Destroyer Captain: Lessons of a First Command Paperback – Illustrated, September 15, 2014

Admiral Stavridis is an excellent story teller and I like stories about the sea and the Navy. I highly recommend all of his books.

I enjoyed the book immensely- as a young officer on USS DEYO (DD 989) during a Mediterranean deployment, I sailed into many of those ports just a few years later in 1998. It was my first introduction to the Navy and to the World for that matter... I too remember thinking many times after those late night watches..."What in the world am I doing?" I also remember the beautiful scenes the author describes about the ocean and it's eternity... And Admiral Stavridis is right, God does live out in those waves.On a professional level, I of course enjoyed hearing of the Admiral's great triumphs, but it was the failures I cherished most... Not because I enjoy seeing the great fall, as so many Americans thirst for... On the contrary, they were appreciated because I failed more times than I could count when I had Command. I battled those same questions, perhaps more so with just 9 years experience under my belt, and it was just nice to know that on occasion he had failed like me. That said, I was never prouder of my men then when we sailed into Bahrain for the final time...in our wake of a job well done. It was, as the Admiral described, such a sweet sweet period of my life. Despite all my shortcomings and failures, those six months remain the proudest of my professional life.Even after closing the book's cover, it continues to resonate with me, especially when thinking about the supporting cast (XO, Vince, the rest of the gang) whom I would love to learn more about... What a pleasure this has been to reflect on his experiences, as well as my own in such a framework.A true joy to read. I am grateful that the author shared his experiences with us.LCDR Michael Brasseur(Former Captain of USS WHIRLWIND)

I think it’s time for a bit of a reality check on the reviews for this book. They are supposed to be book reviews, NOT fitness reports. And, while Adm. James G. Stavridis may well rate as a 4 or 5-star quality naval officer, this book falls well short of a 4 or 5-star mark.Stavridis does a good job of conveying the stress of command and he provides some thoughts on leadership that military and civilian leaders might find useful. However, all the useful information could probably be condensed into a couple of articles for Proceedings.For me, the most grating thing about this book is the way Starvridis describes the characters he encounters. They fall into two categories. There are the bad guys – always nameless, and usually in the form of an annoying harbor pilot, oppressive inspector, or a random military officer he encounters.Everybody else he meets, everyone he serves under and who serves on his ship is a good guy – and not just a good guy, but a very good guy. They are the best! They are the greatest! They are winners! And I’m sure they all are. But reading the parade of names of every great person he meets or serves with, or attended the Naval Academy with, becomes tedious and comes off as unrealistic. I mean, face it, even Superman has weaknesses.One portion of the book I found oddly unsettling is when Stavridis writes about the Barry’s deployment to the Persian Gulf in 1994.He writes of the need for a democratic Iraq, and of Sadam Hussein he adds, “In fact, absent Sadam, Iraq could very well be a U.S. ally in the region – as crazy as that might sound today …”Those words bring back to mind the war fever that later led the U.S. to take a tumble down the rabbit hole of democracy building in Iraq.For me, a highly rated non-fiction book is something like Pacific Crucible, Shattered Sword, or Engineers of Victory. Or a biography that gives us all sides of real people. There isn’t enough content in this book, and it isn’t written well enough to merit more than 2-3 stars.

This is a first-rate book. I am delighted I read it. I found it to be touching, informative, funny, and readable.It also confirms, once again, what I think of those in the American military----they are very good people, and dedicated professionals.It is not surprising to note that Admiral Stavridis is an avid reader. It shows in his selection of books, and in his writing. If you don't read, you can't write well, and he writes well. I respect the way he is in touch with history, and literature. I also respect the way he is in touch with reality---he cares about those under his command, and he takes every bit of his job seriously.I was interested in the Admiral's observations about the Middle East, and the problems America has there.The book was written before 9/11, and some of the observations caught my attention. He noted that Iran is the real problem in the region, which is hardly a surprise. He also wrote that it might be useful to turn Iraq into a democracy as a challenge to Iran. I gather this idea was around a long time before George W. Bush adopted it.I do not know if its right or wrong. The "surge" seems to be effective, after all, and it might just work out.it would be interesting to know what Admiral Stavridis thinks about it now.I would recommend this book to anyone with an interest in naval history, naval warfare, and history in general. It is well worth reading.