US Landing Craft of World War II, Vol. 1: The LCP(L), LCP(R), LCV, LCVP, LCS(L), LCM, and LCI (Legends of Warfare: Naval)

Great pictures and info for building RC boats

now I know

I thought the book deserves a 4- or 5- Stars rating for the photos but offers only minimal text on design development histories. In my opinion, the two best chapters are Chapter 5 on the LCI(L) and Chapter 4 on the LCM. The chapters on the antecedents to the LCVP, the LCP(L), LCP(R), and LCV, are also good. The photo captions are very informative and worth scrutinizing. A minor quibble: although the front cover indicates the book includes the LCS, in fact it does not.

As Squadron/Signal has gone the way of the Dodo, it's not really shocking that Schiffer Publishing is using their "Legends of Warfare" series to trying to fill the gap Squadron's "In Action/In Detail/At War/Etc." series traditionally filled. I've purchased five books in their Naval line, and while none have been totally exemplary, I've enjoyed all of them. Like the rest of the series, it's pretty simple on a structural level. Each landing craft type receives a one-page text introduction, along with a basic specifications sheet (machinery, displacement, endurance, etc.), followed by a selection of photographs, usually one or two to a page, accompanied by informative captions. In all, the LCP(L) and LCP(R) receive 14 pages, the LCV six pages, the LCVP 26 pages, the LCM 22 pages, and the LCI(L), the largest of the bunch, 39 pages. There are about 175 photographs in total, mostly black and white, but there are a few color wartime images and a number of photographs of preserved LCP(L)s, LCVPs, and LCI(L)s. Along with the overall views and "in action" shots, there's also quite a few closeup detail images of the hull undersides, helm stations, interiors, and of craft under construction which should please modelers. The photographic reproduction is generally pretty good, although it's pretty obvious color photography was in its infancy at the time and the few color pictures here are provided more for their novelty. Unfortunately, despite what the title promises, the LCS(L) is nowhere to be found outside of the introduction and the cover. Volume 2 contains a brief chapter on it, but I'm amazed no one at Schiffer noticed this mistake before it went to print. I also wouldn't have minded some basic three-view drawings of each craft; I'm not really an expert on the subject, and I found myself having a hard time orienting myself occasionally. Still, this is a pretty solid little reference book that I recommend to anyone interested in the subject.

If you watched “Saving Private Ryan”, and wondered if the landing craft scene happened like that, it did. Here’s a book covering all the various types of craft used, why they look like they do, waht they were used for within the landings, and how many variations there were, or at least the ones that were documented…. Fantastic book, especially if you or your kids wanted to model part of the D-Day landings…

This is an great addition to my library.

Lots of detail, be sure to get both volumes.

Muy interesante y con gran cantidad de fotografías, además historia y datos generales del astillero, modelos precedentes y todas las series de lanchas de desembarco de los tipos indicados en el libro. Recomendable.

Its very accurate and detailed

En parte los grandes desconocidos, imprescindibles en la guerra anfibia. Este libro nos descubre estos medios, que evolucionaron durante la segunda guerra mundial y que ayudaron a ir dando saltos en el Pacífico, sin olvidar por supuesto las operaciones anfibias en el teatro europeo

上陸用舟艇の中でも比較的小型の船型を特集した写真集です。 紙質がよく写真もかなり鮮明なものが多数掲載されています。 扱っているのは副題のとおり ・LCP(L) and LCP(R) P6～19 ・LCV P20～25 ・LCVP P26～51 ・LCM P52～73 ・LCI(L) P74～112 以上ほぼ軍に採用された順に掲載されており、各船型個々のクローズアップ画像 +訓練時画像と戦場での画像という感じの編集です。 のちにLCVPに主力が移ったLCPは初期のソロモン戦域での写真が載っており、 図面はほぼ無く記述要素も多くありませんが、その分写真キャプションが充実しているので LCMやLCI(L)など簡単ながらその船型の各タイプについての言及もあります。 特に兵士の上陸法が側面ランプから艦首バウドアに変更されたLCI(L)402型の鮮明な画像は 今までほとんどなかった貴重な資料だと思います。 カラー画像は20枚程度、他モノクロ画像もかなり鮮明なものが多く掲載されています。 そして”Vol.1”と銘打っているように他の舟艇も取り上げられていくと思います。 （追記：新刊情報が更新され、Vol.2でLCT,LSM,LSTを取り上げるようです） ただ星3つとしたのは目的のひとつであった各舟艇の母船（APやAK等）の画像がほどんどなく また沖縄戦などで重宝されたLSSL（のちの海上自衛隊草創期のゆり型警備艇）など LCI(L)派生バリエーションも載っていなかったためです。（追記：上記Vol.2に掲載あり） このシリーズは編集、画質、紙質などが大変バランスよく、各舟艇自体を目的とされる方には 現時点ではコストパフォーマンスが高い大変良い資料だと思います。

A great book on a very important but often forgotten part of WWII. Love the photos and well researched text. Looking forward to Vol 2.