Warship Pictorial 34 - USN Battleships in Color
by Steve Wiper
Classic Warships Books
reviewed by Timothy Dike

Steve Wiper is at it again, releasing several new titles at the 2010 Nationals. This one falls into the photo album category as it is filled with all kinds of photos of US Battleships. The big plus is they are all in full color!
 
This book features 72 pages with 100 color images of US Navy Battleships. They run in chronological order beginning with the prewar batlwagons and ending with the Mighty Missouri anchored in Tokyo Bay at the end of the war. The photos are stunning and very high quality reproduced in more detail and clarity than you can get on the web. Note that the images are present here are lower resolution ones suitable for display on your monitor. 

You will find that these photos are mostly new and have not been published before. Ships are shown individually and in company with other ships. For example there is a series of images showing the Battleships off of Hawaii during 1940 that have to be seen to be appreciated. Also included is what may be the only know color photo of the USS Arizona BB-39. The photo of the Arkansas escorting a convoy in the Atlantic in 1944 is also a stunner. Not of be overlooked are the fast battleships maneuvering at Ulithi in 1944. I have seen film footage of this, but never clear photos. 

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The in-action photos are dramatic and the close-ups are revealing.  Most of the photos are also captioned with pertinent notes that provide info on the settings. 
Conclusions:

Another must have book from Classic Warships. This one is a great overview of US Battleships in living color! A full color coffee table book sure to please not only the modeler and historian, but even the casual observer. This is Warship Pictorial 34 - USN Battleships in Color by Steve Wiper. Published by Classic Warships Publishing ISBN 978-0-9823583-5-0. Price is $24.00 US retail and it is available direct of from one of their vendors listed on the Classic Warships website. Grab your copy now before this one sells out. 
 

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