Scurvy Dogs, Green Water and Gunsmoke: Fifty Years in US Navy Destroyers, Volume 2 [Paperback]

Bob Cohen (Editor), Terry Miller (Editor)

Book Description

Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up

Fifteen members of the Secret Scurvy Dog Society relate their own accounts, many humorous and some pointedly not, of life at sea on U.S. Navy destroyers during the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and the Cold War. Beginning with the question - Why the Navy? - and ending with reflections on how their experiences during hard lives at sea came to be considered cherished memories, these men, both officers and enlisted, tell the quintessential Sea Stories of the latter half of the 20th century. Scurvy Dogs, Green Water and Gunsmoke is the first joint effort for these writers, most of whom have been published previously in the Tin Can Sailor, the journal of the National Association of Destroyer Veterans.

Editorial Reviews

Review

The proudest Marine and the toughest SEAL will tell you, ... destroyers? Now, there's the REAL Navy. Find out why in the pages of Scurvy Dogs, Green Water and Gunsmoke written by the true men of destroyers; those greyhounds of the sea; those TIN CAN SAILORS -- --John J. Gobbell, author of The Brutus Lie, The Last Lieutenant and A Code For Tomorrow

This is how I remember my time in the Fleet - stories, people, incidents. A navy has ships, but men bring those ships to life. Service in the Navy is exciting, hard, funny, boring, and many other things best told by the men who were there. Give this book to someone who may join the Navy, and they'll get a better picture of shipboard life than from any recruiter. Give this to someone who's been in the Navy, his eyes will get misty, and then he'll start telling his own stories. And of course, these stories are all absolutely true. -- --Larry Bond, author of Red Phoenix, Dangerous Ground and The Mighty Fallen

Deck apes, snipes, and powder monkeys alike will just eat up these evocative and entertaining tales of life in the United States destroyer fleet. Smartly told, irreverent and fun, Scurvy Dogs, Green Water and Gunsmoke upholds the honor of the surface navy and captures the big-hearted spirit of the tin can sailor of every generation. This book belongs on every Navy man's shelf. -- --James D. Hornfischer, author of Ship of Ghosts and The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors

About the Author

Bob Cohen was the first reserve midshipman in the Navy to qualify as an offshore yacht skipper in 1980. He later served as an engineer on the USS Whipple (FF-1062) and the USS Henry B. Wilson (DDG-7). He left the Navy in 1984 and is now a retired NYPD captain. Cohen's first book, THE ELECTRIC SEWER, was written under the name TREBOR NEHOC. Terry Miller is a former Sonar Technician who served on board USS George K. MacKenzie (DD-836) from 1968 to 1970. He is currently Executive Director, Tin Can Sailors, Inc., is president of the USS George K. MacKenzie Association, and is the Associate Member Representative on the Board of Historic Naval Ships Association. He is married with two grown daughters and lives in Texas with his wife, Camella.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Paperback: 30 pages
• Publisher: Oak Tree Books (February 29, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 189234307X
• ISBN-13: 978-1892343079
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 9 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,039,062 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A real eye-opener!, September 8, 2008

By 

Henry Higgins (NJ USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Scurvy Dogs, Green Water and Gunsmoke: Fifty Years in US Navy Destroyers, Volume 2 (Paperback)

Bob Cohen and his fellow writers completely opened my eyes to the hardships of naval life.The stories really bring home the loneliness,frustration and dedication of our sailors.I hads no idea of
what these brave souls had to contend with.A must read for anyone interested in life at sea,written by the people who have actually served
Plus proceeds from the sale of this book go to the navy-marine relief society.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Destroyer stories, July 4, 2008

By 

Wayne K. Stewart (Otis Orchards, Wa) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Scurvy Dogs, Green Water and Gunsmoke: Fifty Years in US Navy Destroyers, Volume 2 (Paperback)

Both books do an excellent job of providing vignettes of life aboard U.S. Navy destroyers. Some accounts are a little off-color, which detracts from the overall book. All-in-all, anyone who has served on a destroyer or is curious about what it is like to do so should read this book. Easy read.

Wayne Stewart
Past crew member of USS Henry B. Wilson (DDG7)

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Book Ever Written, June 25, 2010

By 

Richard H. King (Nashville TN) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Scurvy Dogs, Green Water and Gunsmoke: Fifty Years in US Navy Destroyers, Volume 2 (Paperback)

The seller delivered the book promptly and as described. I may be a little biased with this review because I was one of the eighteen contributing authors of the book, but I think anyone who ever served on a Navy ship, especially a destroyer or destroyer escort type, will really enjoy this collection of true short sea stories many of which involve McHale's Navy type SNAFU's and "WCGWW" (what can go wrong will).