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In October 1962, the United States government demanded that the Soviet Union remove long-range tactical missiles that it had positioned in Cuba, a short flight from targets like Washington and New York. After nearly a week's wait, during which the world braced for nuclear war, the Soviet government finally relented. It did so, in part, because its capitalist foe had one weapon that it then did not: 10 dozen submarine-mounted nuclear missiles that could be fired from beneath the waves and reach targets inside the Soviet Union within a matter of minutes.
In The Silent War, John Craven, an architect of the Polaris missile program, writes that the episode offered unambiguous proof of the value of "a strong silent deterrent" and of the importance of a superb submarine force in preserving the balance of power. In this memoir, he recounts the evolution of the Polaris weapons system during the cold war. Along the way, he reveals little-known incidents of espionage and saber rattling that will give readers pause to wonder how war was avoided for all those years. A bonus for Tom Clancy fans (who are likely to enjoy his book in any event) is Craven's sketchy but fascinating tale of a real hunt for a lost Soviet submarine that took place during his tenure as well as his accessible but nonetheless detailed account of the advanced military technology he helped bring into being. --Gregory McNamee
From Publishers Weekly
In May 1968, submarine specialist John Craven, then chief scientist of the navy's special projects office, had just crossed into Virginia from Washington, D.C., on his way home from work when he heard an alarming news report on the radio. The USS Scorpion, a submarine, was missing in the ocean with 99 men on board. On hearing the news, Craven writes, "I immediately turned my car around and headed for the war room of the Pentagon." Amazingly, the loss of the Scorpion coincided with the disappearance of a Soviet submarine. How Craven spearheaded the search for the two ships a search that inspired The Hunt for Red October is the centerpiece of this fascinating series of set pieces that delve into the life-and-death mechanics of Cold War-era submarine service. Craven, who had previously been known as the head of the Polaris sub-based missile program, has surfaced mysteriously in the press over the years, most recently in the critically acclaimed Blind Man's Bluff: The Untold Story of American Submarine Espionage; here, he is forthright about much of his background and activities. Anecdote-based chapters include descriptions of repairs to a newly launched USS Nautilus, rough briefings to the press and to the chain of command on Polaris, diving into the transoceanic cable-tapping Man-in-the-Sea program and much more. Craven quotes Byron, Verne and others with feeling throughout, and his explanations of the complicated physics related to his various projects are clear if sometimes still classified making this is a distinctively well-crafted intelligence-community memoir. (Apr. 4) Forecast: As Russo-American relations over espionage heat up, this book should find a general audience primed for a re-examination of the intricacies of the Cold War. While not quite Red October, it should reach beyond the buff market.
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
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