U-859 [Paperback]

Arthur Baudzus (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 10, 2003

Stealthy and deadly, the searing blast of a U-boat's torpedo was often followed by hours of creeping terror as the hunter became the hunted, and Allied anti-submarine forces rained down tons of high explosives, testing the skill and endurance of everyone aboard. Written by a survivor of the true events, U-859 is a novel, but it is also an eye-witness account of what it was like to be on the receiving end of Allied explosives, and the mind-numbing terror of being trapped in the pitch blackness of a sunken submarine.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

In April 1944, the Type IX-D2 long range U-boat U-859 sailed from Kiel, carrying a secret cargo of mercury and bound for Japanese occupied Penang. Less than an hour from her destination, after six months at sea and 20,000 miles, U-859 was sunk by a British submarine, carrying the 67 men in her crew to the bottom of the Malacca Straits. Only 20 men were able to swim up to life from 50 meters of water. One of those men, Arthur Baudzus, has taken those real events and used them as the framework for this exciting and insightful novel of men at war.

About the Author

Now a retired marketing manager living in Australia, Arthur Baudzus served as a electrician in the real U-859. One of only 20 survivors when U-859 was sunk, Mr. Baudzus endows this novel with a sense of realism that can only come from having lived through the harrowing events.

Product Details

• Paperback: 260 pages
• Publisher: Riverdale Electronic Books (June 10, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0971220778
• ISBN-13: 978-0971220775
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,575,143 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating Story, December 27, 2003

By 

George Simms (Cleveland, OH) - See all my reviews

This review is from: U-859 (Paperback)

This is a great story, told by someone who was actually there. You can tell that certain characters are made up, such as the British lieutenant who is a prisoner aboard U-859 on her long voyage to the Far East. Yet even this clearly fictional character contributes, providing a sounding board for the English-speaking German sailors, who otherwise would never dare say some of the things they need to say. And the German sailors, even with their names changed, are very real. You won't be too far into the story before you figure out which of them would go on to write this book.

According to the back cover the author, Arthur Baudzus, was aboard the real U-859 during this voyage. The scene in the after torpedo room, when the U-boat has been torpedoed and is laying in two pieces on the bottom of the Malakka Straits, is all the more authentic in that it obviously speaks of what happened to the author. Here is a man who has experienced something that killed thousands of his fellow U-boat sailors, yet somehow managed to live to tell of it. And though fact and fiction mingle in this novel, there is plenty here to interest the U-boat history buff.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Review of the book of Authur Baudzus, U-859, February 7, 2007

By 

Austin J. Smith "Political Science Instructor" (Sutter, California USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: U-859 (Paperback)

As an ex-submarine sailor of WWII and The Korean war. I found the book exciting to say the least. We knew that a German U-BOAT Squadron was operaring in the Dutch East India waters, but was unaware, at the time, why it was there. Baudzus description of depth charging, was as real as it couuld be, and life on a U-BOAT was certainly different than ours. For an example, American Boats were manned by men and who volunteered for the Sub Service in fact it was quite an honor to be in the Submarine Service. While German U-BOATS were manned by men who were drafted into the their service, exception being the Officers. I was 17 when I volunteered for the Navy and volunteered for Subs as soon as I finished electricians school at Iowa State and was on a boat before I was 18. Another book about life in the German Sub Servie is "Sharks and Little Fish" by Wolfgang Ott. A very realistic look at life on a U-BOAT, a must read for a gripping tale of U-BOAT action in the Alantic.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A mixture of Fact and Fiction., September 23, 2004

By 

Ned Middleton (British professional underwater photo-journalist & author) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: U-859 (Paperback)

Arthur Baudzus served as an electrician on board U-859 during WW2 and was one of only 20 survivors when that vessel was sunk. Today he is a retired marketing manager who lives in Australia.

In his novel "U-859" this author draws upon his real-life experiences of 60 years ago in order to provide the reader with a realistic account of what life was truly like aboard a U-Boat at time of war.

Let me honest, I do not review "novels" - preferring to leave fiction to those who know the subject best. Nevertheless, I did find this book to be a good read. I only wish he had used a fictional number for his fictional U-Boat. In using the real number of the vessel on which he actually served he has, for me at least, blurred the lines between fact and fiction.

But don't let that comment deter you from a good read.

NM