Just writing to let everyone know that for those who enjoy first-hand accounts about submarining during the opening stages of the Pacific War, "War in the Boats" by William Ruhe is a GOLD MINE !!.
Ruhe's original assignment was to oversee the installation of the first radar units for subs in the Pacific area. However, this task got put on hold when the ship carrying these precious radar units became an early casualty of war.
Already in Australia, he then volunteered to serve on any submarine in need of an officer and got assigned to the WWI era S-boat, the S-37. Known to its crew as 'the rusty old sewer pipe' the S-37 was barely seaworthy and suffered from a host of problems due to its advanced age and outdated technology.
Nonetheless, these were desperate times so the S-37 doggedly put to sea. Ruhe faithfully relates the woes of serving in an old sub - things like hanging nets over tables so the cockroaches constantly crawling on the ceiling don't fall into their food or ruin their card games. Or the crisis when the toilet becomes clogged and the herculean efforts to clear it. Or fans nibbling off the toes of sleeping crew members whose bunks were situated nearest these fans. Or the errors by the attack party due to a lack of training when an enemy ship is finally sighted and an attempt is made to sink it. Or the crew wondering how their shipmates, especially the officers, will tackle their first combat.
This is quite in contrast to James Calvert's "Silent Running" which is a chronicle of his years on a fleet submarine in the Pacific during WWII, which I have just finished reading.
For me the icing on the cake is that I started my first SH4 (FOTRS mod) campaign 10 days before I started reading the book. My sim skipper is running an S-boat just like the type Ruhe served in, and is on his third patrol where he has been cruising around Rabaul and the Solomons - which is exactly the same area that Ruhe's S-37 has now been assigned to patrol in his book. Talk about coincidences !