Tom Clavin

Phil Keith

The incredible story of the first African-American military pilot in World War I who went on to become a self-taught jazz musician, a Paris nightclub impresario, a spy in the French Resistance, and an American civil rights pioneer.

The Legendary Life of Eugene Bullard-boxer, Pilot, Soldier, Spy

All Blood Runs Red

The enthralling story of the greatest Civil War battle at sea by the award-winning and bestselling historians Phil Keith and Tom Clavin. On June 19, 1864, just off the coast of France, one of the most dramatic naval battles in history took place. On a clear day with windswept skies, the dreaded Confederate raider Alabama faced the Union warship Kearsarge in an all-or-nothing fight to the finish, the outcome of which would effectively end the threat of the Confederacy on the high seas. Authors Phil Keith and Tom Clavin introduce some of the crucial but historically overlooked players, including John Winslow, captain of the USS Kearsarge, as well as Raphael Semmes, captain of the CSS Alabama. Readers will sail aboard the Kearsarge as Winslow embarks for Europe with a set of simple orders from the secretary of the navy: "Travel to the uttermost ends of the earth, if necessary, to find and destroy the Alabama." Winslow pursued Semmes in a spectacular fourteen-month chase over international waters, culminating in what would become the climactic sea battle of the Civil War.

The Epic Hunt for the South's Most Feared Ship—and the Greatest Sea Battle of the Civil War

To the Uttermost Ends of the Earth

2016 Military Writers Society of America Bronze Medal Winner! Her crew called her the "Lady Lex" - see how her fierce battle turned the tide in the Allies' favor. In May 1942, the United States' first naval victory against the Japanese in the Coral Sea was marred by the loss of the aircraft carrier USS Lexington. Another carrier was nearly ready for launch when the news arrived, so the navy changed her name to Lexington, confusing the Japanese. The men of the original "Lady Lex" loved their ship and fought hard to protect her. They were also seeking revenge for the losses sustained at Pearl Harbor. Crippling attacks by the Japanese left her on fire and dead in the water. A remarkable 90 percent of the crew made it off the burning decks before Lexington had to be abandoned. In all the annals of the Second World War, there is hardly a battle story more compelling. Lexington's legacy did not end with her demise, however. Although the battle was deemed a tactical success for the Japanese, it turned out to be a strategic loss: For the first time in the war, a Japanese invasion force was forced to retreat. The lessons learned by losing the Lexington at Coral Sea impacted tactics, air wing operations, damage control, and ship construction. Altogether, they forged a critical, positive turning point in the war. The ship that ushered in and gave birth to a new era in naval warfare might be gone, but fate decreed that her important legacy would live on.

The True Story of USS Lexington, Her Valiant Crew, and Changing the Course of World War II

Stay the Rising Sun

As one of the US Navy's first aircraft carriers, commissioned in 1928, everything USS Lexington did set a precedent. The rapidly advancing concepts of naval air warfare would be developed and tested from her flattop deck; naval aviation, in turn, would play a pivotal role in winning World War II, especially in the Pacific. All future carriers would be designed and built around the lessons learned from the class named after this venerable ship. Lexington, CV-2, was at sea when Pearl Harbor was attacked on December 7, 1941. She and her crew immediately became part of the Pacific War, her efforts culminating in the Battle of the Coral Sea, the first carrier-to-carrier battle in history. Stay the Rising Sun tells the history of the famed ship and the experiences of her men in this key battle, recounting the action in vivid, minute-by-minute detail--in many cases, in the words of the men who lived through it. Supplemented by historical backgroud and the perspectives of the other US elements and their Japanese adversaries during the battle, military historian Phil Keith's engrossing narrative truly brings this pivotal event to life. Although Lexinton was ultimately lost at Coral Sea, her contributions to the United States' strategic victory in the battle--and the lessons learned from her sinking--were invaluable and represented a critical turning point in the war. -- Back of book jacket.

Phil Keith

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