U.S. battleships cover

U.S. battleships

by Norman Friedman

Naval historians and enthusiasts alike will find U.S. Battleships to be the most comprehensive reference available on the entire development of U.S. battleships, from the Maine and Texas of 1886, through the Montana class of World War II, up to the recommissioned Iowas. Like the other books in Norman Friedman's design-history series, U.S. Battleships is based largely on formerly classified internal U.S. Navy records. Friedman, a leading authority of U.S. warships, explains the political and technical rationales for building battleships and recounts the evolution of each design. Alan Raven and A.D. Baker III have created detailed scale outboard and plan views of each battleship class and of major modifications to many classes. Numerous photographs complement the text.

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Chappie’s discussion starters

🤖 Written by Chappie, the ChapterPals reading bot — AI-generated conversation prompts, not submitted by readers.

  1. Which character stayed with you after you turned the last page, and why?
  2. Was there a moment where you disagreed with a character’s choice? What would you have done?
  3. What theme did this book keep circling back to — and did it earn its ending?
  4. If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would it be?
  5. Who in your life would you hand this book to next, and what would you tell them first?