Customer Reviews

U-571

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

This is a superb story about submarine warfare in the Atlantic in WWII. The plot contains one of the most imaginative twists that makes this story so unique. We follow the American crew as they are trapped by fate. The action is excellent and the characters bring the story to life.

This book (and film of the same name) is typical Hollywood hogwash - with Americans playing the parts of heroic British sailors, some of whom gave their lives aboard a sinking U-boat having captured the a set of Enigma code books from the Germans. Vote for the truth with your feet - read about the real heroes in books like: 'Enigma: The Battle for the Code' by Hugh Sebag-Montefiore and 'Capturing Enigma' by Stephen Harper, both available from Amazon

U-571 was a Type VIIC U-Boat that was commisioned into the German Navy on May 22, 1941. U-571 did 11 combat patrols under two commanders (Helmut Mohlmann and Gustav Lussow), and sank 7 enemy ships. U-571 was lost with all hands on January 28, 1944, during an attack by Australian aircraft.

Clearly the novel "U-571" has nothing to do with with the actual submarine U-571! Of course, one cannot expect too much from a novel based on a hollywood screen play. Had the author wanted to write a novel about the British Navy capture of a German Navy Enigma device, he might have used the title "U-110". Or if he wanted to write a novel about the US Navy capture of a German Navy submarine, he might have used the title "U-505". Or he could have written a book about the actual U-571!

Rather than this novel, I would recommend "Run Silent Run Deep" or "Iron Coffins" by Herbert Werner.

The capture of the Enigma code machine and code books was done by the British destroyer "Bulldog" in 1941 months before America was even in the War. This book and the movie based on it takes away the glory and credit from that British crew of sailors that played a major part in helping to win WWII. Only this generation of Hollywood writers and the author of this book could be so callus and dishonorable as to propose this lie without printing on the fly leaf that "This book is a complete fabrication and has no basis in fact" coupled with a short preface as to the real story.

It really is a shame, since the "real" story could have been as exiting and more suspenseful as this meaningless fairy tale.

Another sad fact is that much of today's youth will take this version as fact.

Remorsefully....

U-571 is an historical fiction based upon a screenplay. Hollywood rarely gets anything right in their movies, but should that matter? To the astute observer, it might; however, even these people have to understand that a movie (thus, the resulting novel adaptation) is meant to entertain. For this purpose, U-571 does an excellent job on and off the screen. It is a good read, full of detail, with exciting dialogue, great character development, wonderful action scenes, and a well-developed plot -- just what a well-written novel should be. If you're looking for entertainment with an historical twist, then this book is for you. However, if you're looking for precision and accuracy regarding life on a particular U-boat, then opt to purchase "Das Boot" instead. Both books fit nicely in anyone's library and should both be a valued addition.

With much of the junk in books and film today, this story offers something special. Men who are not perverts or sickos--real men serving their country faced with a unique situation.This is the kind of story we need more of. Stories of inspiration not degradation.

I read this book a dozen times and it seems to be one of Collin's greatest works...I seen the movie a dozen times and Collins did a great job on describing the reactions, the troubles, tense feelings, joyous feelings,I read through it at an wondorful pace, because of the writing style...His way of writing this book grabbed me it made me want to cry when Skipper was singling Andrew to dive and he left in the frezzing waters of the Atlantic...

I was a sailor during the 60's aboard the diesel and nuke boats. This book captured the sense and awe of serving aboard a submarine. While I did not serve during WWII, I did get well into the memories of the boats I served on reading this fast moving story. The book is far superior to the movie. The sounds, closeness, comraderie, smell, power and danger all are in the story and I remember feeling many of the feelings described in this book.

This book was very good. But I did have only one thing that I totally disliked about this book and it was the language. In the movie, the language wasn't bad at all,unlike the book that constatly was cursing. Max Collins did not need to use all the language that he did. During the movie there wasn't one f-word and in the book it was used like crazy. So if it wasn't for the use of the language, then it would have been better. It was still an excellent book, but as I said before the language did not need to be used.

This book, contrary to what others might believe, is pure fiction. It is suspenseful and well written. The majority of the people who don't like this book are misled in believing that the story is true. They also believe that the enigma machine was captured all at once. Sorry, but you guys are dead WRONG! This machine took a long time for it to be assembled. Parts came from several german submarines, fishing boats, and naval warships. Also, at the best, it took enigma 18 hours to crack. Now that has been said. It is an AWESOME story.