Crossing the Line: A Bluejacket's Odyssey in World War II (Yale Library of Military History) Review

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Crossing the Line: A Bluejacket's Odyssey in World War II (Yale Library of Military History) ReviewWhen you think of a Princeton University professor who specializes in Shakespearean literature, you probably won't be visualizing someone who started adulthood by engaging in vicious aerial gunnery duels with Japanese fighters and otherwise living the stressful, profane, hazardous life of an enlisted sailor on three World War II aircraft carriers, one of which was sunk while he was aboard. Such is the case, though, with author Alvin B. Kernan. His wartime autobiography, "Crossing the Line," is one of the most interesting and often gripping sagas of navy life that I've read.
The book came as a surprise to me, on two counts. One, I knew that Kernan had been an aviation ordnanceman on the USS Enterprise during the Battle of Midway, and later an aerial gunner. But I had very little notion of the depth of his wartime experiences, not only as an aircrewman but also in escaping the sinking of the USS Hornet in the Guadalcanal battles and in a harrowing deployment aboard the escort carrier USS Suwanee. Suffice to say in this short review that Kernan earned a Navy Cross, a DFC, and five air medals from inside the turret of a TBF Avenger!
And two, I've also read Kernan's series of novels that relate to his wartime experiences: "Love and Glory," "Attack-Repeat-Attack," and "Fear In the Dark." I thought they were interesting but rather flawed (see my reviews on Amazon). For that reason, I was a little dubious about reading "Crossing the Line." Would this be another interesting but flawed piece of work that would cause me to keep my red pen handy while I read it? No. "Crossing the Line" is simply outstanding. Anyone with an interest in WWII naval air action will want to read this book. I highly recommend it. Yes, there are a couple of minor nits that a very knowledgeable historian might want to pick, but they are so insignificant as to be unworthy of mentioning here. "Crossing the Line" will not disappoint you. It is by far the author's best WWII book, and darned good by any measure.Crossing the Line: A Bluejacket's Odyssey in World War II (Yale Library of Military History) Overview

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