Thunder Below!

The USS Barb Revolutionizes Submarine Warfare in World War II

By: Eugene B. Fluckey

Narrated by: Corey Snow

Length: 15 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's summary

The thunderous roar of exploding depth charges was a familiar and comforting sound to the crew members of the USS Barb, who frequently found themselves somewhere between enemy fire and Davy Jones's locker. Under the leadership of her fearless skipper, Captain Gene Fluckey, the Barb sank the greatest tonnage of any American sub in World War II. At the same time, the Barb did far more than merely sink ships-she changed forever the way submarines stalk and kill their prey.

This is a gripping adventure chock-full of "you-are-there" moments. Fluckey has drawn on logs, reports, letters, interviews, and a recently discovered illegal diary kept by one of his torpedomen. And in a fascinating twist, he uses archival documents from the Japanese Navy to give its version of events. The unique story of the Barb begins with its men, who had the confidence to become unbeatable. Each team helped develop innovative ideas, new tactics, and new strategies. All strove for personal excellence, and success became contagious. Instead of lying in wait under the waves, the USS Barb pursued enemy ships on the surface, attacking in the swift and precise style of torpedo boats. She was the first sub to use rocket missiles and to creep up on enemy convoys at night, joining the flank escort line from astern, darting in and out as she sank ships up the column. Surface-cruising, diving only to escape, "Luckey Fluckey" relentlessly patrolled the Pacific, driving his boat and crew to their limits. There can be no greater contrast to modern warfare's long-distance, video game style of battle than the exploits of the captain and crew of the USS Barb, where the sub, out of ammunition, actually rammed an enemy ship until it sank. Thunder Below! is a first-rate, true-life, inspirational story of the courage and heroism of ordinary men under fire.

©1992 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois (P)2013 Tantor

Critic reviews

"Fluckey is a fine writer with a lively, colorful style. His book is packed with action and suspense and is rich in details about the day-today operation of a submarine in combat." ( Publishers Weekly)

Real submarine history of WWII

Having worked on the SSN596 the USS Barb multiple times while working at Mare Island Navy Shipyard the story of the WWII boat of that name was a must listen to, and it didn't disappoint. Fabulous details of the inside the sub were spot on. I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes exciting battle stories about the boat and the heroes that sailed on her.

Thunderously Good! (If that even makes sense)

Very well written. very well narrated. I thoroughly enjoyed it beginning to end. I recommend to anyone who wants to know history of WW2.

Great story. A few audio problems.

A few audio problems here and there take away from
what is otherwise a very good story. Maybe 6 to 8 times during the audiobook the audio would just stop for a second or two and then pick up where it left off. The story itself is written from details of after action reports and reads as such. However once it gets going you get a much better connection for more than just the facts.

Awesome read

Awesome telling book of submarine ops during WWII. As a submarine veteran I loved reading this book.

A Real Life Story of Intrepid Submariners

Great historical account of the exploits of the USS Barb in WWII.
The most decorated submarine crew for their intrepid deeds that advanced the cause of peace and helped bring WWII to and end.
The crew totally reflected the high standards and totally humble attitude of their leader, which made it possible for them to - as a team achieve so much.
Fearless, innovative, wise, and humble are said to describe few men.
That’s an accurate description of Admiral Flucky.
A MAN AMONG REAL MEN.

Incredible listen

I'm not a huge fan of military stuff, I was attracted to this book because of the leadership and it was simply amazing.

I felt like I was there.

This was done so well, I felt as if I was with them on the submarine. So well done. Thank you for sharing the stories. Go Navy. God bless America and the free world.

Lucky Fluckey

I've listened to this book multiple times. The story and the performance are both great! The Barb is the top sub of WWII, so sit back, relax, listen and learn, and splice the main brace.

Epic story

Flucky’s account of his time on the barb is riveting. Once I started it I could not stop. The feats are so amazing it almost sounds made up. 10/10

A gripping recount of what our boys and men went through to serve our country

Many of the events put a lump in your throat and moisten eyes when you think of the human factor of boys and men working in a war with high explosives in their sub or depth charges being hurled at them.

Months at sea in a 27x160’ hot sweaty tube with no personal space. There is glory in victory but no glory in the battle. Hard tough work and sacrifice beyond what we can imagine today.

I wished the book could have looked a little more at the lives of the enlisted sailors as they went about taking the sub to the heights of accomplishment.

Sub sailors, especially in WWII equipment were amazing for what they accomplished … for us.