April 28, 2013
I’m about halfway through the third (and final) “installment” of the “Baked Beans” series – the follow-up to my first book about the USS Boston (CA-69), “A Bird’s Eye View.” I started writing by deciding, for various reasons, to divide the story of the “Mighty B” – from her launch and commissioning – through her exciting tour of the War in the Pacific – to her post-war Occupation Duty and final mothballing in Bremerton, WA, into three volumes.
As I saw it, the first volume was the sort of “prelude” to the heavy action of the War, which was covered in Vol. 2. I was predisposed to considering Vol. 3 to be anti-climactic, a sort of “wrap-up” to the Boston’s participation in the Pacific. After all, Vol. 3 would start when the men returned from their leaves to San Pedro, CA in May and June of 1945. The War was still on, but history shows us that it was almost over by the time CA-69 crossed the Pacific to Eniwetok and then rejoined the Fleet in late July for the bombing of the Home Islands of Japan. One month later, the men and ships of the various US Navy Pacific Fleets were waiting for the formal Surrender ceremony to take place. Easy, right?
For not the first time in my life, I miscalculated. Volume 3 is anything but a boring wrap-up. I promise that readers of Volume 3 will be amazed and satisfied! All I can say is that the story of the heavy cruiser CA-69 and all her crew of enlisted men, officers and the detachment of Marines had one hell of an adventure.
I have two more crewmembers to see late in May, and I hope to finish the book by mid to late summer. It goes without saying, that the window of opportunity to get pictures submitted to me for possible inclusion in the book is closing quickly.
steve