The Admirals

February 6, 2012
Only four men have risen to five-star admiral in the U.S. Navy: Chester Nimitz, Ernest King, William Leahy, and William Halsey. Their careers began at the turn of the 20th century and culminated in WWII. Each had a different personality; each played a different role. Halsey was the profane, hard-driving sea dog. Nimitz, imperturbable and measured, developed as arguably history’s greatest naval strategist. The abrasive King spoke eloquently for sea power while a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Leahy, as discreet as he was blunt-spoken, was chief of staff and unofficial national security adviser to Franklin Roosevelt and Harry Truman. The four had in common “an enduring sense of duty, mission, and love of country,” and shared an unusually high level of ability and a clear understanding of the military’s place in a republic. Freelance historian Borneman (1812) demonstrates comprehensive command of published and unpublished sources, fingertip understanding of the period, and a polished writing style in this unique collective biography of the four men who “with a combination of nimble counsel, exasperating ego, studied patience, and street-fighter tactics” shaped the modern U.S. Navy to win WWII at sea. 16 pages of b&w photos; 11 maps.

March 15, 2012
Prolific author and historian Borneman (Rival Rails: The Race to Build America's Greatest Transcontinental Railroad, 2010, etc.) fashions a comparative history involving four five-star admirals whose tireless efforts and relative strengths tell the moving story of triumph and tragedy during World War II. The author chose his subjects--Chester Nimitz, William Halsey, William Leahy and Ernest King--because they were the first and only five-star fleet admirals, when five stars were first authorized by Congress in 1944. The four were key to rebuilding the fleet after the debacle of Pearl Harbor: Leahy, the oldest of the Annapolis grads, already a proponent of building up the interwar gunnery as commander of destroyers, was the first to earn an admiral stripe, an early advocate of the "big ship-big gun" strategy; King, formerly head of the postgraduate Naval School, a steely, volatile leader, was appointed commander in chief of the U.S. Fleet after the Japanese attack, eventually muscling out co-consul "Betty" Stark and demonstrating astute strategic insight in dividing command between the North Atlantic and Pacific; Nimitz, who cut his teeth on submarines, was the consummate commander, ferociously exacting but devoted to his men, appointed commander in chief of the Pacific Fleet and proved bold and decisive from one Pacific strike to another; and "Bull" Halsey, a scrappy fighter, commander of destroyers, lauded for his "can-do" leadership in the Solomons--though he endured questioning over his handling of the attack at Leyte in 1944. Borneman deftly manipulates multiple narrative strands and a wealth of detail. He vividly fleshes out the numerous vain, ambitious men vying for power at the top and examines their important decisions and lasting ramifications. An accomplished, readable history lesson.

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December 1, 2011

The United States helped win World War II through the force of its navy. Here, respected historian Borneman explains how Chester Nimitz, William Halsey, William Leahy, and Ernest King--the only men in U.S. history to achieve the five-star rank of Fleet Admiral--worked together to make that happen. Great for your World War II buffs.

Copyright 2011 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 1, 2012
In this collective biography, maritime buffs may follow the careers of three well-known leaders of the U.S. Navy in WWII: its chief, Ernest King; Pacific Fleet commander Chester Nimitz; and famed task-force commander William Halsey. An admiral whom Borneman also includes, William Leahy, served on the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Recounting their routes to the naval academy and the first vessels they captained, Borneman details their formative duties in WWI (or, in Leahy's case, the Spanish-American War) and the influence those experiences had on their views on what capital ship the navy should be built around for a future world war, the battleship or the aircraft carrier? Ending the debate with Pearl Harbor's decisive answer, Borneman sends his quartet forth to war, narrating the events that fell into the purviews of their positions, from issuing strategic directives to undertaking the naval battles and amphibious campaigns in the Pacific theater. Borneman's meticulous research into these admirals will engage readers interested in styles of naval command.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)