Mary Fowler has written a book which suceeds admirably on so many levels that it should be read by so many readers! Part biography/history/mystery and research, with heaps of detective spadework and a monumentally enormous catharsis to work through! For someone as unwashed with things sumersible as she, this is a fine work of the "Silent Service"'s contribution to an overwhelming victory against Japan. If I had a minor quibble (I have!), it is her blind faith in Japanese Maritime bookeeping in time of war and as the loser at that. The JANAC's balancing of books is wide open to question, a job Clay Blair should have taken on some thirty years ago, at least it has been addressed by John D. Alden at long last. Minor gripe, this book is so fantastic and should be read by ANYONE that has ever had a family! Though my father came through World War II without a scratch, Ms. Fowler has helped me with why he NEVER talked about his experiences much. In closing, BUY this book! Don't get it at the library (I LOVE libraries), Buy it! Mary Lee Coe Fowler deserves every penny this fine, fine book earns!

Whether your reading interest lies primarily with memoir, history, or investigative journalism, Full Fathom Five: A Daughter's Search by Mary Lee Coe Fowler will satisfy. Fowler's research is masterful, her writing consistently clear and direct, as she navigates the reader through complex details about submarine operations. The author's personal journey toward understanding her father's choices and his sense of duty is deeply moving, never descending to the sentimental. When, following her interviews with some of her father's old friends and shipmates, Fowler suspects their memories of "Red" Coe may be somewhat glorified, she is scrupulous in balancing these reports with more objective sources. This book is an outstanding addition to the vast library of World War II literature, certainly because of the merits described above, but also because Fowler has provided the world with an intimate window on the men who served in the branch of service most ignored by other writers.

After all this time and so much that has been written and filmed about WWII, how could there be more to tell? But, Mary Lee has done it. In a very well-crafted way, she has brought together disparate elements of this WWII story and turned it into a captivating, can't-put-it-down read. This personal journey to find the father and the family she never knew reads like a novel, a romance, and a mystery.

This is a real story but more than a personal narrative or memoir, it is a story on many levels; war and remembrance, the life of a naval submarine officer, and a daughter's journey to find the truth about what happened to the father she never knew because he died before she was born. To pull this all together and reach the end of her journey, Mary Lee used every available source to gather information. A painstaking task of dedication and fortitude.

Like many other war orphans her mother never spoke of him so Mary Lee didn't ask her questions about him. The questions would haunt her into middle age when she was finally ready to confront them. For herself, and a place to start, she needed to know about her parents before he died; about their youth, how they met, their early life together. Weaving the personal with the history and development of the submarine service, naval strategy, and with the cooperation of the former enemy, the Japanese, who provided vital clues and records, Mary Lee found out what happened to her father. Putting together the book revealed the man, the father, the hero.

The author's candor and insight about her discoveries give the reader insight into what it is like to lose someone you love in war. A devastating, life-changing loss that families have been facing every day for the last five years

Although this is about a submariner Commander father, who was lost several months before his daughter's birth, the author's arresting account of bringing her father's character, devotion to duty, and his love of family back to real life, could apply to many "orphans," children of World War II who have experienced similar emotional detachments and eventual reconnections through persistent, arduous researches.
The writing is First-Class, and should endure among the great biographical accounts of lost service personnel during "the Greatest War".

As a teen growing up in the '50's, I read every book I could on the Navy, and over the years have read many more. I had read many books on the "Silent Service", yet none captured the essence of the "crew" as did Full Fathom Five. This book was truly heartbreaking but also heartwarming.

She writes of growing up never really knowing her father . . . of being denied that knowledge by a cold, distant mother and an abusive alcoholic stepfather. When, after her mother's death, she discovered clues to her father and started a journey to learn of this and what he was. And, of how she had been shaped by this man.

Through her extensive research and interviews with old shipmates of her father, she is able to find the essence of him. She also comes to understand the essence of her mother and why she may have been the way she was.

The loss of her father and his crew and of her growing up not knowing him was heartbreaking, but the story of his courage and of her (and her siblings) journey getting to know him was truly heartwarming.

On a personal level I gained a knowledge of the men from the Navy generation just ahead of mine. Although I long stood in awe of them, through her book, I came to understand something of the "toughness" they often exhibited while attempting to train my generation of sailor. Were it not for them I would have never experienced my life long dream of a career in the Navy.

As a teen growing up in the '50's, I read every book I could on the Navy, and over the years have read many more. I had read many books on the "Silent Service", yet none captured the essence of the "crew" as did Full Fathom Five. This book was truly heartbreaking but also heartwarming.

She writes of growing up never really knowing her father . . . of being denied that knowledge by a cold, distant mother and an abusive alcoholic stepfather. When, after her mother's death, she discovered clues to her father and started a journey to learn of this and what he was. And, of how she had been shaped by this man.

Through her extensive research and interviews with old shipmates of her father, she is able to find the essence of him. She also comes to understand the essence of her mother and why she may have been the way she was.

The loss of her father and his crew and of her growing up not knowing him was heartbreaking, but the story of his courage and of her (and her siblings) journey getting to know him was truly heartwarming.

On a personal level I gained a knowledge of the men from the Navy generation just ahead of mine. Although I long stood in awe of them, through her book, I came to understand something of the "toughness" they often exhibited while attempting to train my generation of sailor. Were it not for them I would have never experienced I would never have experience my life long dream of a career in the Navy.

"Full Fathom Five" is a submarine story with a difference. Rather than a narative of facts and events, this story comes from the heart. It is the story of a daughter's search to know the father who was lost at sea before she was born. Through exhaustive research and conversations with those who knew him, she broke through barriers of silence, family grief and public preconceptions to discover a distinguished submarine captain and a father to be proud of. As the story of United States submarines "S39", "Skipjack" and "Cisco" during World War Two, "Full Fathom Five" will stand up to scrutiny by the most expert submarine sailor. But more than this, Ms Coe Fowler has brought the strands of three stories together into a single, well crafted narative. She has blended her own journey of discovery with the stories of her two parents. In so doing she has not only found her long lost father, but unlocked depths of her mother's life and character that she had never suspected before. This book also reveals the enduring and far reaching impact on their lives of those who lose a family member in war. "Full Fathom Five" is written with sensitivity and skill. As well as appealing to naval men and war historians, this book will be equally enjoyed by their wives and all who are interested in human journeys of discovery. "Full Fathom Five" is an engrossing narative and a most enjoyable read which I most heartily recommend.

Full Fathom Five: A Daughter's Search
I just finished reading Mary Lee Coe Fowler's book Full fathom Five. I have been collecting and reading books on Submarine Histories for over 40 years, and found this particular book to be way above most books on the subject. This is because Mary Fowler did not use other authors' books as her primary information source, but derived it from family, past friends and acquaintances of Capt Jim Coe. Mary's organization and cohesiveness was superb and made for easy and exciting reading. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would like to see more Submarine Histories written in her style. I sincerely recommend this book to anyone interested in the subject of Submarine History.
Sincerely, David G Davenport, Cape Elizabeth, Maine.

FULL FATHOM FIVE is a triumph! It's so impressive how Fowler was able to weave everything together and yet still maintain a narrative drive that pulls a reader along, as in the best of mysteries: it's quite a story, both well told and so very moving. It's uncanny how much Fowler's father resembles the poet Hart Crane, who was also lost at sea. This is a compelling read.

This is an extraordinary book. Buy it and read it now! The author takes you right into the control room aboard WWII subs with first person accounts and painstaking research from naval archives that make one appreciate the courage and sacrifices that the men who manned these boats made for us all. Her search for the father she never knew comes to life in subtle and tactile ways - the feel of her father's signature on a ships log paper preserved in the archives, the anecdote of a survifving and admiring crewmate - these make for an extraordinary account for the delight of the history buff or for those who appreciate the human yearning for a lost parent. A very special read!

Whether you read Full Fathom Five because of the story's subtitle - "A daughter's search" - or because you are a military history buff, or because you are a submarine veteran (or the wife or daughter of one), you will be more than satisfied.

Author Mary Lee Coe Fowler - born after the death of her father, World War II submarine skipper Commander Jim Coe - effectively brings him to life (in less than 300 pages) in this combination of memoir and history, using dozens of interviews, careful research, and a frank examination of how her own feelings about the Navy and things military evolved over the course of the book. But most of all how the reality of her father took shape.

After the death of her mother in the 1990s, a photograph of Fowler's father with her older brother and sister stirred old longings for him. From there she begins a ten-year journey to the completion of Full Fathom Five. The journey takes her through museums and archives, libraries and Navy bases. She draws from Japanese wartime history and detailed logs and records, as well as those of the US Navy. She brings along her older siblings - each with a slightly different need to have this story told. She talks to friends of her parents and veterans who served with and under her father.

The result is seamless: a beautifully written combination of history, journalism, humor, terrifying action, resulting in the picture of her father which emerges.

I was held by the story Fowler tells. I am retired now, but in my own five years in the Navy, followed by a professional career which included 20 years as a Navy contractor, I knew and worked with a number of former and present submarine officers - their service ranging from World War II to nuclear submarines. All of them would agree with me regarding the thoroughness of Fowler's research and the authenticity of the story which emerges. And everyone will be taken by the portrait she paints of a previously unknown father.

"Full Fathom Five" is an intriguing title with Shakespearian significance as author, Mary Lee Coe Fowler reveals. The book is written by this daughter on a personal search to know her real father. She poignantly shares perceptions of herself beginning as a small girl through adulthood, experiencing her father's absence from her life when he and his submarine crew are lost at sea during WWII.

Jim Coe, her father, was essentially an enigma, since she knew few stories about him around which she could fashion his image. During this search for her father's essence, even her view of her mother altered as this daughter gained new compassion for some parental attitudes she may have previously misunderstood.

The dynamics of the home she shared with her mother, other slightly older siblings, and a less than idyllic stepfather revolved around a world void of the persona of her father, Jim. She knew he had lived, gone to war and disappeared at sea. Could he possibly have known about and loved her, since she was born after he had returned to duty? What sort of person was he? How would those he actually knew describe him?

During the turbulent sixties she was maturing into a young woman as anti-Viet Nam War feelings rampantly swept our country. How does this thoughtful serious peace-loving person reconcile knowledge her unknown father was part of the military, the war machine? She was occupied with living her life based on beliefs and values that she could believe might be quite contrary to those of her father. Could she even honor and respect him?

Mid-life, this now mature professional writer, teacher, wife, mother, read lines from "The Tempest." Shakespeare's words became the catalyst motivating her to truly know her father. She began the odyssey that evolved into this book by talking, researching, contacting everyone she possibly could who knew Jim Coe. This was not a simple task since so many were no longer living, including her mother, other family relations, and intimate friends.

This unfolding story reflects on the daughter's feelings and thoughts as she gradually begins to formulate a picture of Jim Coe as seen through both personal and professional accounts, Naval Academy and U.S. Navy documents she gathers. Research into official military archives allows her to formulate a view of her father offering a sense of his humanity she might otherwise never have had.

She captures her father's humor, his dedication to duty, his unifying manner with fellow and superior officers, his efforts to improve military operations. She garners some sense of what a valued friend he was. Most especially she comes to know just how much he loved all his family, including her. She also realizes how much he cares for his crew's welfare, to what lengths he will go to protect them, and of his compassion for mankind.

She aptly describes some of the complexities of Submarine Service, a Submariner's compacted life submerged, especially during the tension-filled, life-threatening dangerous times of war. She uses the professional Submariner's technical language, but in such a way that even the layperson readily understands.

I highly recommend this book, the contents of which are far more than a composite of history, WWII, U.S. Navy Submarine Service, Submariners. This book is also a memoir focusing attention on the human element effects of war, coping with loss especially for the orphans of war.

As our family "armchair" genealogist, I have recently begun some research into a cousin's life who was a World War II Japanese POW. Delving into military history can be tedious. Facts are the "skeleton" of research, but makes for dry reading, and very obviously the literature field on World War II has been a male-dominated one, understandably.

Enter one Ms. Mary Lee Coe Fowler.

Full Fathom Five: A Daughter's Search is the story of a daughter's search to connect with her father, submarine Cmdr. James "Red" Coe, who apparently perished with his crew on the sub Cisco while on her first war patrol. Widowed with two young children and pregnant with Mary Lee when Jim Coe was reported missing, her mother remarries quickly. The marriage was not a happy one, and though the author does not overly dwell on her "war-orphaned" childhood, my heart went out to the young Mary Lee. One passage early on describes Mary Lee finding some old, but fancy clothing hidden away in an attic; secret remainders of a happier time for her parents, their honeymoon. The ghosts of Jim and of a much different Rachael Coe are physically palpable in the dust-moted air of the attic and I can visualize the scene perfectly in my mind.

The story is a terrific combination - part romance, history, and personal biography. Written with just the right amount of technical explanations, it gives the layman an easy understanding of the Pacific war front and the fledgling submarine division of the U.S. Navy.

Mary Lee's persistent and detailed research rewards her readers with many individual insights from people who lived through these traumatic events and adds a special richness to the story. It is through these intimate personal revelations that we begin to see who the man, the father, the husband, and the war hero was named Jim Coe.

Many female readers would never think to pick up a book from the war history shelves, but Full Fathom Five is a story you won't forget soon. Men will appreciate the soldier aspect and the great details of a lesser known part of WWII - the submariners. They were obviously a breed apart, and deserved of much more accolade that they're given.

And finally, the book gives a deeper understanding of how easily misguided we all become when we don't take time to really listen, truly pay attention to the facts, and make our own personal interpretations unimpaired by the media or pop culture. With deep Quaker faith an important part of her family history, Mary Lee's own journey through her years of blind pacivism took guts and she makes us understand that many good-intentioned people all too often make a blanket mistake in equating decent, humane behavior with pacivism.

I recommend Full Fathom Five without any reservations, and the book will surely become a favorite gift to my daughters and reading friends.

As our family "armchair" genealogist, I have recently begun some research into a cousin's life who was a World War II Japanese POW. Delving into military history can be tedious. Facts are the "skeleton" of research, but makes for dry reading, and very obviously the literature field on World War II has been a male-dominated one, understandably.

Enter one Ms. Mary Lee Coe Fowler.

Full Fathom Five: A Daughter's Search is the story of a daughter's search to connect with her father, submarine Cmdr.Jame Coe, who apparently perished with his crew on the sub Cisco while on her first war patrol. Widowed with two young children and pregnant with Mary Lee when Jim Coe was reported missing, her mother remarries quickly. The marriage was not a happy one, and though she does not overly dwell on her "war-orphaned" childhood, my heart went out to the young Mary Lee.

The story is a terrific combination - part romance, history, and personal biography. Written with just the right amount of technical explanations, it gives the layman an easy understanding of the Pacific war front and the fledgling submarine division of the U.S. Navy.

Mary Lee's persistent and detailed research rewards her readers with many individual insights from people who lived through these traumatic events and adds a special richness to the story. It is through these intimate personal revelations that we begin to see who the man, the father, the husband, and the war hero was named Jim Coe.

Many female readers would never think to pick up a book from the war history shelves, but Full Fathom Five is a story you won't forget soon. Men will appreciate the soldier aspect and the great details of a lesser known part of WWII - the submariners. They were obviously a breed apart, and deserved of much more accolade that they're given.

And finally, the book gives a deeper understanding of how easily misguided we all become when we don't take time to really listen, truly pay attention to the facts, and make our own personal interpretations unimpaired by the media or pop culture. With deep Quaker faith an important part of her family history, Mary Lee's own journey through her years of blind pacivism took guts and she makes us understand that many good-intentioned people all too often make a blanket mistake in equating decent, humane behavior with pacivism.

I recommend Full Fathom Five without any reservations, and the book will surely become a favorite gift to my daughters and reading friends.

From the moment this story began, I was captivated and drawn in. A stunning piece of work which flawlessly combines history, a love story, loss and redemption.
Although my knowledge of WWII in Europe is well-rounded, I had very little knowledge of the submarines in the Pacific. In layman's terms, this author gave me a deep understanding and pride for all of the men that served there.
Fowler's attempt to "construct" a father she never knew was both poignant and thought provoking. Far from placing blame or being maudlin, this author comes to discover her own identity....and in doing so, she allows her readers the priviledge of also getting to know Jim Coe. One very special man.
By the end of the story....I knew without doubt that this author is indeed her father's daughter.
I highly recommend this wonderful and refreshing read!

I really enjoyed this book. It is written by someone who is not trained in the military yet does an amazing job documenting her father's career and life aboard a wartime submarine. Ms. Fowler also gives a unique perspective on how a loss af a submarine affects so many lives.

This is a wonderful book. It is a memoir of a woman who, at mid-life, began a search for the character of her father, a submarine commander who was lost at sea during World War II. It is a great read on several levels. The reader gets a glimpse into the lives of a young naval officer and his wife as they celebrate the beginning years of marriage while living in the Hawaii and Manila of the 1930's. Then, there is a well-researched account of life aboard a submarine from the every day trials of getting the job done in the steaming, stinking heat of the sub's interior to the cat and mouse game of survival as they attempted to disrupt Japanese shipping in the South Pacific. In addition she reveals the tragedy of a family ruined by the circumstances of war and the hope for healing of a woman who "gets to know" her dad even though he died before she was born. Mary Lee Coe Fowler is the kind of writer I like to read. She writes with a clear, evocative style that leaves the reader hoping that there are more books like this one on the way