In the Course of Duty: The Heroic Mission of the USS Batfish

I've visited the Batfish twice, once in the '80s with our sons and then a couple of years ago with our grandsons, so when I ran across this book (and since I'm a World War II history nut!) it was a "must read". I suppose I had read the history of the sub when I visited the site in Muskogee but hadn't fully understood what heroes the ship and her crew had been. Don Keith does an excellent job of keeping the reader fully involved in the hunt and it's obvious he had a good technical advisor or had researched sub lingo. I remember the battle to keep the Batfish at Muskogee and was disappointed that the state might lose a piece of national history. Reading what had to occur from the submariners and other interested parties I'm grateful that they never gave up. The park has expanded to display a lot of other WW II articles but on a visit two years ago we were disappointed that the "gift shop", such as it was, didn't offer much in the way of Batfish memorabilia. We had promised our grandsons sailor caps just like I had bought our sons years before so they could have their pictures made inside the sub posing like the real Batfish crew but nothing like that was available. Those kinds of things help youngsters feel the impact of what this great ship was all about. Great book, well-written and easy to read - thanks, Mr Keith, for a job well done and to the crew of the Batfish, you have our eternal gratitude.

Don't know why I ordered this book but am so glad I did. Once I started reading, I found it very well written, entertaining and in parts, hair-raising. It captures the zeitgeist of the crew when the eerie sound of a torpedo rushes past the hull of the boat, or the shattering thunder of an exploding depth charge shakes the sub, barely missing blowing it up in the sea as well as the urgency of mechanical problems that seriously threaten the submarine and the lives of those on board. The horror is mixed with humor and the crew is presented in such a way that you are able to relate to what they must have felt in their darkest moments of terror as well as in their great joy when victorious over enemy vessels. Also well done, the foibles and dilemmas of getting it to that landlocked bean field in Oklahoma where it finally stands as a proud memorial to the WWII battles at sea and the incredibly brave men who fought them. Do put this one on your "must read list". It's a winner!

My main fodder is nonfiction historical, both European and American, so this book is right up my alley. Entertaining and well written with lots of detail, the way I like it. Yes, I'm female and read a lot of Jane Austen romance etc., but my favorite movie is Hunt for Red October..... go figure. You'll like this book, too.

Don Keith has captured the history as well as the personalities of the crew of the Batfish. His writing style perfectly complements the events of her service during WWII and the remarkable but quirky way she wound up in Muskogee, OK. at War Memorial Park. A fun read as well as an emotional one.

Over many years, I have read ever book on the boats that I could get my hands on. Without reservation "In The Course Of Duty" is in the top three of the best. The book takes you through some of the most daring situations that a reader will ever experience. And, the placing the boat in an Oklahoma Bean Field gives you an insight on the guts and wisdom of Submariners past and present.