Lothar-Günther Buchheim joined the Navy when war broke out, he served on mine sweepers, destroyers and submarines. He was later employed as an official naval correspondent on submarines. It is these experiences that he has used in this novel. The novel gives the reader the reality of submarine warfare, one experiences the highs of the ‘Happy times’, as well as the dull monotony of everyday life, but the horrors of the ‘bad times’ are brought to life by brilliant characterisation, the reader becomes drawn into the claustrophobic world of the U-Boat. Although the book has been dramatised into a film and television series; which are outstanding, the book is richer in detail and even more dramatic. The novel is not as radically anti-war as other books such as ‘All Quiet on the Western Front’ but it does highlight the nature of warfare in vivid realism, whilst empathising with the men, amongst whom Lothar-Günther Buchheim served.