In the foreword to this work, Thomas B. Buell cites “fighting spirit” as the most desirable and consistent feature of American naval commanders (xvii).  Something of this original fortitude must have transferred itself to Craig Symonds’ storytelling when he wrote Decision at Sea.  If there is one feature which distinguishes this text, it lies in the author’s capacity to strike the right balance between an appealingly smooth read, devoid of unintelligible jargon, and an adherence to the text’s central goal.  This goal, put simply, is to identify how five naval battles, central to United States history, “reflect the dramatic changes in America’s conception of itself as a nation and its proper role in the world” (323).  These five battles, each occupying a chapter, are: The Battle of Lake Erie (against the British in 1813); The Battle of Hampton Roads (during the Civil War in 1862); The Battle of Manila Bay (against Spain in 1898); The Battle of Midway (against the Japanese in 1942); and Operation Praying Mantis (during the Gulf War in 1988).

Though not entirely devoid of historical deliberation, Decision at Sea remains solid in its attention to narrative rather than critical theory.  Indeed, readers who approach Symonds’ book expecting a lengthy defence of a particular historical model will find him unforthcoming in that regard.  No more inclined to reveal the ontological premise of his study than he is to expose the innards of a steam engine, it is enough for Symonds that each goes forward under sound and steady propulsion.  In this respect, he confirms himself as a highly engaging writer whose book, while not challenging any established historical notions, challenges every study with its readability.  To accomplish this, Symonds devotes his primary attentions to technological developments in the military, Washington politics and their repercussions, the battle accounts themselves, and character studies.  Technicalities, such as how guns were fired on Lake Erie (66) and how fighter planes took off from World War II aircraft carriers (232-3), are all explained well.  We also learn of how developments in battle theory informed the combatants’ advancements against each other.  For example, it is interesting to learn that the concept of industrial secrecy did not exist in the Civil War and thus both North and South knew, through the newspapers, what the other side was manufacturing (98).  This resulted in the accelerated development of armoured warships on both sides, although the North’s industrial supremacy eventually won out just as it did by the end of World War II.

As one might expect, naval historians and the Boy’s Own crowd will both find this text of interest.  Footnotes are made sparingly and Symonds is also highly selective in his quotations, more often than not leaving these as afterthoughts rather than evidence.  Although the final chapter gets weighed down somewhat by the inevitable terminology surrounding hi-tech warfare, there is also ready material for those seeking a comparative analysis of present-day hostilities in Iraq with the events of the first Gulf War.  In sum, should any teacher or scholar have a particular interest in one or more of the battles Decision at Sea examines, then this will prove a thorough and accessible text for complementing a broader study.