The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors: The Extraordinary World War II Story of the U.S. Navy's Finest Hour

by James D. Hornfischer

Among Taffy 3’s ships the Hoel had suffered worst, with 267 dead out of a crew of 325. The Johnston lost 184 out of 329, the Samuel B. Roberts had 90 dead out of 224, and the Gambier Bay

lost 131 men out of about 900. The St. Lo’s losses of 114 out of a 900-man complement seem disproportionate to the horror the ship experienced, erupting into a towering thunderhead of smoke and flame after the kamikaze hit.

Legend, tradition, history can drive a commitment to excellence that raises people and has them perform at a level above anything they ever dreamed they could do. And it makes all of us realize the potential that everybody has who serves for you and goes to sea on ships.

The last act of the Battle of the Leyte Gulf is called the Battle Off Samar. Sea battles like land battles are named after where they took place. Some battles like WW1 in France last months. Some like the Battle Off Samar last just a few hours. Some battles are face offs of whole armies... or huge fleets of ships. In this battle a half a dozen USN destroyers and destroyer escorts beat off a major IJN fleet including the largest battleship ever sailed. It wasnt a long battle. They writes books about battles and the heros of those battles. Some battles and their heros have many books written about them. The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors is the best nonfiction account of the penultimate act of the Battle of the Leyte Gulf and its incredible heros. Some books are worth reading twice, like this one.