Rickover: The Struggle for Excellence

by Francis Duncan

As the father of the nuclear powered Navy, Adm. Hyman G. Rickover was a pivotal figure in twentieth-century American history. While many books have been written about various aspects of his career, this is the first biography to have access to private papers, family and close friends. It not only deals with the admiral's controversial naval career but with phases of his personal life that made him what he was, including his youth as a Jewish immigrant who embraced America and the opportunities it offered. The author, Francis Duncan, worked with Rickover from 1969, when he was assigned to write a history of the nuclear propulsion program, until the admiral's death in 1986. Shortly before he died, Rickover turned over his files to Duncan, including letters to his first wife that give a vivid picture of the Navy from 1929 to 1945. Rickover's second wife allowed Duncan access to letters covering important events later in his career. The author was also granted interviews with the admiral's son and sister and with individuals from the Naval Reactors, an organization headed by Rickover whose members mostly had refused to talk to other biographers. A witness to the admiral's daily activities and the programs he directed, Duncan also drew on his own considerable knowledge to present a portrait of the man that gives new insights into Rickover's genius and short-comings. The book does not go into technical detail but focuses on the admiral's fights to build and extend the nuclear fleet and the often-difficult relationships that developed in the pursuit of the goal. He shows that Rickover's efforts had a profound effect on the postwar world, that the excellence and responsibility he demanded are qualities that reach beyond the Navy, and that his influence continues to be felt today.

Genres: History

364 pages, Hardcover

First published November 1, 2001

About the author

Francis Duncan C.B. (1836 – 16 November 1888) was a Royal Artillery officer, lawyer, historian and Conservative politician. He sat in the House of Commons from 1885 to 1888.

Reviews

[Darrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a U.S. Navy nuclear trained person, I've always been fascinated by the legend of ADM Rickover. The Struggle for Excellence was a good overall picture of the life of Rickover. It covers his beginnings in Poland and his early years in New York and Chicago. How his appointment to the Naval Academy was a chance thing and not something that he sought. But most important it covers his military life from graduation from the academy in 1922 until his retirement in 1982. During that 60 years of service his perseverance led to the very successful Naval Nuclear Propulsion program. It was amazing how he overcame the red tape and politics to achieve something so revolutionary. The book also covers how difficult the man could be. Very few of the shipyard executives, scientist and especially his fellow Navy officers wanted to work with him. He was, however, respected and his engineering practices continue to guide the program. In the end, ADM Rickover was a difficult and proud man but you can't argue with his results.

[Derek · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent account of a deeply impressive man. Necessarily long on the negotiation and politicking of a very distinguished naval engineering career, I found it a bit dull and lacking analysis of the significance of Rickover's career.

[Nate Huston · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was the author's third book about Rickover and his admiration for the subject shows throughout the book. Unfortunately, that means the reader is treated to a portrait of a man painted with a very light touch. By all accounts, Rickover was an extremely challenging man to work for, with, or over. While the author acknowledges this in passing, the interpersonal relationships that must have had a significant effect throughout his extraordinarily long career must have had more of an impact than is portrayed in the book. While I'm not looking for dirt, per se, interpersonal relationships are critical when managing a program as complex as nuclear propulsion.

As opposed to Sheehan's book on Rickover, Duncan's near-obsession with Rickover leads the reader to believe that he was nearly a one-man army of organization, without whom nuclear propulsion in the Navy would have been doomed to failure. While Rickover's importance to its development is admittedly enormous, there were undoubtedly other major players who had a hand in it. A reader looking for an in-depth account of nuclear propulsion development will receive it, but from only one angle. I suspect a significant portion of the story is missing. With that said, it is clear how enormously complex the development was and the reader is told of a significant number of obstacles and barriers that had to be overcome, if only to show how well Rickover accomplished such feats.

Be that as it may, this is a biography and as such, it would be disingenuous to expect an all-encompassing history of technological development. Even so, a biography ought to explore all aspects of a person in depth, and this account left me wanting more.

[Marce Scarbrough · Rating 3 out of 5]

Admiral Rickover is a fascinating figure in the history of the modern navy. This book touches on, but does not really explore why this is so. The author does a good job of fleshing out the details of who Rickover was, but doesn't really get into why he was. Someday, someone is going to write the definitive story of the Admiral's life, his opposition within the navy, how he dealt with Congress and his vision for a nuclear future. That is the book I really want to read.