Naval Institute Press, 1999. 208 pp., 15 photos, 6 x 9 inches, Hardcover. $25.95 list, ISBN 1-55750-665-5.

As a reporter for Navy Times, Bradley Peniston flew more than 65,000 miles and sailed 3,600 more to visit sailors at work. He found that America’s fleet, built to fight the Soviet Navy on the high seas, had been caught flatfooted by the sudden collapse of the Cold War threat. A decade after the Berlin Wall fell, few ships in the U.S. Navy were doing the missions they were designed to do. Ships and sailors were wrenching themselves into shape for the new battlefields closer to shore.

Peniston wrote the book as an on-the-scene look at the sea service at the end of the 20th century: its ships, aircraft, weapons, bases, and people at work from Iceland to Iraq, from Japan to Chile.

“Excellent…a thoroughly readable and enjoyable book.” — Norman Polmar, naval analyst and author

“Peniston has painted a remarkably detailed, honest portrait of life in today’s Navy.” — Seapower

“An excellent introduction to the Navy’s hardware and various missions around the globe, written by a reporter who interviewed everyone from admirals to deck washers.” — Marine affairs professor Marc J. Hershman, University of Washington

“A keen depiction of the Navy today.” — Florida Times-Union