Submarines

July 1, 2007
These two volumes make logical additions to the "Weapons and Warfare" series, written by expert military historians and focusing on major weapons systems. In "Submarines", Fontenoy (curator, North Carolina Maritime Museum; "Aircraft Carriers") describes the development of submarines within the context of technology, tactical and strategic doctrine, and political impact. He illustrates the influence of submarines on naval command structures and the consequences of their development on strategic, military, and political decisions during the last 90 years. The bulk of the work is made up of a section with detailed information (by nationality) on more than 400 different types of submarines built since 1888from the steam-driven models used in World War I to today's nuclear-powered classesincluding technical specifications and the number of vessels produced for each type listed.

In "Artillery", Kinard ("Lafayette of the South: Prince Camille de Polignac and the American Civil War") presents a concise history of artillery weapons, offering detailed descriptions of all technical innovations and developments in the field of military artillery. He covers artillery's impact on the battlefield, from the ancient times of catapults and ballistas to artillery developed during the second half of the 20th century. The last chapters contain specifications for more than 700 field, coastal, heavy, self-propelled, and antiaircraft artillery pieces, from the late 19th to the late 20th century, including date of adoption, caliber, and maximum range. BOTTOM LINE These two very specialized, well-written works are ideal for military history experts and students. Best suited for specialized history collections at special and large academic and public libraries. ["Submarines" (ISBN 978-1-85109-568-1) and "Artillery" (ISBN 978-1-85109-561-2) are both available as ebooks.Ed.]Luis J. Gonzalez, Hunter Coll. Libs., New York

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