In an accessible and compelling account, a naval historian details the story of the USS Monitor, its brilliant creator, Swedish engineer John Ericsson, and its victorious clash with the Confederacy's Merrimac. Reprint.

Monitor: The Story of the Legendary Civil War Ironclad and The Man Whose Invention Changed the Course of History

Literature & Fiction

James Tertius De Kay

Contemporary

Ballantine Books

When Christopher Columbus was young, he worked for his father making cloth. But he did not want to be a cloth-maker all his life. Hewanted to see new lands and have adventures. He wanted to be a sailor! By the time he was 25, Christopher had sailed to France, Africa, and Greece. He had seen strange cities and had many adventures. But his greatest adventure would come when he set out for China and found a whole new world instead.

Meet Christopher Columbus (Landmark Books)

Turtleback Books: A Division of Sanval

The Rebel Raiders: The Warship "Alabama", British Treachery and the American Civil War

History

Americas

Pimlico

Born in Philadelphia of French descent and the son of a Revolutionary War privateer captain, Stephen Decatur (1779-1820) went to sea in his teens but entered the American navy relatively late. He made up for lost time, however, with his famous burning of the Philadelphia in Tripoli Harbor during the Barbary War. Between then and the War of 1812, he sat on the court-martial of James Barron for the Leopard-Chesapeake affair, voting for Barron's guilt. The vote came back to haunt him later, after he had further distinguished himself in command of the frigate United States and of a squadron against the Algerians. The combination of Barron's vindictiveness, Decatur's pride, and probably some sharp practices by Decatur's professional enemies led to the duel in which Barron fatally shot Decatur. Though erring occasionally on the side of patriotic myth and purple prose, de Kay makes it clear why 46 U.S. communities and five U.S. warships have been named after this stout sea fighter, and readably summarizes an undeniably heroic life. Roland Green Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

A Rage for Glory: The Life of Commodore Stephen Decatur, USN

Military

RECORDED BOOKS^

In the summer of 1814 a squadron of Royal Navy ships attacked the tiny Connecticut seaport of Stonington, and declared its intention of destroying the town. Over the next four days the British barraged the nearly defenseless civilian population with some fifty tons of explosives, before mysteriously upping anchor and sailing away, leaving Stonington largely intact. 
Though a mere footnote in America's early naval history, the Battle of Stonington has remained a source of curiosity for two hundred years. Why did the British single out Stonington and then fail so miserably at their goal? To solve the mystery of this curious battle, and explain Britain's failure to level the town, the author takes the reader back some forty years to the Revolution to unfold a surprisingly complex set of circumstances involving people on both sides of the Atlantic and across America. Drawing on contemporary news accounts, secret Royal Navy correspondence, and other primary sources, he investigates events leading up to the puzzling attack and then recounts the exciting details of the battle itself. It is a memorable, masterly told story of brave and honorable people, divided loyalties, and new ideas fighting traditional, old-world values. 
As the book develops, James Tertius de Kay introduces a fascinating cast of characters that ranks with the best of fiction: Thomas Hardy, the hero of Trafalgar who led the British attack; Jeremiah Holmes, an American merchant captain who led the defense of Stonington; Stephen Decatur and Robert Fulton, two well-known American patriots; and a number of enterprising smugglers and spies. At the same time de Kay pays tribute to the significant roles played by new naval weapons--American submarine vessels and torpedoes, British rockets and bombs--that revolutionized the art of war. 
The Battle of Stonington brings all these elements into brilliant focus to provide a lively narrative history not just of the events at Stonington but of the entire period. It is a compelling, often humorous story.

The Battle of Stonington: Torpedoes, Submarines, and Rockets in the War of 1812

Naval_Institute_Press

A celebration of left-handed children which is illustrated  by the author's cartoon drawings, this book informs parents of left-handed children exactly what lies in store.

Left Handed Kids: Why Are They So Different?

Health, Fitness & Dieting

Psychology & Counseling

Robson Books Ltd.

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Books by James Tertius De Kay