The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors by James D. Hornfischer is the extraordinary story of the Battle of Samar, the last full scale naval engagement in history. In it, some of the smallest ships in the entire U.S. navy faced off with the full strength of the Japanese navy, including the Yamato - the largest battleship every built.
Admittedly, the book begins a bit slowly, as Hornfischer provides painstaking details on each ship and the men who crewed her. However, once the real action begins, Hornfischer leads the reader into the heat of battle with such precision and clarity that I could practically see shells exploding just off the page.
More amazing - and terrifying - than the battle itself, though, is the aftermath of the battle in which well over 1,000 men find themselves bobbing and floating in the shark-infested waters off the Philippines. As one survivor said at the time, "My contract with the navy was to fight the enemy, not sharks." Perhaps he should have read the fine print.
Ultimately, Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors is as much the story of the naval wars that were so much a part of World War II as it is the story of the Battle of Samar. Just as Flyboys should be required reading for anyone seeking to understand the air war in the Pacific, so should this book be required for those seeking to understand the naval battles.
No comments:
Post a Comment