This is a first rate history of the U.S. Navy in the first two decades of the Cold War. It was supposed to be the first of a series of books on the subject but the author died before any of the later books were written. It is already a standard resource for other authors.
This book is not a dry recounting of facts. It is an easy read and all of my family who have borrowed the book from me have said as much. I took three courses in History from Professor Isenberg when I was a midshipman at the Naval Academy and his writing style is very much HIS personal conversational style. Not many other history texts use the phrase "bass-ackwards" to describe a situation.
The treatment of the Cuban Missile Crisis from the Navy's perspective is the book's most important feature and takes up nearly 100 pages. The personalities involved and how their clashes influenced decision-making over time is particularly instructive. I had never before considered that the Missile Crisis was the result of JFK's failure to win the Bay of Pigs operation because it allowed the Soviets to think they could push him around. Nor have I read that many of our military leaders thought America actually LOST the Cuban Missile Crisis. Very interesting stuff and well documented. In fact, the book is fully footnoted but only with references. The narrative is complete so there is no need to look up the footnotes for amplifying information unless you want to see the sources.
This book was written 30 years after the end of the time frame it covers and time allows more of the "Fog of History" to clear. While I regret the early death of Professor Isenberg, I suspect that his second volume in this series detailing the Navy during the latter half of the Cold War would have been premature.
This is a thoroughly enjoyable book.
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