are in black and white. The chapters are short and easy to read, and you won't need to possess any particular knowledge of how submarines operate to understand how the boats were destroyed. Submarine fans will want a copy. Naval historians will want a copy. Anyone who's played a submarine game and enjoyed it will want a copy. But if you're looking for action, you might try "Run Silent, Run Deep" or any of the numerous sub commander memoirs that have been published (including the ones mentioned in this review).

This book is not intended to be an exhaustive account of the 52 American submarines lost in WWII, but provides a concise basic reference. There is a brief chapter, in chronological order, for each sub giving a summary of its war history, a description of how it was lost and two and a few photographs of the sub and perhaps some of its crew and related ships (e.g., Japanese ships it sank). Appendices include a summary of all the losses in two pages and a summary by submarine of the losses each one inflicted on the Japanese. One important missing element in the submarine loss charts is an analysis of the cause of loss; a significant number were actually lost to sea conditions (e.g., running aground), systems failures or friendly fire, as opposed to combat. While the precise cause of loss, if known, is included in each sub's story, it would be enlightening to also have a summary in the appendix. Also a chart mapping the loss locations would provide another useful perspective. Recommended as a reference for looking up the "quick story" of each of these gallant crews and boats.