Read any good books lately?

the Baron

I also picked up, "In Harm's Way", about the sinking of the Indianapolis. I started it last night, and it's a quick read. I got half-way through it, ending up at the end of the first day the survivors spent in the water. I expect to finish it tonight.

That read was an eye opener. All the popular misconceptions exposed. A tragedy made greater by Naval bureaucracy.

Fantastic book, I also highly reccommend "With the old breed" by EB Sledge. Two of the best books to try to kno what the hell of the Pacific front was in WWll

templar1099

 

the Baron

I also picked up, "In Harm's Way", about the sinking of the Indianapolis. I started it last night, and it's a quick read. I got half-way through it, ending up at the end of the first day the survivors spent in the water. I expect to finish it tonight.

 

---

That read was an eye opener. All the popular misconceptions exposed. A tragedy made greater by Naval bureaucracy.

 

the Baron

Captain McVay was very unjustly wronged by the inquiry.

Scapegoated, the final victim.

Just finished reading "Khrushchev rememberes", memoars of Nikita Khrushchev about the rise of communism. Interesting read from a point of view of one of the top communist. At many places I couldn't help but think that he is idealistic/naive/paternalistic/ignorant and quite a few time I was thinking gimmie a bloody break. But, Khrushchev was a product of the communism, born and grow with it. I have the benefit of hindsite, which he of course did not.

At the end of the book he acknowledges that something is wrong with communism as no communist party has won elections in a country without strong soviet army presence and why is it that communist countries have to keep their borders closed while the regressive West does not.

Long Run to Tobruk by Gordon Landsborough. Novel about a botched raid by the SAS during WW2. Good stuff.

stikpusher

Oh I remember reading "The Big E" so long ago. I would love to read it again. I am about halfway thru "Wings of Gold" and "Guns of August". Both are absolutely splendidly written.

 

Just started reading thru this thread and was wondering if you'd had a chance to read the Big E again? Its probably my all time favorite book and I actually reading it now, I can't even tell you how many times I've read it. I have 3 copies, 2 are paperback in various stages of abuse and a hardback that is very old.

Has "The Longest Day" been mentioned yet? It was a requirement in my high school history class. I've read it more than once. What an epic human and logistic endeavor. The allied invasion of Normandy with reports from both sides. Four thousand ships carried the invasion along with thousands of aircraft sorties and glider landings. It's hard to absorb it in just one reading. Top five for me. I recommend it for all humans.

Max

iampiper13

 

 

stikpusher

Oh I remember reading "The Big E" so long ago. I would love to read it again. I am about halfway thru "Wings of Gold" and "Guns of August". Both are absolutely splendidly written.

 

 

 

 

Just started reading thru this thread and was wondering if you'd had a chance to read the Big E again? Its probably my all time favorite book and I actually reading it now, I can't even tell you how many times I've read it. I have 3 copies, 2 are paperback in various stages of abuse and a hardback that is very old.

 

No I have not. I would love to get my hands on a copy to read again... along with many other books from that time in my life...

Max, I dont think that I have seen that book mentioned here, but I have read it a couple times since I started this thread. A great book, that even Mr Ambrose cannot quite reach in achievement. And yes it should be required reading, along with Ryan's other two masterworks, A Bridge Too Far & The Last Battle.

S. Ambrose and C. Ryan are two of my favorite non-fiction writers. Just finished "The Last Battle" for the second time. Trying to see if there are any books about the 83rd infantry (the Rag-Tag Circus).

Will still sit and watch "The Longest Day" whenever it's on TV....Easily top 5 WWII movie.

The Orlando Cepeda Story. A fast read and interesting if you like baseball.

I'm sure it's already been mentioned, but I'll type it to make sure:

With the Old Breed at Pelilou and Okinawa by EB Sledge.  

" Ships of Oak,Guns of Iron ", The War of 1812 and The Forging of The American Navy by Ronald D. Utt. Incisive read on the 'Second War of Independence', the author alternates chapters between events on land and at sea.

GlennH

"Blind mans bluff" US Navy submarine espionage, true stories.

 

I can validate that the stories are true, as I know someone who was on some of those boats, although he can neither confirm or deny the actual events.  However, he did comment he wonders who broke his vow of silence.

John

First off, I would like to thank all who post here,I've picked up a couple of good reads and want to affirm that it was not done in vain. I've just finished a treatise by one of this country's better writers, of which I, having served in a part of theNavy(the best part) I was totally unaware of:" The History of the Navy of the United States of America", by James Fenimore Cooper. Draws upon relatively contempory records and accounts up to 1853. History on,if not the nano level, at least the molecular.The account of the Richard/Serapis scrap and the Barbary wars stand out in my mind. I also had to resort to a lot of Googling for some of the period nomenclamanture.

Chemteacher

"Never Call Me a Hero" by Jack "Dusty" Kleiss. Great read by a Navy Cross recipient for his actions at Midway.

 

It brings a truer perspective to the BOM from the American side. Why would they let a fighter pilot (McClusky) lead SBD's into battle?

Because SBDs at the time were considered to be fighter capable.

In the Scout Bomber role they were first off the the deck with the CAG. I'd have to go back, gladly, to read Shattered Sword, but didn't his Group have 2 250s?

SBDs were used as CAP machines at Coral Sea.

i haven't read Kleiss. Thanks for the reference.

Read one called unconditional. It is about the fact that forgiveness is the key to brining peace and life.

Apollo 8 by Jeffrey Kluger. Just finished it this morning. He is a great author who writes of this mission, as well as the Gemini project, with a very readable style. I was born in 1959 and recall watching those Apollo missions on television as a kid. It's pretty amazing what we accomplished as a nation in that decade, atleast as far as space was concerned. Also, the Apollo 1 tragedy notwithstanding, everything had to work, and I mean everything, to get these astronauts back alive. I recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in the Apollo program or the US space program.

Kluger also wrote about Apollo  13. That's next for me.

Chemteacher

"Never Call Me a Hero" by Jack "Dusty" Kleiss. Great read by a Navy Cross recipient for his actions at Midway.

 

That... I want to read.

GMorrison

Because SBDs at the time were considered to be fighter capable.

In the Scout Bomber role they were first off the the deck with the CAG. I'd have to go back, gladly, to read Shattered Sword, but didn't his Group have 2 250s?

SBDs were used as CAP machines at Coral Sea.

i haven't read Kleiss. Thanks for the reference.

 

 

GM, here are two more sources of Kleiss' concerns about McCluskey's role as SBD leader:

http://www.historynet.com/miracle-men-of-midway.htm

Richard Best's attack on the Akagi (I know it is Wiki but it summarizes it):

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Halsey_Best

As for bombs, I thought Kleiss said they had a 1,000 and 2 250's loaded, but I don't have my copy of Kleiss available as I lent it to a friend a month ago.

I just finished "Pacific Crucible", and am now reading "The Conquering Tide".  Both by Ian Toll about WWII pacific campaign.  Working on the Midway GB, and thought I should refresh my memory.  Lots of quotes from diaries and interviews.  Pretty good read.

Going to look for Jack Kleiss' book.  Sounds very interesting.

D 

richs26

 

As for bombs, I thought Kleiss said they had a 1,000 and 2 250's loaded, but I don't have my copy of Kleiss available as I lent it to a friend a month ago.

 

I don't think that the SBD could lift such a load, or that the wing hard points were rated for 250 pounders.

Usually the load out was either a single 1000 pounder, or a 500 pounder with a pair of 100 pounders on the wing hardpoints.

IIRC at Midway on the morning strike of June 4, one of the Enterprise SBD squadrons carried single 500 pounders, and the other carried single 1000 pounders.

I just started reading "Neptune's Inferno" last night. Written by James D Hornfischer, who also wrote "Last Stand of the Tincan Sailors". I really enjoyed Tincan so I hope this book will be as good.

Steve

I love everything I have ever read by Hornfischer.  Neptune's Inferno was as good as Tincan and I enjoyed it immensely.  I am sure you will too.

John

There was a library book sale this weekend. I got in on day one as we are 'Friends of the Library".

Man, these resellers come in with a smart phone strapped to their wrist, a pair of ear buds which I guess give them a clue, and a hand held scanner. Just fly through every book and toss the ones they want into a big cart.

I picked up "A Hostage to Fortune", autobiography by Ernest Gann; "I Could Never Be So Lucky Again", autobiography by Jimmy Doolittle; and "The First Heroes. The Extraordinary Story of the Doolittle Raid", by Craig Nelson.

About half way through that last one. Lots of little factual inaccuracies but pretty well written.

Ahem, also ordered a B-25 B 1/48 kit...