I'll keep this short since I've chimed in about the series before.
BLUF: Exhaustive detail with some great material buried in between the boring parts listed above. You'd have to be pretty hardcore or stupid (shut up!) to read both books. Vol. 1 is far more lively than Vol. 2. You could read Vol. 1 and skip Vol. 2, but the series isn't for most people.
- Two volume set totaling 1500-ish pages (that includes a hundred+ pages of Appendices) written by a former US sub officer and veteran of several sub cruises in the Pacific during WWII.
- There was never, ever a point where the U-boats came close to cutting the link between the US and UK. Less than 1% of the ships sailing the Atlantic were lost.
- The US manufactured more ships than the Germans could sink. In 1942 alone it made over 100 more ships than the U-boats sunk in the entire war.
- The Type XXI and XXIII "Electroboats" were ahead of their time but had no chance of turning the tide. Their design and construction were flawed (all of the ship's hydraulics were outside of the pressure hull leaving them open to damage and saltwater contamination) and torpedo technology couldn't keep up even if the boats were ready for combat.
The series is very dry at times with many patrol entries (he lists all or almost all of them) read like: (U-boat Type and Number) departed (Base) on (Date1). On (Date2) it was attacked by (Ship or Plane) commanded by (Name and Rank). (Misc. details then go here).
I'm glad I read them, but they won't be on my "to read again" list.
BLUF: Exhaustive detail with some great material buried in between the boring parts listed above. You'd have to be pretty hardcore or stupid (shut up!) to read both books. Vol. 1 is far more lively than Vol. 2. You could read Vol. 1 and skip Vol. 2, but the series isn't for most people.
- Two volume set totaling 1500-ish pages (that includes a hundred+ pages of Appendices) written by a former US sub officer and veteran of several sub cruises in the Pacific during WWII.
- There was never, ever a point where the U-boats came close to cutting the link between the US and UK. Less than 1% of the ships sailing the Atlantic were lost.
- The US manufactured more ships than the Germans could sink. In 1942 alone it made over 100 more ships than the U-boats sunk in the entire war.
- The Type XXI and XXIII "Electroboats" were ahead of their time but had no chance of turning the tide. Their design and construction were flawed (all of the ship's hydraulics were outside of the pressure hull leaving them open to damage and saltwater contamination) and torpedo technology couldn't keep up even if the boats were ready for combat.
The series is very dry at times with many patrol entries (he lists all or almost all of them) read like: (U-boat Type and Number) departed (Base) on (Date1). On (Date2) it was attacked by (Ship or Plane) commanded by (Name and Rank). (Misc. details then go here).
I'm glad I read them, but they won't be on my "to read again" list.
