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Pigboat 39 is a good book for anybody interested in U.S. Naval history or in the evolution of naval warfare. It does a good job of telling the very human story of the people who served aboard an antiquated and obsolete submarine just prior too and during the opening stages of World War II. It also touches upon the lives of those back home in the states. While the fleet submarines have often been the subject of numerous books and movies, the record of the S-class boats during WWII has often been overlooked. Built in the early 1920s the S-boats were constructed mostly as defensive weapons, coastal patrol. They were spartan in their accomodations, did not have great range, and could not dive very deep. Also, they did not have the state-of-the-art electronics that the new fleet boats had. Those who served aboard these "submersibles" were fighting a modern war with antiquated methods and equipment. It must also be remembered that the strategic plan of the U.S. military at that time was to fight a delaying action in the western Pacific during the early part of a war with Japan. Therefore, the equipment given to the armed forces in the Philippines and eastern Asia were indeed obsolete. However, the anti-war feelings in the U.S. throughout the 1920s and 1930s left most of our military equipped with obsolete equipment, though FDR had the foresight to start building up our armed forces during the latter half of the 1930s. For the most part the book is well written. However, there are places where the author jumps ahead from one date to another. For example, in one chapter she jumps from December 1, 1941 to December 8, 1941, causing the reader some confusion. There are also a few typographical errors to be found. Overall Pigboat 39 is a very good book to read. It will keep the reader's attention! Other books I would recommend with this are: Under Pressure; the final voyage of submarine S-5, by A.J. Hill, The Free Press, 2002. On the Bottom; the raising of the U.S. Navy submarine S-51, by Commander Edward Ellsberg, New American Library, 2004.Read full review
Good read from cover to cover!!
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