The Mathews Men

(Seven Brothers and the War Against Hitler’s U-Boats) By; William Geroux A friend advised me of this book which covers the war from the perspective of Mariners. A chronicle that up to now has never been documented as Mr. Geroux has so thoroughly written. Mathews is a County of the coast of N. Carolina that has had a tradition of producing sailors since the 1700’s. It was astonishing to me that one location could have had so many important sailors during WWII. I never realized how successful the U-Boats were particularly during the first six months of 1942. As a nation we were not ready to conduct war on an equal basis until we had time to train men and produce equipment to fight. This was particularly true with respect to protecting merchant ships. The ships sailed alone and were sitting ducks. The citizens resisted turning down lights. The U-Boats had no trouble seeing the outlines in the night. There was no air cover or naval escorts. The ships were not provided weapons to fight back. It wasn’t until the middle of 1942 that coastal convoys were created with air and naval protection. The progress of the War is outlined. Of particular interest were the convoys to Murmansk which received great losses. A man could not survive more than a few minutes in the bitter cold water and the convoy couldn’t stop to try to save them as they would only add to the losses if they stopped. As we follow the different men we learn that many returned again and again after surviving a torpedo attack. Some eventually paid the ultimate price by doing so. We learn of the families of these men and how they persevered. If you are interested in WWII history you might learn from reading this one. Jack B. Walters June 8, 2018