Stealth at Sea: The History of the Submarine

by Dan van der Vat

Documenting the history of the submarine from its origins in the sixteenth century through the disintegration of the Soviet Union, a world authority examines its importance in the two World Wars, the Cold War nuclear arms race, and the future.

Genres: Military Fiction, History, Naval History

374 pages, Hardcover

First published April 3, 1995

About the author

Daniel Francis Jeroen van der Vat, born in Holland and educated in Britain he worked as a journalist for British newspapers including The Times and The Guardian.

His books on twentieth-century history include many works on Naval history.

Reviews

[Mirrani · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am far from an expert on anything dealing with the military. Though my family has ties to the military, I have no personal experience, but I am always curious about history, so I was very excited to pick up this book. While I did enjoy the exploration of history and found even more respect for those who serve on submarines, the book as a whole wasn't geared to the casual observer. I felt as if not having any background or knowledge on the subject was a little bit of a hindrance to my enjoyment of the experience, since most of the book was geared to statistics, technological aspects or battle strategy. I am glad that I picked it up, I am certainly glad that the book exists, as you don't often find books on this subject whit this much attention to detail, but it took me a lot longer to get through it than I felt it should. This is a very important book to have if it is your specialty or a subject that is of special meaning to you. It spans the entire history of all types of ships that could fall into the category of "submarine" and covers many important breakthroughs and battles that have forever changed the design of the most secretive ship at sea.