Devil Boats/PT War

by William B. Breuer

Book Overview

Here are the stirring adventures of the Buccaneers of the South Pacific, the PT sailors who dodged Japanese bullets in their high-powered plywood Mosquito boats. From the downing of the first enemy aircraft minutes after Pearl Harbor to John F. Kennedy's heroics aboard the doomed PT 109, Devil Boats honors the brave men who turned the tide of World War II.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 051509367X
• ISBN13: 9780515093674
• Release Date: January 1988
• Publisher: Jove Books
• Length: 219 Pages
• Weight: 0.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 4.2" x 6.8"

Customer Reviews

Ivy leaguers and jocks trade in their daddy's yachts.

Devil Boats is a chronicle, albeit not a voluminous one, of the exploits of the men of the PT "Devil" boats of WWII. William Breuer tells the highlights of the adventures of these Ivy league, jock sailors who traded their yachts and sports careers for the dangers of the Pacific Theater. Breuer's story follows the course of PT boat action from Pearl Harbor and MacArthur's escape to the sad days at war's end when a indifferent U.S. Navy burned and scuttled much of what remained of the storied boats. Devil Boats also recounts the legacies of many of the crews of the PT squadrons who in later life would go on to fill the highest offices in government and civilian realms. Not the scholarly work that researchers often seek, Devil Boats remains however and iconic book reminiscent of most WWII stories published in the few decades that followed. Overall, a fun and short read. REVIEW EVERY BOOK YOU READ, AUTHORS DESERVE YOUR OPINIONS.

Good Overview of PT Boat Stories

Historian William Breuer has produced a popular, anecdotal history of the PT Boat in WWII. It's a good, enjoyable read that gives the reader a broad overview of what the boats did and what kind of people manned them. If you are interested in PT Boats, this is an excellent place to start, but keep in mind you are skimming the surface.Highly recommended as a companion book is Victor Chun's pictorial history of American PT Boats in WWII.For more detailed PT stories, try Dick Keresey's "PT-105" or track down a copy of "At Close Quarters."