Class of '47: Annapolis-America's Best

by Jack Sheehan

Book Overview

Class of '47 poses and attempts to answer the question was the Class of '47 the greatest class to ever emerge from the United States Naval Academy. Through profiles of notable graduates ranging from... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1932173676
• ISBN13: 9781932173673
• Release Date: January 2007
• Publisher: Stephens Press
• Length: 280 Pages
• Weight: 1.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.4" x 9.4"

Customer Reviews

An awe inspiring book

A quote from Ambassador Vernon Weaver: "It's foolish to ponder whether our class was the best, but I can tell you that as a class, we did all right for ourselves." While this might not be the understatement of the century - it certainly ranks in the top 100. "Class of `47" by Jack Sheehan, details the lives of but a few of the notables of the members of the United States Naval Academy (Annapolis) of 1947. Former President Jimmy Carter, Admiral William Crowe, former CIA director Stansfield Turner, Medal of Honor Winner James Stockdale and billionaire investment banker Jackson Stephens were all members of this class that "did all right" - and their lives are detailed with great respect in this book by Sheehan. As I started this book, I was the most interested to read about Jimmy Carter. Though I was too young while he was president to know too much about him - I've since developed a great respect for his intelligence, warmth and desire to correct the disastrous path our country is on. I recently read "Our Endangered Values" by Carter and same like (and agree with) this great man even more. Reading about his life in this book was very interesting...and I was impressed yet again with his sense of humility. While Carter has achieved things in his life that most people don't even dream of, he accepts these honors only as incentives to do more, tools he can use to further the goal of peace. The chapter on Jimmy Carter ends with a very touching personal note from the author. "As the interview ends, the writer looks around the room for his son J.P., who had been exploring bookshelves and peering out the window at some baby ducks. Not seeing the boy right away, he is concerned that he might have drifted into another part of the building, but then he notices President Carter smiling and nodding towards the back of the room. The boy has taken off his shoes and is sleeping soundly on a long couch...'No matter how hard you campaign, you just can't win every vote,' says Jimmy Carter, with that unmistakable smile that lifted him all the way from Plains, Georgia, to the most powerful position on earth." As much as I enjoyed that chapter, I was absolutely engrossed in the chapter about Admiral James Stockdale. By the time he agreed to be Ross Perot's running mate in 1992 (and the details on this were fascinating), I was old enough to be paying attention. Seems like I only had a small portion of the story as I watched his debate performance at that time, and as I read about this man's life and all he endured, my face burned with shame for what I had thought (and said). Now that I know more of his story, I am in awe of James Stockdale. As Sheehan visits the Stockdale home, he writes, "From the outside, this charming abode is not unlike many others lining the street on this tony little island off the San Diego coast. From the inside, well, that's a different story entirely - a riveting story, in fact, of love and pain, of heroism and struggle, of sep

One Great School Class

I suppose that there is no statistical proof, but there are ceratin classes at schools where everything seems to happen. The class of 1915 at West Point is known as the 'Class the Stars Fell On.' Of the 164 graduates, 59 earned at least one star (attained the rank of general), the most of any class in the history of the United States Military Academy. Two reached the second highest rank, Eisenhower and Bradley. The Class of 1947 at the Naval Academy at Annapolis was another and this book is on some of its most distinguished graduates: Stansfield Turner (Director CIA), William Crowe (Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff), Jim Stockdale (Medal of Honor), Jimmy Carter (President of the United States, Nobel Peace Price Laureate). In addition there are brief summaries of other members of the class. The book is a reminder that there is still rom min this country for the old values of duty, honor, country.