Featured Book

"Warship Pictorial #13: IJN Kongo Class Battleships"

by Steve Wiper

Softcover, 72 pages
Published by Classic Warship Publishing
Publication date: April 2001
ISBN: 0-9719687-1-2
List Price: $13.95

We have waited far too long to get a decent review up on Steve Wiper's Warship Pictorial on the IJN Kongo, and for that I apologize. I have wanted to put up a decent article on this book for some time, but since I have a strange, inexplicable phobia about the general public reading my writing, I have shied away from doing so. But, I can procrastinate no longer. This book has been out for over a year now, and is one in a series of very excellent releases from Classic Warship Publishing. Steve's earlier releases have dealt mostly with USN Heavy Cruisers, Destroyers and Battleships and this is his first topic on an IJN subject. And what a treat it is! 72 Pages packed with over 100 photographs with prewar career history coverage plus. It has many photos of the Kongo and her sister ships, many of which I had never seen before, as well as very detailed Tabular Records Of Movement (TROM's Courtesy of Bob Hackett) of all four vessels starting with Japan's opening moves when they began hostilities with the United States in late November 1941. A lot of thought has gone into this book and if you are looking for an excellent resource for photos, this book delivers the goods. As a ship modeler, I find the photos in this book extremely useful as there are many excellent close-up shots of superstructure details and many rare views of the lower hull areas from photos taken while the ships were in drydock. You can follow the many different configurations the Kongos went through over their lifetimes with photographs depicting the Battleships in chronological order as well as 15 profiles and 5 plan view drawings of the 4 vessels: Kongo, Hiei, Kirishima, and Haruna. The next release of an IJN topic from Classic Warships will be Warship Pictorial #17 - IJN Myoko Class Cruisers, which should be available in late Fall, 2002.

You can order this book from the following sources: Pacific Front Hobbies, White Ensign Models, The Floating Drydock, Christian Schmidt Bookstore , Colpar Hobbies and all books are sold through the dealers listed above and at your local hobby shop / Military Book Store. Get it; you won't be sorry. (QB)