Hood and Bismarck by David Mearns, Rob White, 0752220357, Lowest Book Price Finder

Customer Reviews:

Brilliant

HMS Hood and the German ship Bismarck fought one of the last battleship clashes ever. In the following decades the Hood especially was forgotten by many but some decided to go and look for the wreck. This book deals with the search but also the history of both ships leading to their legendary clash and the British chase of the Bismarck after the destruction of the Hood. It is very readable although the changing between history and the present between chapters is perhaps a bit stunting to its flow.

An Epic Battle, An Epic Search

On May 24, 1941, HMS Prince of Wales and the battlecruiser HMS Hood, pride of the British navy, intercepted the German battleship Bismarck and her escort in the Denmark Strait near Greenland. In just a few moments, Hood was blown up by shell fire from the Bismarck and the Prince of Wales was heavily damaged. Despite the wrenching loss of its flagship, the Royal Navy maintained its dogged pursuit of the Bismarck, fatally damaging and finally sinking her a few days later.

The chapters in Hood and Bismarck alternate between an historical description of the two ships and their battle and the assembly of a modern expedition to search for both of them. Bismarck had been located by Dr. Robert Ballard's team in 1989, but the location was kept secret; Hood remained lost in the cold waters of the North Atlantic.

The expedition lead by David Mearns successfully relocated the wreck of the Bismarck and then went on to find the shattered remains of the Hood. The description of how the wrecks were found makes very interesting reading, and the evidence gathered by the expedition offers some interesting perspectives on some old questions: why did the Hood explode and sink so quickly, and was the Bismarck scuttled by her crew or sunk by her opponents?

I agree with the other reviewers that the book lacks the remarkable artist's conceptions of the "shipwreck as a whole" that are customary in Dr. Ballard's books (in particular, his "The Discovery of the Bismarck", published in 1990). On the whole, however, Hood and Bismarck is very well-researched and written and the analysis and crisp photographs make up for the missing "big picture" paintings. Moreover, the book successfully captures the very human dimension of the struggle between the Royal Navy and the Kriegsmarine--the very few survivors of the Hood and the Bismarck play a moving role in the search for these sunken ships and in the laying of memorial plaques on their remains.

Well written but visually lacking

This account of the long overdue expedition to explore HMS Hood, with the re-visit to Bismarck has begun the process of providing some valuable answers to the the many questions surrounding those fateful days in May 1941. Some misconceptions about both ships can safely be put to rest, providing the ongoing analysis of the footage and data collected is supportive.

My only disappointment is with the illustrations. Although the photgraphs - especially of Bismarck- are excellent, the lack of artist-generated images of Hood's wreck, as Dr. Ballard provided for Bismarck in his book, is unfortunate. Even if producing them had delayed the book's launch it would have been worth the wait. Side-scan sonar images and diagrams do not do much for the untrained reader.

The text is easily readable, wisely concise in its account of the sea chase which has been covered so many times before, and obviously heart-felt. The authors have suceeded in maintaining the human face to the tragedy of both vessels.

"Hood And Bismarck" is a must-have for anyone keenly interested in the subject. I look forward to the further publications on the expedition's findings.

Dissapointing

I have given this 3 stars mainly because of the surprising lack of coverage of the wrecks. The Photos of the Hood are extremely poor very small and difficult to place into context. The pictures of the Bismark are better. Having said this the majority of the book which covers the history of the ships and engagement and the story of the expedition is as good as any I have read. I guess I wanted more on the condition of the wreck of the Hood. I guess I will have to wait till his next book comes out

An interesting account of the expedition

A must have for anyone interested in the subject.
I was very interested in the expeditions findings and this book has probably raised more questions than it answered.
Don't expect a book on the lines of Dr Ballards as this books lacks the illustrations and photo coverage of "The discovery of the Bismarck".

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