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The Wolf Pack
Based on the revelations of Kapitanleutnant Christian Jungblutt, Captain of the most celebrated U-Boat of them all - the U-69.
192 pages, Paperback
First published March 20, 1986
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
June 8, 2024
With the 80th Anniversary of D Day coming up I felt the urge to read some dramatic wartime accounts. These tales of the German U boats came to mind so I picked out the first in this acclaimed series.
Despite having read Das Boot and watched the recounted action on TV my mind and memory must have lessoned the horror of life on a submarine like taking a paracetamol.
However, I think it is more about the writing in this account of U 69 that has brought the reality home to me again now.
The drama at sea, trying to limp back to base. The action of engagement with the enemy, the forced submergence and claustrophobic feelings at the bottom of the sea. Under attack and running out of air and hope, the book is all action, fraught with danger and one depth charge away from oblivion.
What marks the story out for me is the intensity both in describing the combat and the playing out of the various characters involved. Whether as career officers or fighting men, to political struggles and some effort to avoid going to sea.
Beautifully played out against real historical events this is very much a fictional account of the human interactions. Capturing the emotions, battle fatigue and drunken shore leave encounters with MPs and female pleasures.
It reads like the war comics I read in my younger days mostly then, of American GI’s and army raids. The action never lets up and the different voices of the crew all blend into a rich and absorbing cocktail of danger and of an awaiting death.
The staged battles and exchange of fire would mean less without the overarching historical context. This for me allows the reality of war to play out. I read here of the futility of it all, the terrible waste of life, mostly young men and because it is so well written I understand better the suffering and bravery on all sides of the fighting.
This isn’t a book that glorifies in war but draws a curtain back to demonstrate its brutality, motivations and why on 6th June 1944 the allies invaded Europe to try and end it.
Despite having read Das Boot and watched the recounted action on TV my mind and memory must have lessoned the horror of life on a submarine like taking a paracetamol.
However, I think it is more about the writing in this account of U 69 that has brought the reality home to me again now.
The drama at sea, trying to limp back to base. The action of engagement with the enemy, the forced submergence and claustrophobic feelings at the bottom of the sea. Under attack and running out of air and hope, the book is all action, fraught with danger and one depth charge away from oblivion.
What marks the story out for me is the intensity both in describing the combat and the playing out of the various characters involved. Whether as career officers or fighting men, to political struggles and some effort to avoid going to sea.
Beautifully played out against real historical events this is very much a fictional account of the human interactions. Capturing the emotions, battle fatigue and drunken shore leave encounters with MPs and female pleasures.
It reads like the war comics I read in my younger days mostly then, of American GI’s and army raids. The action never lets up and the different voices of the crew all blend into a rich and absorbing cocktail of danger and of an awaiting death.
The staged battles and exchange of fire would mean less without the overarching historical context. This for me allows the reality of war to play out. I read here of the futility of it all, the terrible waste of life, mostly young men and because it is so well written I understand better the suffering and bravery on all sides of the fighting.
This isn’t a book that glorifies in war but draws a curtain back to demonstrate its brutality, motivations and why on 6th June 1944 the allies invaded Europe to try and end it.
September 7, 2023
Life Aboard a U-Boat
It's a bit strange to read about a U-Boat crew because you don't want them to win the battles. That said, conditions on board the submarines were grim and far from glorious. This book is a quick read with non-stop action & will probably appeal to men more than women. (The cameo appearances of Winston Churchill & Ian Fleming were fascinating.) One of my uncles served on a submarine for 3 years in WW II and he refused to discuss it for the rest of his life. Now I know why.
It's a bit strange to read about a U-Boat crew because you don't want them to win the battles. That said, conditions on board the submarines were grim and far from glorious. This book is a quick read with non-stop action & will probably appeal to men more than women. (The cameo appearances of Winston Churchill & Ian Fleming were fascinating.) One of my uncles served on a submarine for 3 years in WW II and he refused to discuss it for the rest of his life. Now I know why.
March 6, 2024
Quick and not very interesting
April 12, 2024
A good fun pulp read set in WWII U-boat story. Typical Leo Kessler gritty plot with some gripping moments of action.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews