Random House, 2003, $?, ISBN 0-679-4567-1-6, 866 pages, hardcover

Massie previously wrote Dreadnought, a book about the revolution in ship design and subsequent naval arms race prior to WWI. Castles of Steel continues the work through the war, when Britain and Germany used their fleets.

Massie writes with a rhythm and clarity above most author's works -- it's good to have professional editors. He brings nothing new to any of these topics. Indeed other books may cover specific battles like Jutland better than Castles of Steel but no other book covers the naval war with such clarity of summation.

Certainly, all the big battles are there, Jutland, Gallipoli, and Falkland Islands to name some. Various other raids and skirmishes like Dogger Dank and the Goeben's race across the Mediterranean are also covered. The U-boats receive some attention, fledgling "aircraft carrier" operations see some ink, and an appreciation of naval strategies for the UK and Germany appear with regularity.

Oddly enough, technical differences between ships receive only a passing mention, and often scattered through the book. It must be enough to say British big guns outranged German big guns, German ships were better built with greater safety (and less comfort) than British ships, and the North Sea mist reduced firing ranges. And while Room 40 (British wireless intercept and codebreaking) gets laurels, the German side of codebreaking is not mentioned.

Thus, Castles of Steel offers a well-written overview of the WWI naval war. For those with an interest and little background, this is a great book. For more savvy WWI naval buffs, it may not hold the minute details, but it sure holds your interest.