What The Critics Say

““White Elephant Technology is a fascinating look at the wild, wacky, and downright weird contraptions concocted by inventors who couldn’t leave well enough alone. Flying tanks, flying bikes, flying cars, swimming cars, train-planes, plane-trains, even a rail Zeppelin. They’re dissected with a wit so dry you can almost hear the hapless tinkerers as they utter, ‘Back to the drawing board!’”

““I loved this book! There were so many inventions I’d never heard of. I only wish I’d read it before I started my museum.””

““Totally captivating. A fascinating account of glory and tragedy that soars with suspense. I enjoyed the hell out of it.””

““It’s too often forgotten that for a few short years, the U.S. Navy actually possessed flying aircraft carriers and the world’s greatest airship fleet. In his latest book, John Geoghegan has performed sterling service in excavating the astounding story of the Akron and the Macon from the tomb of lost history.” ”

““When Giants Ruled the Sky examines the successes, problems and controversies of the American rigid airship program bringing the industrialists and engineers who designed and built them, and the officers and men who flew them, to life. No airship fanciers’ library should be without a copy!””

““The best book focused upon the USS Akron & Macon published in the last 55 years!””

““A well-researched history of the rigid airship ‘carrier’ during the interwar years. A genuine contribution.””

““This extremely readable and gripping new account of the US Navy rigid airship programme and the demise of its giant flying aircraft carriers Akron and Macon, draws on fresh statements and personal accounts to tell the story through the eyes of those directly involved. The best book on the subject by far.” ”

““John Geoghegan’s ‘Operation Storm’ is a fascinating, meticulously researched and deft account of this bizarre chapter (in American history).””

““An exciting narrative of a naval showdown revealing hubris and humility on both sides...Geoghegan has scoured the archives to present a little-touted facet of Japanese naval history that offers a fascinating glimpse into the workings of the Japanese mindset at the endgame of the war.””

““Aviation historian Geoghegan’s virtuoso research turns up surviving witnesses and obscure documents to corroborate this engrossing story of politics, logistics, and the technological leaps and bounds made during wartime, and the resulting tale is a thrilling take on a little-known aspect of the conflict in the Pacific theater.” ”

““A great historical read, scrupulously researched and brilliantly written. A marvelous insight into the men on both sides who fought a brutal underwater war in the Pacific in World War II.””

““Anyone who believes there are no more hidden secrets to World War II will feel differently on seeing this book. I’ve been reading about the war all my life but knew nothing of the extraordinary weapon whose story John Geoghegan tells here. And tells, I might add, in a riveting, vivid, suspenseful way that makes it hard to stop reading once you’ve begun…it’s a remarkable tale.””

““The Imperial Navy’s submarine force in WWII is still barely understood in the West. Geoghegan has given us one of the first detailed glimpses into the workings of Japan’s undersea fleet. His detailed coverage of the Imperial Navy’s I-400 program is uniquely interesting.””

““Operation Storm is a must-read for anyone interested in the Pacific War…it masterfully tells the ‘story within the story’ of these phenomenal vessels focusing on the very human side of war. Geoghegan’s research answered questions I’ve had for years.””

““Operation Storm does for Japanese submarines what Das Boot did for U-boats, showing the human side of a remarkable story no less extraordinary for being true. Geoghegan’s splendid research combined with his writing skill makes Storm a genuine page-turner.””

““Deeply impressive….I was really drawn in by the details of this story.””

““Unknown to most Americans, in the closing months of the Pacific War Japan deployed huge underwater aircraft carriers from which to attack U.S. cities and the Panama Canal. The submarine technology is a story in itself here, told in vivid prose, with attention paid to the personalities of the principal players. Bravo!””

““Impressively documented and lucidly written, here is a lively, well-balanced account of the Imperial Japanese Navy’s huge I-400 class submarines and their eleventh-hour ‘game-changer’ mission.””

““Just when we were beginning to think that every conceivable World War II topic worthy of study has already had a shelf’s worth of books devoted to it…Geoghegan’s Operation Storm combines painstaking research and crisp writing to bring to life, for the first time in English, the fascinating story of Japan’s late war I-400 experimental submarine program.””

““A magnificent page-turner that reveals the inside story of a remarkable top-secret program, Operation Storm is a powerful, towering achievement.””

““Operation Storm is an exciting page-turner comparable to the best of Tom Clancy’s techno-thrillers—except this tale happens to be true...Geoghegan has delved deeply into...(the) records to tell a fascinating story.””