About the Author

David Fairbank White has written about ships and the sea all his professional life, beginning as a reporter at The New York Times, where he wrote about New York Harbor;
he also worked as a reporter at maritime desk of The Journal of Commerce. He is the author of a novel, True Bearing (also with a nautical theme), and his work has appeared in numerous national magazines including Fortune, New York, Parade, and Reader's Digest among others. He lives in New York City.

Reviews

"[A] superior history of the longest-running battle of WWII.... A better starting place for the general reader to begin learning about this epic portion of WWII would be hard to imagine." -- Publishers Weekly

"Not only is Bitter Ocean worthy and elegant literature, it is the fruit of diligent and intelligent research.... may be the definitive book on the subject." -- Norman N. Brown, Associated Press

"The use of archival material and fresh interviews brings new life to the saga of how the Allies fought a costly battle -- 36,000 seamen perished -- in their effort to ferry supplies from the U.S. and Canada to Britain during World War II." -- Navy Times

Students of World War II have been waiting some time for a well-written account of the Battle of the Atlantic-the longest military campaign of the war. Unfortunately, the wait is not quite over. Journalist and novelist White (True Bearing) has obviously put in a lot of work, offering several new perspectives on a battle that pitted a variety of Allied forces against German U-boats. He highlights personalities on both sides of the engagements, having interviewed both Allied and German veterans; offers several keen insights into strategy and tactics; and underscores the struggles of individual convoys, showing each to be a battle in its own right, as important as any land clash. Where he fails is in his writing. White has a habit of engaging in hyperbole. Every clash is between Barbarism and Civilization, while the narratives of the individual battles often become muddled and choppy. White tells an exciting story about critical times but fails to understand that the power of that story lies in the individuals' own words and actions, which need no embellishment. With his zeal for research, White could prove to be a talented military historian. But here, at least, he is not a gifted storyteller. Recommend for public libraries with very active naval history collections. With maps and a 16-page insert.-Brian K. DeLuca, Harford Cty. P.L., DE Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

"[A] superior history of the longest-running battle of WWII.... A better starting place for the general reader to begin learning about this epic portion of WWII would be hard to imagine." -- Publishers Weekly
"Not only is Bitter Ocean worthy and elegant literature, it is the fruit of diligent and intelligent research.... may be the definitive book on the subject." -- Norman N. Brown, Associated Press
"The use of archival material and fresh interviews brings new life to the saga of how the Allies fought a costly battle -- 36,000 seamen perished -- in their effort to ferry supplies from the U.S. and Canada to Britain during World War II." -- Navy Times