[.ca] Silent Running: My Years on a World War II Attack Submarine (ISBN 047119705X)

WOW!!! This book is outstanding!:
This book is excelent. Reading this, I really got a feeling as to what it was like on a submarine in World War II. It includes action sequences that really make it feel like you were there, on the sub. Calvert is a genius. I highly suggest this book for ANYONE who is interested in submarines, WWII history, or Naval History. I really think you will love this book as much as I did.

Gripping and Emotionally Moving:
This could have easily been a dull and difficult read, but Calvert was not a dull man. To the contrary, this story puts you right in the action. Just like the AAF's B-24 Liberator bombers, the naval subs were often just as dangerous to our soldiers as the enemy was. Especially at the beginning of their service, Calvert shares how the Jack had many problems with its engines, at one point nearly getting stranded with no operable engines. On top of that, they had to endure intense depth charging. With all of this action, it's hard to relax - even while in the comfort of an armchair. More than just a military tale, however; Silent Running has a real human side. Calvert takes the reader deep into his personality, allowing us to share in his fear and his courage. It is also a story of love and a sailor's struggle to stay faithful to his wife while facing death in a cruel war far from home. As he prevails over all, we are shown the tremendous character and tenacity of the men and women that fought and won the "Greatest War". If you like this book, you must rent/buy/watch Das Boot (The Boat) directed by Wolfgang Petersen. Although, it is told from the perspective of the German submarine crew, it is a great aid to visualizing the experience of 1930-40's submarine warfare conditions and technology. It is, also, considered one of the greatest WWII movies made to date.

Excellent, excellent, excellent!:
I've read many novels that did not capture me as well as this one. The story is amazing. The author's ability to fill the work with that certain quality that makes you wish you were there is perfectly done. Set aside a few quality hours to zip through this book because you won't be able to put it down. Amazing!

Can't Put Down:
VAdm Calvert's book is simply one of the best WWII submarine books ever written. It is both heartfelt and straight forward and lives up to the one of the defining standards of the men who served on our fleet submarines in the Pacific; honest self criticism. About a war full of hero's, this book lets us get to know some of them better.

A very good book:
Silent Service was a true page turner for me and I found it difficult to put down in the two days I spent with it. Admiral Calvert does an excellent job in conveying the realities of life aboard a WWII attack submarine; the boring day-to-day routines, various navigational methods, the extraordinarily complex relationship between the submarine and it's crew, the adrenaline charged excitement of an attack, the terrors of a depth charging and the courage of the men who went into this exhausting, claustrophobic, unforgiving world with it's ever present threat of a ghastly death (twenty-five percent of American WWII submariners never returned from their last mission). Calvert's prose is engaging, informative and lucid; The book is divided chronologically into fourteen chapters of roughly twenty pages per, each addressing an aspect of his wartime experiences; from the USS Jack's commissioning in January of 1943 to his (mis)adventure in Tokyo immediately following the surrender. A brief afterword follows up these retrospections. I highly recommend this book to those interested in submarines and/or WWII.