Up Periscope!: British Submarines at War

by David Masters

Up Periscope!, first published in 1943, is a fast-paced account of submarines of the British Royal Navy during World War II. Each of the book's 21 chapters presents an action or adventure of military significance or representative of those experienced by the submarine fleet during the war as seen by the captain and his crew. Included too are depictions of life aboard the submarines, fighting and hunting methods, rescuing survivors of sunken ships, and stories of chase and escape. Featured submarines include the Spearfish, Triumph, Tigris, Sealion, Tuna, Utmost, and Cachalot.

182 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 1, 2015

Reviews

[Paul J. Petersen · Rating 4 out of 5]

2nd time around

I read this book as a teenager sometime during the 1960's. This book fostered an interest in WWII submarine stories that continues to this day. I like military history and in recent times there is a large selection of books covering historical events as well as fiction based on various events. So in my search for the next book I came across this familiar title and decided to read it again, 50 years later. In the second reading I realized how story telling has evolved. Up Periscope now reads old. This book records events and after several chapters it becomes repetitious and seems remote and detached. Basically this is a collection of short stories of actual WWII submarine action based on military records. Some chapters are interesting to read, others not so much. It was a good book for its time, but now there are better reads.

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it. Just as good as when I read it as a kid.

Loved it. Just as good as when I read it as a kid. Almost reads as a Clancy-like documentary. Good insight into WW2 submariners.