Hilda C. Landers Library & Archives

  • About
    • Hours
    • Directions and Maps
    • People
    • Policies & Guidelines
    • Student Employment
  • Research Help
    • Get Research Help
    • Research Tools
    • Research Guides
    • Get Endnote
    • Cite your Sources
    • Subject Librarians
  • Services
    • Print, Scan, Copy
    • Computers and Software
    • Study Rooms
    • Accessibility
    • St. Mary’s Project Resources
    • Services for Faculty
    • Borrow, Renew, Request
    • Notary Public Services
  • Archives
Library & Archives > Summer Reading > Escape from the Deep by Alex Kershaw

Escape from the Deep by Alex Kershaw

July 12, 2010 by Amanda VerMeulen

Escape from the DeepContrary to the broader scope of most WWII submarine narratives, Alex Kershaw devotes an entire book to the fifth and final patrol of USS TANG (SS-306), one of the most legendary boats in submarine history.  Having already accrued a superb war record under skipper LCDR Dick O’Kane, TANG sailed from Pearl Harbor in September 1944 for a patrol in the dangerously shallow waters of the Formosa Strait. En route, she had to battle a typhoon on the surface because she was unable to dive safely.  Her greatest challenge ultimately came when one of her own torpedoes malfunctioned during a surface attack against a Japanese convoy.  Within 20 seconds of being fired, the torpedo circled back and exploded into TANG’s stern. The blast tossed those who had been on the boat’s bridge into the water. Those still alive in the unflooded forward compartments on the boat found themselves 180 feet underwater.

Kershaw does a masterful job of drawing his readers into the suspenseful hours that followed the explosion. In the most dramatic portion of the book, Kershaw describes the efforts of several of the trapped crew to escape from what would prove to be an iron coffin for those left behind. The handful who made it to the surface alive, as well as some of those who had been on the bridge, were taken prisoner by the Japanese and subjected to torture and starvation for the remainder of the war in the infamous camps at Ofuna and Omori. As Kershaw closes the book with a discussion of the post-war lives of the survivors, one is struck by the brotherhood that bound these men together over the decades.

Escape from the Deep: The Epic Story of A Legendary Submarine and Her Courageous Crew is a somber reminder of the sacrifices of the U.S. Navy’s submarine force in WWII (52 boats are still on eternal patrol). For those interested in this chapter of naval history, I strongly recommend both this book and William Tuohy’s biography of Dick O’Kane (The Bravest Man, 2001).

Availability: USMAI
Review Submitted by: Mary Hall
Rating: Highly Recommended                                                                          Add to DeliciousAdd to DiggAdd to FaceBookAdd to Google BookmarkAdd to RedditAdd to StumbleUponAdd to TechnoratiAdd to Twitter

Filed Under: Summer Reading

Recent Posts

  • Summer Hours at the Library May 5, 2025
  • Finals Week Library Hours April 22, 2025
  • Misinformation Escape Room Event April 7, 2025
  • ⚠️ Ask Us Service Interruption – March 17 March 21, 2025
  • We’re Hiring for the 25-26 Academic Year! March 20, 2025

Categories

  • Announcements (26)
  • Archives (12)
  • Database Trial (8)
  • Events (55)
  • Exhibits (6)
  • Faculty and Staff Profiles (4)
  • Library Building (44)
  • Library Collection (61)
  • Library Ethnography Project (2)
  • Library Hours (81)
  • Library People (31)
  • Musings (34)
  • Services (31)
  • Student Employees (24)
  • Summer Reading (284)
  • Teaching & Education (2)
  • Uncategorized (1)
  • Web Resources (11)

Archives

Contact Us:

(240) 895-4264

ask@smcm.libanswers.com

47645 College Drive
St. Mary's City, MD, 20686-3001

Follow Us

Follow Library News

  • Directions
  • Archives
  • Directory
Support the Library
White and Gold text reading 'The National Public Honors College' linking to the SMCM Homepage
St. Mary's College of Maryland
47645 College Drive
St. Mary's City, MD, 20686-3001

(240) 895-2000
Give Today

Next Steps

  • Request Information
  • Visit Campus
  • How to Apply
  • Explore SMCM

Just For You

  • Prospective Students
  • Current Students
  • New Students
  • Parents & Families
  • Faculty | Staff
  • Employment

Resources

  • InsideSMCM
  • Directory
  • Events | Newsroom
  • Hilda C. Landers Library
  • College Rankings
  • Brand Resources

St. Mary’s College of Maryland reserves the right to provide some or all of the course content through alternative methods of course delivery, including remote methods of delivery, and it reserves the right to change the method of delivery at any time before or during the academic term, in the event of a health or safety emergency or similar situation when it determines, in its sole discretion, that such change is necessary and in the best interests of the College and the campus community.

  • © St. Mary's College of Maryland
  • Consumer Information
  • Copyright
  • Privacy Policy
  • Title IX Compliance &Training
  • Report an Accessibility Issue
  • Non-discrimination Policy
  • Reporting Suspected Child Abuse and Neglect
  • OLA Fraud Hotline
  • Help Desk
  • Website Feedback
  • National Human Trafficking Hotline
  • 1-888-373-7888
  • BeFree Textline
  • Text HELP to 233733 (BEFREE)
  • More resources on human trafficking in Maryland