Great Liners at War: The Military Adventures of the World's Largest, Fastest and Most Famous Passenger Steamships

Rating:
Summary: GREAT
Review: This book was truly great. The value is in the pictures, many rare which are being published for the first time. You see great ships like the Mauretania and Aquitania in dazzle paint, or the Queen Mary after the Curacoa incident. The facts are a little off in some parts, but overall is excellent,

Rating:
Summary: Rare insights on a little known subject.
Review: This well written, and well illustrated book is one of the few to cover the wartime efforts of passenger liners during the 19th and 20th centuries. Back in a time when troops, just like the rest of the world, had to travel between the continents by sea; passengers ships were the obvious choice for moveing them in big numbers quickly and efficently. Some of the greatest liners in history served as troopships or hospital ships in wartime. Nine of the best are covered in the book. Using some fantastic photographs, many never seen before, author Steve Harding tells about the cramped conditions on troopships during World Wars I and II. Incidently, only one of those covered, Aquitania, performed this kind of service in both World Wars, and she survived both conflicts. According to the author, this is a unique honor for this ship. The work performed by these vessels was vital to the war effort, but because they were not designed for this kind of duty, their safety was paramount, so their movements were kept pretty much a secret throughout both wars. Because of this, we have very little written information on them for research purposes. Steve Harding has done the only kind of research that can be done in this case, he interviewed those who sailed on, or served aboard the vessels at the time. By doing so, he has dug up the kind of detailed information that makes the story of each ship so interesting. He covers the dangers of the great influenza epidemic that affected the soldiers packed on the ships during WWI. The threats of subs and aircraft encountered during the WW2. Perhaps the most remarkable statistic of all is that no fully loaded troopship of major size was sunk during either war. The loss of life would have been the worst sea disaster ever. If your interested in passenger liners, and their life stories, this book is certainly your best choice to cover the ships during wartime. The photographs are all rare and very well chosen for each of the nine major liners covered. A seperate chapter covers the Lusitania, and her tragic loss during the First World War. An excellent book on all counts.