Dive! World War II stories of sailors & submarines in the Pacific

Deborah Hopkinson

Book - 2016

The story of America's little known war-within-a war -- that of the "silent service" -- U.S. submarine warfare during World War II.

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Subjects
Published
New York : Scholastic Press 2016.
Language
English
Main Author
Deborah Hopkinson (author)
Edition
First edition
Physical Description
367 pages : illustrations, map ; 22 cm
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN
9780545425582
Contents unavailable.
Review by Booklist Review

*Starred Review* Hopkinson's gripping account of submarine warfare in the Pacific during WWII begins with the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, as told through the eyes of 15-year-old Martin Matthews, who lied about his age to enlist in the U.S. Navy. As battleships were repaired, undamaged submarines with torpedoes became lone raiders in a vast ocean, decimating Japanese ships and cutting off lines of supply. Although Hopkinson (Courage & Defiance, 2015) continues her tried-and-true format of revealing history through firsthand accounts ranging from a submariner and communications officer to an admiral and rescued nurse she keeps it fresh with harrowing near misses, attacks, accidents, and rescues. Readers wait anxiously alongside crew members amid silence and dangerous heat and oxygen levels as the submariners narrowly escape enemy detection or brace for depth charge explosions that rattle bones, fray nerves, and signal possible death. An abundance of archival photos provide visual references, while short asides fill in gaps on such submarine-related topics as the treatment of African American crew members, the modern integration of female officers into the Submarine Force, and on-board living conditions from bathrooms to ice-cream machines. Copious back matter provides even more facts and figures. With a fascinating blend of submarine mechanics and tales of courage, readers will dive in deep.--Leeper, Angela Copyright 2016 Booklist

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review

Gr 6-8-In this broad and insightful look at a less commonly examined aspect of the Pacific War, the narrative comes alive through looks at individual sailors and commanders and their particular contributions to larger events. An account of the USS Wahoo's stealth entry into Wewak Harbor on New Guinea, using a map found in a high school geography textbook, and its successful sinking of a Japanese destroyer is as gripping as any thriller. Hopkinson makes a point of noting the presence of women (nurses evacuated from Corregidor) and African Americans, who were limited in their formal duties but pushed by the realities of war into key roles in submarines. Readers are always aware of the intensity of submarine warfare and the massive human toll. One chapter closes with a poignant unsent letter from a wife to her husband lost in battle. Sidebars complement the narrative with, for example, a colorful description of an officer's effort to have an ice-cream maker installed in his sub, a description of how subs dive, and recommendations for visits to websites and naval museums. Specialized terminology is occasionally distracting, but Hopkinson does an ample job defining terms in context. The book concludes with an expansive "After Section," which includes source citations for individual quotations, a lengthy bibliography, an annotated list of online resources, and lists of facts and figures. Many contemporaneous photographs depict the actual sailors and vessels discussed in the text. VERDICT A riveting narrative nonfiction selection for middle school collections.-Bob Hassett, Luther Jackson Middle School, Falls Church, VA © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review

Employing a design, format, and style similar to her Titanic (rev. 3/12) and Courage Defiance (rev. 11/15), Hopkinson turns her attention to submarine warfare in the Pacific theater during WWII. This busy, complex story includes a vast cast of characters, far-flung settings, and myriad episodes and incidents woven together against the epic backdrop of the war. Yet it is also the story of how a small handful of submarines -- the USS Seawolf, Wahoo, and Tang chief among them -- not only significantly affected the course of the war (essentially compensating for the devastating losses sustained at Pearl Harbor) but also indelibly changed the lives of the unique brand of sailors who served on them. Their voices are highlighted here and, along with numerous photographs, provide a vivid sense of immediacy, while various secondary sources, maps, and sidebars place the sailors experiences in the larger context of the war. The back matter includes source notes, a bibliography, a glossary, and an index (unseen), in addition to various lists, illustrations, diagrams, and timelines. Its an appealing, engrossing package for readers fascinated by heroism and military strategy. jonathan hunt (c) Copyright 2016. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.