Destroyer Captain
The Life of Ernest E. Evans (American War Heroes)
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Destroyer Captain
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Narrated by:
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Lou Del Bianco
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David J. Hornfischer
About this listen
From James D. Hornfischer, New York Times bestselling author of The Last Stand of the Tin Can Soldiers, a riveting account of the life of WWII hero Commander Ernest E. Evans and his heroics and sacrifice during the Leyte Gulf Battle of Samar.
For the first time ever, acclaimed naval historian James D. Hornfischer, “the dean of World War II naval history," writing with his son David J. Hornfischer, explores Capt. E. Evans’s incredible story, from his humble upbringing as a child of a Cherokee and Creek family in Pawnee, Oklahoma, and his graduation from the Naval Academy in 1931, to his service on fighting ships during the Pacific War and his selfless bravery and cool command during a valiant faceoff with the pride of the Japanese Navy.
Interspersed with impeccable research, interviews with men who fought alongside Capt. E. Evans, and thrilling anecdotes about United States Navy experiences during WWII, Destroyer Captain provides insight into an incredible man who spent his life beating the odds through courage, ability, and sheer determination. Never were these attributes better on display than on the morning of October 25, 1944, when, in the waters off Samar, a small flotilla of US Navy ships encountered a Japanese fleet superior in both vessels and firepower. Aboard the USS Johnston, Capt. Ernest E. Evans seized the moment, ordering his destroyer to steam forward and attack. Heavily outgunned, Evans and his sailors fired torpedo after torpedo, all the while maneuvering to dodge enemy shells, as two other American destroyers joined the fight. It was a valiant last stand for Capt. E. Evans, one of the toughest warriors in the Navy, but thanks to his bravery and steadiness under fire, these dogged Americans routed one of the most powerful naval forces that Tokyo had ever put to sea.
A remarkable story of patriotism and courageousness, Destroyer Captain honors a singular American hero whose name shall never be forgotten.
©2024 James D. Hornfischer and David J. Hornfischer (P)2024 Penguin AudioListeners also enjoyed...
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Critic reviews
"Graceful prose and heart-pounding action make this one for WWII buffs to relish." —Publishers Weekly
“Renowned WWII naval historian John D. Hornfischer launched this first biography of Evans; David J. Hornfischer, his son, now brings his late father's work to fruition in spectacular fashion. Destroyer Captain is a testament to their skills as historians to pull together an entire book about a man whose life has barely been documented... A resounding story of heroism and sacrifice that no lover of history should overlook." —Booklist
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- By: James D. Hornfischer
- Narrated by: Christopher Newton, Sharon Hornfischer
- Length: 17 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 298
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 253
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 252
This landmark account of the U.S. Navy in the Cold War, Who Can Hold the Sea combines narrative history with scenes of stirring adventure on—and under—the high seas. In 1945, at the end of World War II, the victorious Navy sends its sailors home and decommissions most of its warships. But this peaceful interlude is short-lived, as Stalin, America’s former ally, makes aggressive moves in Europe and the Far East.
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5 out of 5 stars
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James D. Hornfisher's last work
- By JWHayn4563 on 05-05-22
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Ship of Ghosts
- The Story of the USS Houston, FDR's Legendary Lost Cruiser, and the Epic Saga of Her Survivors
- By: James D. Hornfischer
- Narrated by: Mark Cashman
- Length: 17 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 377
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 272
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 268
Renowned as FDR's favorite warship, the cruiser USS Houston was a prize target trapped in the far Pacific after Pearl Harbor. Without hope of reinforcement, her crew faced a superior Japanese force ruthlessly committed to total conquest. But the men of the Houston fought back with dignity, ingenuity, sabotage, willpower, and the undying faith that their country would prevail.
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4 out of 5 stars
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interesting read
- By Daniel W. Eggemeier on 05-11-07
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War Beneath the Sea
- Submarine Conflict During World War II
- By: Peter Padfield
- Narrated by: Chris MacDonnell
- Length: 25 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 175
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 149
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 148
This riveting chronicle of submarine warfare is the first to cover all the major submarine campaigns of the war, describing, in detail, the operations of the British, American, Japanese, Italian, and German submarine and anti-submarine forces. Beginning with a vivid re-creation of the sinking of the passenger liner Athenia by a German U-boat in September 1939, critically acclaimed military historian Peter Padfield's compelling narrative casts an unflinching eye on the devastating consequences of maritime warfare.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Fills in the gaps of other submarine books
- By Ben on 05-19-21
By: Peter Padfield
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The Fleet at Flood Tide
- America at Total War in the Pacific, 1944-1945
- By: James D. Hornfischer
- Narrated by: Pete Larkin
- Length: 23 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,363
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,212
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,207
With its thunderous assault on the Mariana Islands in June 1944, the United States crossed the threshold of total war. In this tour de force of dramatic storytelling, distilled from extensive research in newly discovered primary sources, James D. Hornfischer brings to life the campaign that was the fulcrum of the drive to compel Tokyo to surrender—and that forever changed the art of modern war.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Hornfischer's Philosophical Summary Up to VJ Day
- By Hollywood Dave on 01-08-17
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Strike of the Sailfish
- Two Sister Submarines and the Sinking of a Japanese Aircraft Carrier
- By: Stephen L. Moore
- Narrated by: Johnny Heller
- Length: 9 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 17
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 15
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 15
In 1939 off the New England coast, the submarine USS Squalus accidentally sinks to the bottom of the sea during a training exercise, killing half her crew. Coming to the rescue is the USS Sculpin, in many ways the Squalus’s twin. As their oxygen supply dwindles, the remaining crew aboard the Squalus are saved in a time-consuming, white-knuckle operation. Eventually the sunken submarine is raised, repaired, and returned to duty, with a new name: the Sailfish.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Great history!!
- By Tracey Clifton on 09-19-24
By: Stephen L. Moore
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Tin Can Titans
- The Heroic Men and Ships of World War II's Most Decorated Navy Destroyer Squadron
- By: John Wukovits
- Narrated by: Robertson Dean
- Length: 10 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,440
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,299
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,295
When Admiral William Halsey selected Destroyer Squadron 21 to lead his victorious ships into Tokyo Bay to accept the Japanese surrender, it was the most battle-hardened US naval squadron of the war. But it was not the squadron of ships that had accumulated such an inspiring résumé; it was the people serving aboard them. Through diaries, personal interviews with survivors, and letters written to and by the crews during the war, preeminent historian of the Pacific theater John Wukovits brings to life the human story of the squadron and its men.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Captivating
- By Jean on 09-23-17
By: John Wukovits
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Undersea Warrior
- The World War II Story of "Mush" Morton and the USS Wahoo
- By: Don Keith
- Narrated by: David de Vries
- Length: 10 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 56
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 51
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Story5 out of 5 stars 51
Mush Morton was a warrior without peer. At the helm of the USS Wahoo he completely changed the way the submarines fought in the Pacific War. He would relentlessly attack the Japanese at every opportunity, burning through his supply of torpedoes in record time on every patrol. Over the course of only nine months and five patrols, Morton racked up an astounding list of achievements, including being the first American skipper to wipe out an entire enemy convoy single-handedly.
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5 out of 5 stars
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- By Lady Pamela on 06-04-24
By: Don Keith
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The Quiet Warrior
- A Biography of Admiral Raymond A. Spruance
- By: Thomas B. Buell
- Narrated by: Chris Monteiro
- Length: 18 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 61
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 58
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 58
Regarded as the standard biography of World War II naval hero Adm. Raymond A. Spruance. Spruance, victor of the battles of Midway and the Philippine Sea and commander of the Fifth Fleet in the invasions of the Gilberts, the Marshalls, the Marianas, and Okinawa, is one of the towering figures in American naval history. Yet his reserved, cerebral personality did not make "good copy" for correspondents, and until the publication of The Quiet Warrior he remained an elusive figure.
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4 out of 5 stars
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You Shouldn't Meet Your Heroes
- By D. Baker on 05-29-25
By: Thomas B. Buell
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Dark Waters, Starry Skies
- The Guadalcanal-Solomons Campaign, March–October 1943
- By: Jeffrey Cox
- Narrated by: John Chancer
- Length: 31 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 87
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 75
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 74
Thousands of miles from friendly ports, the US Navy had finally managed to complete the capture of Guadalcanal from the Japanese in early 1943. Now the Allies sought to keep the offensive momentum won at such a high cost. This is the central plotline running through this page-turning history beginning with the Japanese Operation I-Go and the American ambush of Admiral Yamamoto and continuing on to the Allied invasion of New Georgia, northwest of Guadalcanal in the middle of the Solomon Islands and the location of a major Japanese base.
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4 out of 5 stars
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great but way too much alliteration...
- By Greg on 06-16-23
By: Jeffrey Cox
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Wahoo
- The Patrols of America's Most Famous World War II Submarine
- By: Richard H. O'Kane
- Narrated by: Sean Runnette
- Length: 11 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 394
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 354
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Story5 out of 5 stars 353
The career of the USS Wahoo in sinking Japanese ships in the farthest reaches of the Empire is legendary in submarine circles. Christened three months after Pearl Harbor, Wahoo was commanded by the astonishing Dudley W. "Mush" Morton, whose originality and daring new techniques led to results unprecedented in naval history; among them, successful "down the throat" barrage against an attacking Japanese destroyer, voracious surface-running gun attacks, and the sinking of a four-ship convoy in one day.
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3 out of 5 stars
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story is excellent...narrator...aarrgg
- By Rudy Ganther on 04-26-20
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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
- Narrated by: Barrett Whitener
- Length: 16 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 2,057
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,695
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Story5 out of 5 stars 1,692
Told from the point of view of the men who waged this steel-shattering battle, The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors captures Navy pilots attacking enemy battleships with makeshift weapons and sacrificial valor, a veteran commander improvising tactics never taught in Annapolis, and young crews from across America rising to an impossible challenge.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Outstanding
- By John on 04-17-04
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Torpedo Run
- The Story of WWII Submarine Hero Eugene B. Fluckey
- By: Don Keith
- Narrated by: Vincent Caruso
- Length: 8 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 61
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 57
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 57
Over the course of five combat patrols during the Pacific War, Commander Fluckey reinvented submarine warfare, pioneering audacious strategies to hunt and sink Japanese warships and merchant vessels. At the helm of the USS Barb, he directed his boat to attack warship convoys - never mind the lop-sided odds - and to slip into heavily defended enemy harbors to launch torpedoes at unsuspecting targets.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Eugene Fluckey hero!
- By Michael Billingsley on 06-21-25
By: Don Keith
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Japanese Destroyer Captain
- Pearl Harbor, Guadalcanal, Midway - The Great Naval Battles Seen Through Japanese Eyes
- By: Captain Tameichi Hara
- Narrated by: Brian Nishii
- Length: 15 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 820
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 730
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 729
This highly regarded war memoir was a best seller in both Japan and the United States during the 1960s and has long been treasured by historians for its insights into the Japanese side of the surface war in the Pacific. The author was a survivor of more than one hundred sorties against the Allies and was known throughout Japan as the Unsinkable Captain.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Rousing tale of fear overcome
- By Jean on 11-28-14
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Leyte Gulf
- A New History of the World's Largest Sea Battle
- By: Mark E. Stille
- Narrated by: John Chancer
- Length: 14 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 74
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 67
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 67
Pacific War expert Mark Stille examines the key aspects of battle of Leyte Gulf, the largest naval encounter in history and probably the most decisive naval battle of the entire Pacific War, with new and insightful analysis and dismantles the myths surrounding the respective actions and overall performances of the two most important commanders in the battle, and the “lost victory” of the Japanese advance into Leyte Gulf that never happened.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Perhaps a little scholarly
- By Michael Kiehn on 11-14-24
By: Mark E. Stille
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Midway
- The Pacific War’s Most Famous Battle
- By: Mark Stille
- Narrated by: John Chancer
- Length: 15 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 14
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 13
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Story4 out of 5 stars 13
Midway is the most famous naval battle of the Pacific War, and one of the most mythologized. The traditional view of the battle, popularized in its immediate aftermath and surviving through to the present day, is of a heavily outnumbered American force snatching victory in the face of overwhelming odds. This view is simplistic and, in many respects, wrong. Pacific War expert Mark Stille provides a detailed analysis of this pivotal battle, and argues that Midway was neither a miraculous American victory, nor a product of good fortune.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Authors need to leave personal opinions out of history books
- By Roberto G on 12-28-24
By: Mark Stille
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The Deadly Deep
- The Definitive History of Submarine Warfare
- By: Iain Ballantyne
- Narrated by: Paul Ansdell
- Length: 28 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 112
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 100
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 99
Iain Ballantyne considers the key episodes of submarine warfare and vividly describes the stories of brave individuals who have risked their lives under the sea, often with fatal consequences. His analysis of underwater conflict begins with Archimedes discovering the principle of buoyancy. This clandestine narrative then moves through the centuries and focuses on prolific characters with deadly motives.
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2 out of 5 stars
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American Effors Get Short Shift
- By GEORGE on 03-22-19
By: Iain Ballantyne
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Destroyer Captain
- Lessons of a First Command
- By: James Stavridis
- Narrated by: Chaz Allen
- Length: 6 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 62
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 55
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 55
This memoir of James Stavridis' two years in command of the destroyer USS Barry (DDG-52) reveals the human side of what it is like to be in charge of a warship for the first time and in the midst of international crisis. From Haiti to the Balkans to the Arabian Gulf, the Barry was involved in operations throughout the world during his 1993-1995 tour. Drawing on daily journals he kept for the entire period, the author reveals the complex nature of those deployments in a 'real time' context and describes life on board the Barry and liberty ashore for sailors and officers alike.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Great Navy book
- By Richard Giddeon on 03-04-15
By: James Stavridis
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Tin Cans and Greyhounds
- The Destroyers That Won Two World Wars
- By: Clint Johnson
- Narrated by: Tom Perkins
- Length: 9 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 78
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 65
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 64
In Tin Cans and Greyhounds, author Clint Johnson brings listeners inside the quarter-inch hulls of destroyers to meet the men who manned the ships' five-inch guns and fought America's wars from inside a "tin can" - risking death by cannon shell, shrapnel, bomb, fire, drowning, exposure, and sharks.
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1 out of 5 stars
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a lengthy history lessonn
- By SCOTTY on 09-14-19
By: Clint Johnson
The last stand of the Johnston. It had enough details to make it real but not so many that it took away from the story.
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American warrior and hero.
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GREAT BOOK!!
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By James D. Hornfischer &
David J. Hornfischer
“This is going to be a fighting ship. I intend to go in harm's way, and anyone who doesn't want to go along had better get off right now.”
If you are a history fan; if you are a US Navy fan; if you are an Oklahoman; if you are Native American, particularly Cherokee or Creek, you should read this book and feel the amazing sense of pride I enjoyed.
I have known the story of the last hours of Commander Ernest E. Evans’ life for years. Anyone who has ever heard of the Battle Off Samar, or read The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors knows of his incredible heroism. He was awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously for his actions.
This biography is long over due, and I am thankful for the Hornfischer’s for seeing it done.
Now you can know what leads a dirt poor Okie Indian to make it through the US Naval Academy when that was trend setting. Also his dedication to duty and willingness to sacrifice himself and his ship to save countless others. The events, his decisions that day in October 1944 did not happen off the cuff. He was prepared as a commander and leader to save the day.
Fantastic!
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A Great Book about Avery Great Man
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Plodding
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