James E. Bassett’s Harm’s Way is a page-turner about a fictional American naval campaign during World War II.
High Point: The complex naval battle descriptions are suspenseful, exciting and easy to follow, but they never overshadow the human aspects.
Low Point: None
Author: James E. Bassett
Publication Date: 1962
Genre: Fiction
Project Gutenberg: Not available
LibriVox: Not available
Movie/TV Adaptation: In Harm’s Way (1965)
James E. Bassett’s Harm’s Way is a page-turner about a fictional American naval campaign during World War II.
It doesn’t whitewash war. In fact, the novel highlights personal loss and the physical, mental and emotional toll that war inflicts on the men and women who must participate. But the book also depicts ordinary people doing extraordinary things when they’re called upon.
Bassett’s style is comfortable. He excels in his descriptions of the naval battles which are often fought over hundreds of square miles. But you won’t get bogged down in the logistics of warfare at the expense of the human stories. Those are the stories that are the core of the novel.
The book was the basis of the 1965 movie In Harm’s Way directed by Otto Preminger and starring John Wayne. There are key plot differences between the novel and the movie. But as usual, the book is better.
Bassett produced other works, but Harm’s Way was likely his best by far. Watch the movie first–there are not that many spoilers–and then enjoy the book.
