One of Our Submarines
K. C. Jordan (Maps) London: Rupert Hart-Davis, 1952. Third Impression [stated]. Hardcover. Format is 5.5 inches by 8.75 inches. Illustrated endpapers. ink notations inside front cover and on fep. Ex-library with usual library markings. Cover worn and soiled. Edges worn and rubbed. Corners bumped. Spine lettering faded. Foreword by Admiral Sir. George Creasy, Commander-in-Chief, Home Fleet. Illustrations. Maps. Edward Preston "Teddy" Young, DSO, DSC & Bar (17 November 1913 – 28 January 2003), was a British submariner and publisher. In 1935, he joined the then new publishers Penguin Books and was responsible for designing the cover scheme used by Penguin for many years as well as drawing the original penguin logo. During World War II he served in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (RNVR) and became the first British RNVR officer to command a submarine. Having written his wartime biography, One of Our Submarines, in 1952, he later wrote several other books. Young was appointed to the RNVR on 12 April 1940 and underwent initial training at HMS King Alfred, the main RNVR shore establishment at Hove in Sussex. Young volunteered and was accepted for service into submarines. He was required to undertake a period of service on a surface ship, so Young joined HMS Atherstone on patrol in the North Sea. He was lucky in that both the commanding officer and First Lieutenant of Atherstone had served in submarines and were able to impart a lot of knowledge to Young. Young became the first executive branch officer of the RNVR to enter the submarine service. After several operational patrols in the North Sea, H28 became part of Seventh Submarine Flotilla. “[Young] immortalized his distinguished war service as a submariner in the bestselling autobiography, One of Our Submarines . . . [a] gripping memoir.”—The Guardian “In the very highest rank of books about the last war. Submarines are thrilling beasts, and Edward Young tells of four years’ adventures in them in a good stout book with excitement on every page. He writes beautifully, economically and with humor, and in the actions he commands he manages to put the reader at the voice-pipe and the periscope so that sometimes the tension is so great that one has to put the book down.”—The Sunday Times. “No disrespect to the big screen, but you can’t beat a book for digging out the details. And the details feel even better if the author is someone who’s been there. So, at least take the time to read Das Boot, the autobiographical novel by Lothar-Günther Buchheim. And, for the British perspective, read One of Our Submarines by Edward Young.”—The Mouldy Books. Condition: Fair / No dust jacket present.
Keywords: Royal Navy, Submarines, H. M. Submarine Storm, Arctic Circle, Malacca Straits, Penang, Convoy, Hydroplane, Periscope, Diving, Surfacing, H. M.S. Forth, Torpedo, Oerlikon, Andaman Islands
[Book #85088]
Price: $42.50