World War II Database

Late to become familiar with Conway's long-running "Warship" series, when I first checked out Warship 2009, I was instantly impressed with the new find. Especially since I did not get a chance to check out the 2010 edition, I made sure I got my hands on Warship 2011 when it became available. In "The Battle for Casablanca: The Marine Nationale versus the US Navy", Vincent P. O'Hara provided an excellent minute-by-minute account of the American attack on the French colonial port city and the unexpected French resistance. As in-depth was Richard N. J. Wright's "The Stranding, Grounding and Destruction of HMS Effingham, 1940", in which Wright attempted to debunk the myth of the cruiser's loss after striking a uncharted rock (she had more likely struck the charted Faksen Shoal off Norway). Last but not least, among the 11 articles in this year's edition included Trent Hone's study on the Lexington-class battlecruisers and how this design contributed to the evolution of WW2 carrier tactics. I had certainly learned very much from Warship 2011, and I would recommend this title to fellow naval enthusiasts looking for deeper analysis of naval matters.

Index of articles of Warship 2011:

• High-Speed Thoroughbreds: The US Navy's Lexington class Battle Cruiser Designs
• The Cruiser Dupuy-de-Lôme
• The Battle of Casablanca: The Marine Nationale versus the US Navy
• The Croiseur de Bataille de 37 000 tonnes
• Modern European Amphibious Assault Ships
• Battle at Valparaíso
• Bussei's Hydrofoil: History of a Secret Project, 1941-1963
• Russia's First Ironclads: Pervenets, Ne tron menia and Kreml
• Damnable Folly? Small Cruiser Designs for the Royal Navy Between the Wars
• The Tomozuru Incident
• The Stranding, Grounding and Destruction of HMS Effingham, 1940