The Admirals

Nimitz, Halsey, Leahy, and King - The Five-Star Admirals Who Won the War at Sea

By: Walter Borneman

Narrated by: Brian Troxell

Length: 17 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's summary

The Admirals tells the story of how history's only five-star admirals triumphed in World War II and made the United States the world's dominant sea power.

Only four men in American history have been promoted to the five-star rank of Admiral of the Fleet: William Leahy, Ernest King, Chester Nimitz, and William Halsey. These four men were the best and the brightest the navy produced, and together they led the U.S. Navy to victory in World War II, establishing the United States as the world's greatest fleet.

In The Admirals, award-winning historian Walter R. Borneman tells their story in full detail for the first time. Drawing upon journals, ship logs, and other primary sources, he brings an incredible historical moment to life, showing us how the four admirals revolutionized naval warfare forever with submarines and aircraft carriers, and how these men - who were both friends and rivals - worked together to ensure that the Axis fleets lay destroyed on the ocean floor at the end of World War II.

©2012 Walter R. Borneman (P)2012 Hachette

Very interesting!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

This book was well-researched and well-written.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I enjoyed learning about the admirals.

Which scene was your favorite?

I thought the events with Hulsey were the most interesting and gave me a very different understanding than I had.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Naval Leaders of World War II

Any additional comments?

This book had the evidence of good research found in nonfiction, but read like historical fiction. Very captivating and enjoyable to listen to. I highly recommend it if you like history.

Excellent story

I thought this book was well done, covering just prior to WWII start with summaries of the Admiral’s (Leahy, King, Nimitz, Halsey) careers. It has some details I had not read before about each of the admirals. The book goes through each of the four admirals seeking appointment to the Naval Academy and their Naval careers through achieving star ranks. It describes how each in his own way was very influential in the development and expansion of the Navy prior to and during WWII and describes how their character and leadership were key in developing and executing the strategy for winning the war, especially against Japan. It also has a lot about Marshall and MacArthur too, and it made me dislike MacArthur even more. I thought the narrator should have done a better job of learning how to pronounce a lot of names and places mostly relating to the Pacific war. Excelent short history of the four admirals' careers. Highly recommend.

Excellent listen

If you are interested in naval history or WW2 history, this is a great book and well narrated.

Know the Story

I really enjoyed becoming familiar with the big names in the WWII US Navy. The story was excellent.

Outstanding work exploring leadership in WW2

Well written and performed. Excellent resource for exploring how leadership and training are forever linked to the outcome of the WW2.

pretty good history.

was a good listen. But narrator mispronounced too many proper names. The story was great.

A story of the leaders of the greatest generation

This book is such a great historical book everyone with leadership and corporate personnel directors should be mandatory. Reading how these simple men went into the navy at its true conception in American defense and needs to become leaders all America idolized. These men lead a “forth rate” navy against the strongest, most powerful and dangerous navy in the world and in four long years destroyed it, won two fronts of battles and never gloated or took over nations. This was all done without computers or the internet but with determination, guts and the industrial strength of the American people, men and women who kept ships, ammunition and aircraft coming out faster than belief, thank you for writing this book, kudos for a job well done.

One of the best audio books to which I have listened

The narrative of this informative history is interesting with just the right amount of detail. The narration is excellent with the perfect tone for this work. I like it so much I now will need to buy a paper copy of this book.

THE ADMIRALS: A Magnificent Study

If you could sum up The Admirals in three words, what would they be?

An Essay in Leadership, Powerful, Inspiring

What other book might you compare The Admirals to and why?

The Admirals provides a narrative of the evolution of the United States Navy and the growth of the United States Naval Academy, one of the finest educational institutions in the world. Graduates of the early classes of Annapolis showed genius as engineers, strategists, leaders of men who showed diversity of character from the quiet to the boisterous and from the politically savvy to the epitome of self sacrifice beyond reproach. The book explores the inner workings of the US military, placing in bold relief service rivalry between army and navy, but with the beginning of a "jointness" that is vital for success as much today as during the times of World War II when the US faced a tremendous challenge. The book is historical and biographical comparable to any of the great classics.

Which character – as performed by Brian Troxell – was your favorite?

The Admirals examines the characters in the title, exemplifying how from diversity comes strength.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Indeed, a book which was difficult to put down. Rarely does historical biography have such a strong pull, which puts The Admirals into a special category.

ROGER JAY PENTZIEN, M.D.
CAPT MC USN (Ret)

Good, Just Good

The content was a bit superficial for me, but I think it is simply a matter of trying to cover 4 interesting, important, and powerful people in a book of this length. The narration was a bit too robotic.