This book is a fantasy view of a "super-sailor" looking back at his career. His experiences in submarine school and while on the SSBN "Francis Marion" are pure fantasy and fiction. If any "raghat" acted like this with his ship mates, they would have thrown him over the side at the first opportunity. During the main character's time at Submarine School in Groton, he relates his experiences being given the questions and answers "miraculously" during the extra study periods thus enabling slower students to score big on the exams. Rubbish! No submarine service instructor would jeopardize his authority and his command's trust by doing so. In another episode,the main character desires to complete his "prac-facs'" (practical factors) by qualifing on the 45cal semiautomatic pistol thus enabling him to take the 3rd class petty officers exam. He does this by walking up to the tender and asking an enlisted marine for a walk through and signature. Also as an unqualified seaman apprentice, he claims to have been put in charge of the deck division port watch section for upkeep. All of this is rubbish! Reporting on-board as an unqualified seaman apprentice, he would have been rapidly introduced to the finer points of "mess cooking," i.e., busing tables on the mess deck and washing dishes. When you are done (8-12hr shift), you work on your quals. The author tries very hard to make his main character into a modern day Horatio Hornblower, dauntless, brave and capable. The truth is that the US Naval sub service is full of talented individuals, volunteers from the general US Navy population and honed via training into razor sharp crews. I qualified on an SSBN in 1970. Most of my shipmates were smart, many were well educated but all were sharp. The author tries to make it look easy. Nothing could be further from the truth and nothing could be more aggravating to those of us who slugged our way through. ( )