I had just finished writing a comment about the fact that no "four-funnelled" ship (and that includes Destroyers and Cruisers in addition to those which were similar to the Titanic) has been preserved - anywhere in the world, when I picked up a copy of this book. Whilst not a four-stacker, I learned that the USS Olympia is moored at Penn's Landing and still retains the colour scheme she wore when making her triumphal arrival at New York in 1899. Well done America, we in Europe have no such relics from that particular era of warships. Furthermore, according to this book the USS Olympia is undergoing serious refurbishment - so, if you can, why not make the visit and put a dollar in the box! And if you can't, pick another ship like the USS Intrepid in New York (I visited her in 1984) or one of any which is close to where you live...

This book is another in a series where the publisher concentrates on a relatively small number of specific vessels - in this case US Cruisers from 1883 to 1904, and then covers those ships in the greatest possible detail. Limited to just 48 pages, the amount of information is very impressive comprising; High quality artwork and photography in addition to all the facts, figures, dimensions and detail one expects from any comprehensive coverage.

Throughout my 30+ years of studying the various ships of different nations I have often recognised some pictures which occasionally re-appear in different works and even a very small number which do so quite frequently. Whilst my knowledge of US ships may not be as great as those of the UK, it says much for this book that I did not recognise one single photograph from elsewhere and learned a great deal more from the content that was expected from a work of this size.

Once again, therefore, we have an item of significant value to the serious historian whilst also being of general interest to anyone with a passions for ships. This book will also provide much of the data required for the serious modeller. Furthermore, unlike many of the larger reference works on warships, this is a book you can (and will!) read.

Perhaps of more interest to the US market (though not necessarily so), I note that this particular book lists 9 further works from these publishers about US vessels. These include; Confederate Ironclads, Union Monitors, Mississippi River Gunboats (conjuring up images of people from New Orleans going to war on the Natchez!), Union River Ironclads, Confederate Raiders and so forth. If the content of each of those is one a par with the two books from this series I have studied up to now, the reader will not be disappointed.

NM

Osprey has done it again. This is a too-obscure topic that is illuminated in useful depth, at a fraction of the cost of Norman Friedman's excellent book on cruisers (at about a third the cost).

The photos and illustrations are fascinating, and the text is illuminating. If you like the Osprey format (and I do, a lot), and if turn-of-the-century ABCD-generation cruisers fascinate you, this book is well worth the investment. If you're like me, this will open the door to further exploration into the ABCD fleet and the development of the Steel Navy just in time to defeat the Spanish in 1898 and launch America onto the world stage.

If this is your cup of tea, read it - then start saving for Friedman's book, and start looking into other books on the early Steel Navy, the Spanish-American war at sea and Teddy Roosevelt's Great White Fleet.

Ned

A good "snapshot" history of the early iron American navy cruisers. Whets the appitite for more information on these ships.

Rob

The description of the transformational growth of the U.S. Navy from a backward, inward-looking coastal defense force to a true blue-water navy lies at the heart of Lawrence Burr's US Cruisers 1883-1904, which is 143 in Osprey's New Vanguard Series. This is a superb volume in the series, which not only delivers a great deal of information in a small space, but offers a very high level of graphic appeal. Overall, a well-put together volume that belongs on the bookshelf of anyone interested in 19th Century navies.

The volume begins with the order of three cruisers for the U.S. Navy in 1883, which the author notes as a watershed change in U.S. Naval policy toward a fleet capable of global operations. Gradually, the U.S. fleet shifted from a strategy of commerce raiding to a fleet capable of sea control, for which the new cruisers were at the forefront. Each class of U.S. cruiser ordered between 1883 and 1904 is described in some detail an further technical details are provided at the end of the volume. The volume is supplemented by superb color graphics and some very nice B/W photos. Overall, this is one of the better volumes in the New Vanguard series.

Nicely put together overview of a very neglected area of naval design and development. This volume also contains a useful appendix which has the book's only obvious technical error: when referring to gun calibers, the author (or perhaps an ill-informed and over-zealous editor) includes a decimal point were none should go. An 8in/51 caliber gun has a barrel length 51 times the 8 inch bore. The book has it written "8in/.51 caliber" which would mean the barrel is 4 inches long. This error should be corrected in any future printings.