Now I had made a concerted effort to move away from war ditty's for a while, but this jumped out at me in the library and I had to read it, especially as not too long ago I had read two submarine books which made reference to this story. I had high hopes for it, mainly as it wasn't written by an American so there was not likely to be any flowery references and Hollywood style descriptions. And I wasn't disappointed, however considering the title, there is little about the
Belgrano and the
Conqueror (the sub who sunk her) and their actual battle as it tends to provide a more historical lead in about the
Falklands/Ilas Malvinas and the political and Defence strategy. But even so, these tit bits of information are invaluable to getting the whole story pieced together as well as creating more and more tension as the moment nears.
Unlike previous storys I had read, this covered off very well witness accounts from both the British and Argentinian forces, and those firing the torpedoes, and those left swimming in the drink, and unlike other tales, a lot came from the the ratings, not ranking or commanding officers which had a good truthful spin on it.
It is very well written, and so easy to read - I read it within four days, just couldn't put it down. And other than some 'stock standard' photos in it, there are a few that I had never seen and some curious ones thrown in as light humour.
It isn't quite a
Pursuit, Operation Cerberus or
Battle of Jutland in tension, dramatics, or historical longevity, but a gripping tale that once again had me thinking, "How the hell did we win?"
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