The Big E: The Story of the USS Enterprise (Bluejacket Books)

I now have several copies of this book in different formats. I bought this one to read, as it's in a handy paperback size (I have the photo-illustrated edition, too, but it's a coffee table book, great for looking at but a chore for reading).Why? Because the Big E is one of the best books about carrier combat and the war against Japan to be written in the days before Ultra was declassified, giving a whole new perspective to the history of that war. The author, Edward P. Stafford, served in the USN during World War II, serving in both a sub-chaser (a yacht-sized wooden boat used to help protect invasion fleets, and a Destroyer Escort, a kind of down-sized Destroyer, with fewer guns, fewer torpedoes and fewer crewmen, but a scrappy combattant nonetheless. Stafford fought his subchaser in the Med, and the DE in the Pacifiic, eventually rising to command the DE right at the end of WW-II. He has also written excellent books about his service in both of those vessels.After the war, Stafford became a trained Naval Aviator, and that gives the "hey, I was there" chops to his Enterprise book. Of course, it was decommissioned before he won his wings, but the Big E was a legend, and Stafford was a historian, so it became a match made in heaven. (BTW - Stafford also wrote a history about one of his ancestors, Navy Admiral Robert Peary, one of the pioneers in arctic exploration and arguably the first man to reach the North Pole. Having grown up with a legend, Edward Peary Stafford was a natural to write that book - as he was in all four of his naval history books.The Big E fought in 22 of the 24 major sea battles with Japan, 1941-45, starting with Pearl Harbor and ending with a Kamikaze strike a couple of months before Japan's surrender. During that time, the Big E won more awards, including the Presidential Unit Citation, and pioneered such then almost-unbelievable field of night-time carrier operation. During several invasions and major battles, the Big E's radar-equipped fighters and bombers defended the fleet and struck at the enemy under the cover of darkness.I first read this book around the time it came out, 1962, and I don't think I've ever been without at least one copy of this book. I think the best "readable" book is the Naval Institute Press/Bluejacket Press edition, a "trade paperback" a bit larger (and with larger print), to make reading easier. However, for cost, this used mass-market paperback edition is very cost-effective. However, whatever format you choose, this is an excellent book for anyone interested in WW-II naval history.Highly recommended!

First, I'll admit I'm not an unbiased reviewer. My dad served in Enterprise for three hard years ('42-45), and I've made my own efforts to tell her story.That said, "The Big E" is without peer, as both a history of the World War II-era carrier Enterprise, and as a record of what carrier warfare in the '40's was like. Stafford's prose is both elegant and -- given the records he had available in 1960 -- accurate. His descriptions are vivid: you can feel the decks whip violently at Santa Cruz, you can see the vibrant green of the Philippines at Leyte Gulf, you can sense the tension in the ready rooms at Midway. Her men are not just names on a page, but tangible characters: bold, fast-thinking, humble, optimistic, but sometimes very worried about their prospects.There are a couple points about the book which the prospective reader should be aware of. Stafford's focus is primarily on the ship's squadrons, and less so on efforts of her crew. Originally published over 40 years ago, some of the language is a bit dated, though, again, overall the writing is superb.The fact, however, that a 40-year old book about a ship that was decommissioned in 1947 is deemed fit to reprint in 2002 should tell you two things. The book is not a throwaway, but a genuine work of literature. And Enterprise was not just a warship, but a unique bonding of man and machine, that came through for her country when she was needed most.

I have a grandson who is in the Navy and was deployed 3 times on the USS Enterprise CVN-65. He wanted to read the story about the first USS Enterprise so i bought the book for him for Christmas. I read some of it and what a marvelous story. The USS Enterprise CVN-65 was the ship that my grandson was deployed to when he graduated from the Great Lakes Naval Base in Illinois. He was sent to Norfolk and flown out to the Enterprise the next day. There was a couple of airplanes that had crashed on the deck and he was part of the team that helped put out the fire. He was eventually on the team that maintained the catapults on the ship. He is now again stationed at Great Lakes Naval Base but in a couple of years will be deployed to another ship. We are very proud of him and he is proud to have served on "The Big E".Darla Ritchie

CDR Stafford's "The Big E" has to be one of the easiest books to review imaginable. It is simply the finest ship's history ever written about and American war vessel. The story of the USS Enterprise encompasses all but the last few months of World War II and is therefore also an outstanding look at all the major battles of the Pacific war. The book benefits (as so many "war books" don't) from an author with an excellent command of the English language who brings a tale of warfare to life as few others have. The Enterprise, the most destructive naval vessel in the history of the world, deserved a book like this. I have gone through several copies of this book, and am always buying it for friends because it is just top quality first page to last.

Great book on a great aircraft carrier. The USS Enterprise was used in most if not all Pacific operations during WW2 and for a while was the only functioning U.S carrier in the Pacific after the sinking of the USS Hornet. The Japanese also claimed to have destroyed her three times but reappeared each time after the claims earning her the nickname the "Grey Ghost". There is a lot more to learn in the book and I recommend it to anyone who has a fascination with aircraft carriers or WW2.