U-boat Hunter: Peter Rogers, HMS Arum, 1939-1945

My Story: Boys

by Bryan Perrett

Sixteen-year-old Peter Rogers is training to be a Royal Navy officer in 1939 when he hears that his father's ship has been torpedoed off the coast of Ireland. The survivors, including his father, have been captured by a German U-boat crew and treated cruelly some of them are shot dead. In 1940 Peter joins an escort flee in the North Atlantic where British convoys are suffering horrific losses from enemy U-boats. We share in the trials and tribulations of his duties, including the constant tension, the bitter cold, mountainous seas - and the moment when he and his father's captor come face to face...

Genres: Historical Fiction, Middle Grade, Young Adult, Fiction, War, World War II, Historical

176 pages, Paperback

First published September 16, 2005

About the author

Bryan Perrett was born in 1934 and educated at Liverpool College. He served in the Royal Armoured Corps, the 17th/21st Lancers, Westminster Dragoons, and the Royal Tank Regiment, and was awarded the Territorial Decoration.A professional military historian for many years, his books include "A History of the Blitzkrieg" and "Knights of the Black Cross - Hitler's Panzerwaffe and its Leaders". His treatise Desert Warfare was widely consulted during the Gulf War. His most recent works, including "Last Stand, At All Costs" and "Against all Odds" examine aspects of motivation. During the Falklands and Gulf Wars Bryan Perrett served as Defense Correspondent to the Liverpool Echo. His books are widely read on both sides of the Atlantic and have been translated into several languages.

Reviews

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Peter is 16 years old when he joins The Royal Navy in 1939. He is assigned to a ship that escorts British convoys across the Atlantic and also seek out and destroy the German U-boats that are bent on destroying the convoy ships. I've read quite a few books on World War II, but this is the first time I have read anything about The Navy and their role in that war. I was trying to imagine in my head how things were done, how they found the U boats, how they dropped the bombs on them, but I don't think I actually understood it well at all. This is one of those times where I would need to see a documentary on The History Channel to get a more basic understanding. It was an ok book in general, a bit boring at times, but it's a good start for someone like myself who is just starting to learn about this side of World War II.

[Lance · Rating 5 out of 5]

Do you like books about WWII if so then you will love Bryan pellets U-Boat hunter

U-Boat hunter is about Peter Rodgers a signalman on a ship called the arum, hunting U-Boats during the battle of the Atlantic, peter and the rest of he arum’s crew must escort merchant ships to Great Britain with a convoy of about 7 ships.

The story begins in august 1939 in Liverpool; his father who is a skipper on a cargo ship called the Antigua moon inspires Peter. So in November Peter decided to join the navy as a signalman, but in September Germany invaded Poland and two days later Britain declared war on Germany right when the autumn term on the Conway (his training ship) began. The armillary had announced that every merchant ship would be escorted in convoys and that’s when a U-boat sank Peter’s dad’s ship off the coast of Ireland, the crew was murdered by a captain named von schlenigen but him and some other crew escaped. And ever since peter has been searching for the murderous U-boat captain’s ensign on the side of the hull, a crowned wolf. Later on in the war peter had his first U-boat encounter in August 1940, at fist he thought that the torpedo was going to hit the arum so he dove for the ground and waited to get blown to kingdom come but few moments later he was very grateful because the boat was small, its hull is higher in the water than other boats so the torpedo passed right under them so the arum’s crew member pingy detected it with sonar and then they dropped their depth charges and the remnants floated to the surface. One of peter’s most exciting moments was when the crew of the arum had to fight off enemy condors (planes) with the arum’s 4-inch guns. In the end he finds von schlenigen’s U-boat and he was charged with multiple war crimes and he was hung.

This is an adventure book, this books weaknesses are that some scenes lack detail but its strengths are the character relation the characters are very well built with back stories and scenes in the book that relate to their life before the war. I give this book a five out of a possible five it is a great book I recommend it to anyone who loves well detailed stories.

[Maddy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Boring ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

[bransom bean · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit weak on some facts

[Bev Walkling · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is part of the My Story series geared towards young teenagers. The series uses first person narrative to tell stories of what it was like at various points through history. This particular book tells the story of the fictional Peter Rogers who served on a Corvette from 1939-45. The story begins while he is in training for the Merchant Marines, but as war is declared and his father's merchant marine ship is sunk by a German u-boat (his father survives although the u-boat commander ruthlessly kills others) he is eager to become involved himself and search out the enemy. The author does a good job of telling what life would have been like at sea during wartime - the extreme cold they faced, seasickness from ships that rolled, fear of being caught by a u-boat torpedo. At the end of the book are glossary, historical notes and photographs from the era which help to put the story into its proper historical perspective. This was a good read.

[Kendra · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is great. It follows a young man (15 at the start of the book) through WW2. Peter Rogers is the son of a merchant sea captain. He signs up for the war effort and gets assigned to a U-boat hunter that escorts merchant ships across the Atlantic throughout the war. This is a part of the war that I hadn't learned much about before. There is a lot of information about the battle for the Atlantic and how the Allies sought to protect merchant and soldier ships from U-boats. The only draw back with this story is that the men drink rum and whiskey on a regular basis which may not be suitable for some.

[Molly]

This entire series is a wonderful way to learn history or teach it to adolescents. I find today's generations seem to recall more when they learn through other people (pop songs, celebrity gossip, etc.), so what better way to teach history than through someone else's perspective? Yes, "authentic" diaries would be "better", but would the language really hold the modern student's attention? Did the diary writer know what WOULD be important in the context of history? Probably not.

[Carter M · Rating 5 out of 5]

fighting the sea how bout being on a ship in 1940? it was awesome. i like the way the book was described and well written. i reccomend this book to anyone who likes cold war stuff.

[Nadine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Part of a series that's the Canadian version of the Dear America books. Interesting history from a different viewpoint - all of them good but this one in particular tells of the British Merchant Marine during WWII- an incredibly gutsy bunch of guys.

[Lucas J · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good book

[Tyler Back · Rating 5 out of 5]

good book

[Jen]

didnt enjoy it as much as the others in the series

[History King · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very quick read.

[Blair · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good book.