by DAVID IRVING (2294-1992)
New York: Simon and Schuster, 1968 337 pages
Library of Congress Catalog Number: 68-25749

"Captain Strand said that his transport had been one of the last to be sunk, and they had already abandoned all hope of rescue when German Red Cross planes appeared and searched for survivors. Despite the rough weather, a German Red Cross plane came down and picked them up. He did not think anyone who had escaped this hell would ever volunteer for a convoy in the Arctic Ocean again".

So said Captain Frederick A Strand, Master of the American freighter Honomu, one of the torpedoed ships of Convoy PQ. 17. This immaculately researched book by DAVID IRVING (author of Dresden and The German Atomic Bomb) describes the nearly complete destruction of PQ. 17 headed to the Russian town of Archangel from their Hvalfiord, Iceland starting point. The author details the decisions made by the Admiralty to prematurely scatter the convoy and withdraw their escorts in anticipation of meeting an overwhelming German Naval battle group that included warships TIRPITZ, HIPPER and SCHEER. Out of thirty five vessels that started, only eleven reached Russian ports. The U-Boat "Ice Devils" pack U-251 (Timm), U-3 76 (Marks) and U-408 (Hymmen) began the destruction, with more aircraft and U-Boats joining in.

Irving shows how the lack of real time intelligence data affected decisions made by the Admiralty and German Naval Commands. He also tells of heroic actions by seamen and aviators on both sides.

(Reviewers note: This book is out of print, but is still available in many used book stores, an excellent addition to any WW II library.)