Selected Readings

Baer, George W. One Hundred Years of Seapower: The U.S. Navy, 1890–1990. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press, 1994. A masterfully written, comprehensive history of U.S. naval strategy from the time of Alfred Thayer Mahan to the Persian Gulf War.

Barlow, Jeffrey G. Revolt of the Admirals: The Fight for Naval Aviation, 1945–1950. Washington: Naval Historical Center, 1994. An inspiring account of naval leaders who put their careers on the line for what they believed was for the good of the nation and the Navy. (GPO S/N 008-046-00158-8)

Buell, Thomas B. The Quiet Warrior: A Biography of Admiral Raymond A. Spruance. Boston: Little, Brown, 1974. The author covers the life and career of one of the Navy’s great battle leaders of World War II.

Gray, Colin S., and Roger W. Barnett, eds. Seapower and Strategy. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1989. Essays by the editors and other strategic thinkers on the evolution of naval strategy and its impact on World War I, World War II, and other conflicts.

Halpern, Paul G. A Naval History of World War I. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1994. A comprehensive, one-volume treatment of the First World War at sea, which covers all of the major navies and theaters of war.

Johnson, Lou Anne. Making Waves: A Woman in This Man’s Navy. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1986. The author discusses her experiences and those of other women in the modern U.S. Navy.

Labaree, Benjamin, William Fowler Jr., John B. Hattendorf, Jeffrey J. Safford, Edward W. Sloane, and Andrew W. German. America and the Sea: A Maritime History. Mystic, Conn.: Mystic Seaport Publications, 1998. A monumental study of America’s maritime past by a number of distinguished scholars who discuss the evolution of America’s oceangoing commerce, merchant marine, shipbuilding and fishing industries, and the U.S. Navy.

Long, David F. Gold Braid and Foreign Relations: Diplomatic Activities of U.S. Naval Officers, 1798–1883. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1988. A readable history of the Navy’s involvement in the conduct of American foreign policy during the age of sail and steam.

Marolda, Edward J. By Sea, Air, and Land: An Illustrated History of the U.S. Navy and the War in Southeast Asia. Washington: Naval Historical Center, 1994. An overview of the U.S. Navy’s 25-year involvement in the Vietnam War, presented with a concise narrative and over 500 photographs, paintings, maps, and charts. (GPO S/N 008-046-00145-6)

Marolda, Edward J., and Robert J. Schneller Jr. Shield and Sword: The U.S. Navy and the Persian Gulf War. Washington: Naval Historical Center, 1998. A thorough, award-winning history of U.S. and allied naval operations during Desert Shield and Desert Storm. Includes photographs, original maps, and charts. (GPO S/N 008-046-00183-9)

Miller, Edward S. War Plan Orange: The U.S. Strategy to Defeat Japan, 1897–1945. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1991. This work covers the development of the primary American plan for war in the Pacific and the execution of that plan during the Second World War.

Morison, Samuel E. The Two Ocean War: A Short History of the United States Navy in the Second World War. Boston: Little, Brown, 1963. A masterful, easily read summary of Admiral Morison’s classic 15-volume history of World War II.

Musicant, Ivan. Divided Waters: The Naval History of the Civil War. New York: Harper Collins Publishers, 1995. This especially readable history covers the Union and Confederate struggle to control the rivers, coasts, and oceans during the epic American Civil War.

Schneller, Robert J., Jr. A Quest for Glory: A Biography of Rear Admiral John A. Dahlgren. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1996. The author describes how Dahlgren, the "father of American naval ordnance," used his considerable bureaucratic skills to persuade the Navy Department to adopt his innovative ideas on weapons development.

Sokolsky, Joel J. Seapower in the Nuclear Age: The United States Navy and NATO, 1949–1980. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1991. A detailed history of the Navy’s part in the development of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

Stillwell, Paul, ed. Golden Thirteen: Recollections of the First Black Naval Officers. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1993. This work describes how the first black naval officers overcame institutional and other prejudices to serve the nation in World War II.

Sumida, Jon Tetsuro. Inventing Grand Strategy and Teaching Command: The Classic Works of Alfred Thayer Mahan Reconsidered. Washington: Woodrow Wilson Center Press/Johns Hopkins University Press, 1997. A detailed examination and fresh analysis of Mahan’s works by a noted scholar and naval historian.

Sweetman, Jack, ed. Great American Naval Battles. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1998. Authoritative essays by a distinguished team of historians who discuss nineteen of the most important battles fought by American naval forces.

Weir, Gary E. Forged in War: The Naval-Industrial Complex and American Submarine Construction, 1940–1961. Washington: Naval Historical Center, 1993. A study of the partnership between the Navy, industry, and science shaped by World War II and responsible for producing the postwar U.S. submarine fleet. (GPO S/N 008-046-00151-1)

Zumwalt, Elmo R., Jr., and Elmo Zumwalt III with John Pekkanen. My Father, My Son. New York: Macmillan, 1986. A moving story of how two naval officers dealt with the pain and suffering of war and its aftermath.