SHIP'S LIBRARY

By DAVID W. MUNNS
Assistant Editor

U.S. NAVY: A Complete History, Edited by M. Hill Goodspeed, Westport, Conn.: Hugh Lauter Levin Associates Inc. (Naval Historical Foundation), Oct. 2003. 727 pp. $75.00. ISBN: 0-88363-112-1. This volume of naval events from 1775 to the present features a collection of essays and pictorials tracing the growth and development of "a navy tailored to meet the changing needs of the people it is sworn to support and defend." It provides a timeline of events that demonstrate the accomplishments of what has become the most powerful maritime force in the world. This comprehensive look at innovations in naval technology as well as progress made in more than two centuries of national defense includes essays that give eyewitness accounts of historic maritime events, in succinct but memorable narrative that accompanies an impressive array of pictures of the U.S. Navy throughout its history. U.S. Navy: A Complete History is the definitive collectible for history enthusiasts and a fine reference material for Navy aficionados.

DECEMBER 8, 1941: MacArthur's Pearl Harbor, by William H. Bartsch, College Station, Texas: Texas A&M University Press, June 2003. 568 pp. $40.00. ISBN: 1-58544-246-1. Japan launched a crippling attack in the Philippines just 10 hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Despite Lt. Gen. Douglas MacArthur's confidence that "the inability of an enemy to launch his air attack on these [Philippine] islands is our greatest security," the islands were indeed hit, yielding consequences arguably more devastating than those of Pearl Harbor. In 1941, the Philippines harbored the largest fleet of B-17 bombers outside the United States, the single force that could keep the Japanese from dominating Southeast Asia. In this book, William H. Bartsch investigates the circumstances surrounding MacArthur's folly of being caught with grounded planes despite warnings that air raids had already occurred at Pearl Harbor. Bartsch uses interviews colored by political and strategic elements of the attacks to explain the events of Dec. 8 in the Philippines. He analyzes staff experiences from the U.S. War Department in Washington as well as Far East Air Force personnel, juxtaposed with those of Japan's Imperial General Headquarters in Tokyo and its 11th Air Fleet on Formosa, the force that executed the devastating attacks, to offer a well-informed text about what has been called "one of the blackest days in American military history." Complete with black-and-white pictures, an appendix, sources, notes, and an index.

JOHN PAUL JONES: Sailor, Hero, Father of the American Navy, by Evan Thomas, New York, N.Y.: Simon & Schuster, May 2003. 381 pp. $28.00. ISBN: 0-7432-0583-9. Evan Thomas, assistant managing editor of Newsweek and author of several respected biographies, adds John Paul Jones to his repertoire, portraying Jones as the foremost American naval hero of the Revolutionary War and the father of the American Navy. Thomas traces Jones's life from his childhood in Scotland, describing his experiences at sea beginning at the age of 13 and his horrific assignment as a mate on a slave ship. He skillfully puts readers alongside Jones in this richly textured narrative of his daring adventures at sea, including savage battles that often ended in hand-to-hand combat. Jones, who earned the admiration of the Founding Fathers, is honored at Thomas Jefferson's Monticello with a bust displayed next to those of George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and the Marquis de Lafayette, but after the American Revolution, Jones's machismo and relentless pursuit of action led him to join the navy of Empress Catherine of Russia, where he eventually became embroiled in political intrigue. He was banished from the Russian navy after false allegations arose that he had raped a young girl. Then he wandered through Europe before settling in Paris, where he died amid the chaos of the French Revolution. Thomas masterfully tells this overdue story of a forgotten but valorous American whose life ended with burial in a remote cemetery on the fringes of the French capital. The first major biography of Jones's life since 1959, this book includes bibliographical references and an index.

U.S. SPECIAL OPERATIONS FORCES, Edited by Benjamin F. Schemmer and Col. John T. Carney Jr., USAF (Ret.), Westport, Conn.: Hugh Lauter Levin Associates, Inc. (Special Operations Warrior Foundation), Oct. 2003. 325 pp. $75.00. ISBN: 0-88363-105-9. This volume, produced by the Special Operations Warrior Foundation, is sure to be valued by all those inspired by the monumental triumphs and disappointments of special operations. With essays by America's foremost past and present military leaders, it is a complete chronicle, unique in its analyses of events from all branches of the U.S. military. The book portrays special operators as the go-to men and women for major armed conflict, and the pictures it contains include photographs and drawings that display both the intensity of their battles and their passion. Covering historical events, the structure of special operations command, and current efforts in training procedures, this volume vividly describes the technology and expertise of U.S. special operations forces while also paying homage to past heroes of the command. It includes a thorough index and description of the Special Operations Warrior Foundation.

TERRORISM, AFGHANISTAN, AND AMERICA'S NEW WAY OF WAR, by Norman Friedman, Annapolis, Md.: Naval Institute Press, July 2003. 360 pp. $29.95. ISBN: 1-59114-290-3. Many recent books have examined the aftermath of Sept. 11, 2001, but this one, by award-winning defense journalist Norman Friedman, is the first to offer analysis of network-centric warfare, or enabling military operations by combining forces through the use of information technologies, in the context of war in Afghanistan. Friedman broadens the scope of this conflict to include the war on terrorism and thoroughly evaluates its repercussions in the Muslim world, insinuating that it might lead to a larger "pan-Muslim empire headed by Osama bin Laden." The author pays particular attention to the roles of maritime forces, particularly the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps, in a conflict centered on a landlocked country, and he explores future roles for maritime forces in such conflicts. The inclusion of politics, particularly ethnic politics in Pakistan, in Friedman's discussion of "America's new way of war" leaves the reader with a thorough understanding of the conflict at hand as well as future possibilities and tactics in the fight against terrorism. The book is complete with 24 photographs, two maps, notes, a bibliography, and an index.

SPECIAL OPERATIONS: Weapons and Tactics, by T. J. Mullin, Mechanicsburg, Pa.: Stackpole Books, Feb. 2003. 176 pp. $39.95. ISBN: 1-85367-527-X. Timothy J. Mullin has served as chief of police in the St. Louis area, where he established a firearms training program for law enforcement authorities. He now adds this book to his numerous publications on firearm use. The book describes the full scope of special operations training--from diminishing ammo-loading times to pinpointing enemy weaknesses. Mullin combines his experience, using personal anecdotes, with research on most elements of special operations, including marksmanship, maritime operations, sniping, ballistic armor, night vision, and even weapons other than firearms. This book features 180 images of weaponry and training as well as a list of recommended reading on special operations equipment and procedures.

D-DAY: The Greatest Invasion--A People's History, by Dan van der Vat New York, N.Y.: Bloomsbury, Nov. 2003. 176 pp. $40.00. ISBN: 1-58234-314-4. June 6, 1944, began with thousands of Allied soldiers landing on the beaches of Normandy from the sea and air in a mammoth assault on Nazi-occupied France. The ensuing 16 hours were definitive in breeching the Third Reich's "seemingly impregnable defenses" and ultimately liberating Europe. This illustrated history commemorates D-Day with commentary by the author, a noted historian and expert on modern warfare. It also features an introduction by Brig. Gen. John S.D. Eisenhower, USAR (Ret.), son of Dwight D. Eisenhower, who points out that the book, in recounting the history of that perilous day, "recognizes that the everyday soldier really occupies center stage." Using individual anecdotes, the book paints a clear picture of the struggles encountered by ordinary soldiers, as well as being a portrait of the invasion and its revolutionary impact on present-day international affairs. The book features color and black-and-white photos, illustrations, and topographic maps throughout.

ALSO RECEIVED:

CONFEDERATE RAIDER: 1861-65, by Angus Konstam, Illustrated by Tony Bryan, August 2003. 28 pp. $10.47. ISBN 1-84176-496-5. British author Angus Konstam describes the adoption and design of commerce raiders by the Confederacy that emboldened it to attempt to circumvent the numerical superiority of the U.S. Navy during the Civil War.

THE CIA'S RUSSIANS, by John Limond Hart, Annapolis, Md.: Naval Institute Press, June 2003. 248 pp. $28.95. ISBN: 1-59114-352-7. An account of high-ranking Soviet citizens who spied for the CIA during the Cold War.