| CLASSIC DIVE BOOKS
Submarines and submersibles.
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HOMEPAGE |
| Please note: The books are listed for collectors interest
only, and not offered for sale.
See also Military
Operations and Navy Diving.
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A MATTER OF RISK
The Incredible Inside Story of the Mission to Raise a Russian Submarine. Roy Varner and Wayne Collier. Hodder and Stoughton, London. 1978. Hardcover, dustjacket, 258 pagwes, sixteen mono pages. In April 1968, a Russian submarine was cruisingthe Pacific on a routine voyage when, about 750 miles north-west of Hawaii, it suddenly explodedand sank in waters three-miles deep. There were no survivors amongst its crew odf seventy. What interested the Americans was the millies on board and the contents of the top-secret naval code room. The Russiand were not too sure where it was, but the Americans found it and even photographed it, using their superior underater technoilogy. Under CIA control, a mission weas established to raise the sub under top secrecy, of course. It did not go to plan. Well... read the book, its fascinating. [ps] |
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AGAINST ALL ODDS
Midget Submarines Against the Tirpitz. |
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BACK FROM THE DEEP.
The Strange Story of the Sister Subs Squalus and Sculpin.
Carl LaVo. Naval Institute Press Annapolis, MD, U.S.A. 1994 . Hard cover, dust jacket, 226 pages b/w photos./ This epic World War II submarine saga follows the sister boats Squalus and Sculpin as they play out their dramatic destinies in the Pacific. The author, a seasoned journalist, re-creates their entire perilous journey, beginning with the rigorous stateside preparation of the crew. That training was put to the test almost immediately when the Squalus sank during a test dive in 1939. The revolutionary use of the McCann diving bell to save 33 trapped crewmen and the Sculpin's role in that historic rescue are the first of many incongruous twists of fate that bring the two subs together. The saga continues when the Squalus undergoes an unprecedented salvage and, rechristened the Sailfish, redeems its reputation through three years of battle. The extraordinary ordeals shared by the inseparable Squalus-Sailfish and Sculpin are described in gripping detail as the author skillfully weaves together the tragic defeat of the Sculpin by a Japanese destroyer and the frenetic wrath of its sister sub. The intertwined fates of the two boats come to an eerie climax as the Sailfish unleashes a ten-hour attack on the Japanese aircraft carrier Chuyo amid a raging typhoon, unwittingly killing 22 of the 43 prisoners captured from the sunken Sculpin. The narrative travels with the surviving 21 Sculpin crewmen as they face incredible hardships, torture, and disease as POWs in Japan. Today veterans of both boats view themselves as a single company and share annual reunions. Back from the Deep is certain to instill a renewed appreciation for the intrepid men and stealthy ships that were the soul of the Pacific campaign's silent service. |
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BATTLE BELOW
Robert J. Casey Written in 1943 with the encouragement and the special co-operation of the US Navy Department. Its publication was then held up by the Navy censorship, and released on June 8, 1945. I could more details but the info came from an eBay sale where I have not come across more parochial drivel that the description for this book. By the author of Torpedo Junction. |
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BLOW ALL BALLAST! THE STORY OF THE
SQUALUS
Nat A. Barrows. George G. Harrap, London, 1940. Hardcover, 8vo, 234pp. Dodd Mead and Co, New York. 1940. Court Book Company, 1941. Hardcover, dustjacket, well illustrated. Note: Easy enough to find and not expensive but - no one seems to have an edition with a dust jacket!!! |
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DARING DIVES OF SUBMARINES
AND SUBMERSIBLES
Gillian Hancock. Published 1980 by Kaye & Ward, London. Hardcover, dustjacket, 124 pages. Covers the dives of several early 'submarines' including the Turtle, followed by more recent 20th century events involving U-Boats, British and American submrines. It is by no means a classic and appears to be aimed at the teenage market, although this may be an injustice to the author. [ps] |
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FEW SURVIVED. A history of
submarine disasters.
Edwyn Gray. Publisher: Leo Cooper, London, 1986. Illustrated with some photographs. Later republished 1996. ISBN 436 18740 X. Illus. with b/w photos. 258 pp .Appendices . A comprehensive account of every peacetime submarine disaster from 1774 to the time of publication. The author examines most of the important sinkings in considerable and describing the attempts made of rescuing the crew and or the vessel.From submersibles of the late 18th century down to the nuclear powered monsters of today, the authot describes in parallel the developements of underwater rescue operations and survival techniques. Several of the incidents in this book appear in print for the first time, others, such as the sinking of the Thetis have been told many times before, but lose nothing in the telling. Among the more extraordinary episodes may be mentioned that of the affray, the whereabouts of which were revealed by a ghost, and of Operation Jennifer, in which Howard Hughes was asked by the CIA to assist in the recovery of a soviet missile submarine. |
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H.M. SUBMARINES
Lieut.Comdr P.K. Kemp. Herbert Jenkins Ltd, London. 1952. Hardcover, dustjacket, 224 pages, index, mono photographs, list of submarine losses (there are about 200 of them up to 1951). From the fly: This book tells the story of the submarine from the time of man's earliest attempts to build an underwater craft up to the most modern vessels of to-day. It is no more than fifty years since the first submarines - five small Holland boats - joined the Royal Navy. Yet in this comparatively short space of time, the submarine has become the deadliest of all weapons at sea and has had a profound influence on the traditional naval strategy. This book shows their gradual development from experimental coastal craft to the long-range boats of to-day. There is of necessity much in it that is heroic, for submarines are in the front line of battle from the first day of war until the last. They go where no other ship can follow,' alone and with every man's hand against. them. Their losses during war- time are grievous, far higher than in any other branch of the Service, yet there is never a lack of men to man them. Their deeds of courage, endurance and skill have been written across the waters of every ocean in the world, and have established a tradition and record of service that is outstanding in the long history of the Royal Navy. Lieut.-Commander P. K. Kemp, archivist of the Admiralty, writes with the authority of first-hand experience, and the story he has to tell is a proud and gallant one - a tale of long endeavour and high success. [ps] |
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HELL AT 50 FATHOMS
Charles A. Lockwood. U.S.Navy submarine disasters that led to modern survival and salvage methods. |
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MANNED SUBMERSIBLES
R. Frank Busby Office of the Oceanographer of the (U.S.) Navy USA, 1976. Hardcover, 4to - over 9" - 12" tall, 764 pages, index, list of acronyms. Profusely illustrated with black and white photos and line diagrams. Apparently quite rare and was selling in Canada for over $500. |
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ONE OF OUR SUBMARINES
Edward Young.
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ONLY FOUR ESCAPED
C.E.T. Warren and James Benson Originally published 1958, many later editions, and retitled, THE ADMIRALTY REGRETS, and THETIS - THE ADMIRALTY REGRETS . US Edition: Published by William Sloane Associates, New York, 1959 - with indication that it was first published in Great Britaion in 1958 under the title 'The Admiralty Regrets'. Hardcover, dustjacket, fully illustrated. 219 pages, index, mono photographs, drawings. Cloth boards illustrated in green and blue with submarine silhouette. [ps] The true story of the account of the sinking of the Royal Navy Submarine, Thetis, on June 1, 1939. (Same year as the sinking of USS Squalus). Only four men survived out of a crew of 103. A truly tragic event in the history of Submarines. On June 1, 1939, His Majesty's Submarine Thetis sailed out into Liverpool Bay for diving trials. Aboard were technicians, civilian observers and others besides her crew - l03 men, double her usual com plement. England was still at peace; the weather was perfect; the boat was brand- new and had been checked from stem to stern before leaving the shipyard. There wasn't a reason anything should go wrong. At 2 o'clock, Thetis commenced diving. The dive began slowly - but ended with startling suddenness. At 11 o'clock, the B.B.C.. carried an alarming message. . . "The Admiralty regrets to announce that H. M. Thetis has failed to surface"- all because a yard workman had painted over a tiny but vital valve! In the stricken sub, there was no panic. Officers and men worked together, joked together, waited together. The air inside would last about a day. Plenty of time to feed out the men through the escape chamber, wearing the new breathing ap- paratus - and plenty of time for help to come from shore. But an escape hatch jammed.The men were slowly poisoning the air with their own breath. On shore, a vital telegram was delayed by a punctured bicycle tire. Differences of opinion over when to start rescue operations wasted precious hours.Divers made the slow sea route instead of traveling overland. Coal-heavers in Scotland refused to work before lunch. And the ship that was finally rushed to the scene was the slowest destroyer in the fleet. The result was a tragedy that will never be forgotten. In their authentic, hour-by-hour reconstruction of the disaster, based on the evidence of the four who escaped and on painstaking research, the authors have recreated all the bravery, bungling, help- lessness and heroism of men trapped by the sea. See personal comment below.
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THE TERRIBLE HOURS
The Man Man Behind the Greatest Submarine Rescue in History
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PREPARE TO DIVE - The Story of Man Underwater.
J.Coggins
Published by Bailey Brothers and Swinfen Ltd, Fokestone (England), 1973; and Dodd, Mead & Co, New York. By no means a classic, it is still a very readable and interesting book, covering early diving bells, through to submarines and underwatwer research vessels. Many line drawings throughout, no photographs. Hardcover, 128 pages, dust jacket. See further - History of Diving. [ps] |
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RAIDERS OF THE DEEP
Lowell Thomas First published by William Heinemann Ltd, London, in 1929, with subsequent reprints to at least May 1932. Also: Doubleday Doran Garden City, NY 1928 (as indicated in a publication) The Sun Dial Press, New York: 1940. Facsimile edition produced in 1955. Hardcover, no dustjacket seen but may have had one; cloth boards are not embossed. 363 pages, index. mono plates, generally two to a page. Regarded as one of the classics on submarine warfare.Chapters include: New Horizons for the U-Boats; Raiding Russian Ports; By Submarine from North Sea to the Inferno at Gallipoli; the Sinking of the Battleship Triumph, Hersings Bags Another British Giant; The Captain and Crew that Sank the Lusitania, and Von Schwieger's Account of how he sank the Lusitania; the U-Boat Ace of Aces, etc etc. [ps-no dj] [Cover - thanks Mick Stone, from Camberwell Books, Melbourne] |
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SHIPS BENEATH THE SEA: A HISTORY OF SUBMARINES AND SUBMERSIBLES.
Robert F. Burgess.
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STAND BY TO SURFACE
Richard Baxter. Published 1944 by Cassell and Company, Ltd, London. First Australian edition 1944. Hardcover, dust jacket, 8 3/4" x 5 1/2", 208 pages, well illustrated with thity-six mono photographs although (Australian edition) is poorly printed; brown cloth-bound boards. A salute to submariners from many navies - Royal Navy, Polish, Dutch, Greek, & American - heroes all! A history through anecdote and action of those who go to sea in submarines. Stories of the men nd ships in th submarine service, including the ships Safari, Sealion, Truant, Trusty and many others. Predominantly on the British service, also covers Polish, Dutch, Greek and American submarines. From the back dustjacket blurb (part of the Foreword by Admiral Sir Charles Little: "This is a story of ordinary men, but ordinary men whom the traditions and the life of the Sub- marine Branch have made heroes. The Commanding Officer of a submarine has all the excitement of the dive, but also the responsibility; the waiting eyes of his men on diving-wheel kingston, fore end, engine room and communications watch for his smallest wish, while enemy propellers sound overhead and depth charges foretell his purpose. And so it is with our Allies - Polish, Dutch, Greek or American - all speak the language of the submarine. Mr. Richard Baxter has done a great service in bringing something of the life and exploits of our submarine personnel before the public. [ps] |
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SUBSUNK - The Story of Submarine
Escape. Captain W.O. Shelford.
First published in Great Britain 1960, George G. Harrap & Co. Ltd, London. Hardcover, dustjacket, 256 pages, mono plates throughout, drawings. Includes 'the first escape ever'; Thetis, Squalus; rescue bells, escape apparatus. A very interesting book. The first half of the book describes successful escapes from sunken submarines from early periods, one as early as the 1850's. The second half is the author's personal experiences of pioneering many methods of submarine escape from 1941 when he was appointed to command the Royal Navy's Submarine Escape Training Unit. All types of submarine escape apparatus known up to that date are also described with detailed drawings. [ps] [cd] |
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SUNK - The Story of
the Japanese Submarine Fleet 1942-1945.
Mochitsura Hashimoto. (Formely Submarine Commandng Officer Imperial Japanese Navy). Translated by Commander E.H.M.Colegrave, RN. Cassell and Company Ltd. London, 1954. Hardcover, dustjacket, 219 pages, index, summary of campaigns, fold-out map, a few charts. Regarded as one of the finest books on the Pacific war, irrespective of the nationality of the author, but refreshing to read a book that sees the conflict from the Japanese point of view. After all, Japan build not only the largest submarines of her day, but also the smallest - aand some were drones. Toward the end of the war the Japanese ha to use what subs they had left to ferry badly-needed supplies to bases such as Rabaul. "From official records and survivors' stories he has pieced together the stories of many submarines in many parts of the theatre of war and the operations he describes range from thePacific Ocean to the Indian Ocean,from the American coast to the North Sea. And from these descriptions of the Japanese in action emerges an oddly contrasted picture of fanaticism and panic, of death welcomed with pride, of suicide rather than capture. and of fear and hysteria in the privacy of the deep. The book ends with appendices giving summaries of the Japanese submarine campaign; details of Japanese submarines built before and during the war, details of ships sunk by submarines and a record of Japan's own submarine losses." [ps] |
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THE RESCUER
The extraordinary life of the Navy's "Swede" Momsen and his role in an epic submarine disaster. Peter Maas. Harper And Row New York 1967. Hardcover, dustjacket, 239 pages. Collins, London 1968. Hardcover, dustjacket. Image shown - not sure which printing. The author's first full-length book. With eight pages of illustrations. Appendices. Author's note. Bibliography. Index. From the Dust Jacket: "This is the story of a man and a ship. He was a lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy but the ship was not his command. Yet on May 23, 1939, it seemed as if all this man's vision, doggedness and life's work had been shaped directly toward that place and that moment when the submarine Squalus fell 243 feet to the bottom of the sea, trapping fifty-nine men within her." [ps] See below "The Terrible Hours". |
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THE STICK AND THE STARS
Commander William King. Hutchinson & Co., London. 1958. Hardcover, dustjacket, 192 pages, no index, no photographs nor illustrations, maps on endpapers. From the fly: "The outbreak of war found Commander William King, D.S.O. (and bar), D.S.C., a twenty-eight- year-old lieutenant, newly qualified as commanding officer of a British submarine. The spring and summer of 1940 saw him with H.M.S. Snapper in constant action in the North Sea, where eighty per cent of his submarine flotilla were lost. During the nightmare of the Norwegian cam paign, when the midnight sun allowed no respite from enemy aircraft, he won a D.S.O. and a D.S.C. for sinkings. When the war ended he was the only submarine captain who had been almost continuously in operational command throughout all the six years of hostilities - a record surely unequalled in the submarine branch of any navy. This very human narrative has a happy ending. After six years of almost incessant under.water action the author found some difficulty in adjusting himself to either peace or land. But in the end he attained his object. Having crossed the Atlantic four times under canvas and won the 1951 Paul Hammond Cup for the 'best individual performance in sailing craft of any type,' he settled in the west of Ireland, where a farm, three hunters and two children keep him fully occupied. The Stick and Stars, coming as it does after the full flood of war books has spent its force, will rank among the best of them." [ps] |
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THE WONDERS OF THE SUBMARINE
AND OTHER UNDER-WATER INVENTIONS.
T.W.Corbin. Seeley, Service and Co. Limited, London. 1918. A delightful book with several excellent mono photographs, covering the early development of standard rig diving, diving bells, caisson work and the submarine, submairne weapons, disasters and escape from a submarine. It is of historic interest because of its age, and its content. Hardcover, no dust jacket, 164 pages. |
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WAR FISH
George Grider and Lydel Sims. Published 1958 by Cassell & Co, London. I havn't read it yet, and without a blurb it is not possible to give a reasonable summary. Appears to cover submarine operations in th western Pacifc area in World War 2, after the loss of th British ships Repulse and Prince of Wales. American submarines Wahoo and Hawkbill are mentioned. Hardcover, dustjacket, 214 pages, no photographs. |
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