“This book, written by a Navy Admiral is perhaps the most carefully researched, most balanced of the biographies of John Paul Jones. It has neither the adoration, nor the snide condemnation of some other recent biographies."
– John Matlock, Amazon.com review
“…a gracefully written portrait of this extraordinary and complex man….We see Jones’ commitment to the new nation of liberty blending with his hopes for an important naval command—hopes that would be constantly frustrated. It was not until Benjamin Franklin handed him command of a leaky French armed merchantman, the Bonhomme Richard, that he finally came into his own.”
– Arthur Herman, New York Post, review
“Callo’s narrative of Jones’ career is told in a measured, balanced and readable way. Jones comes over as a complicated man: headstrong, passionate and at times violent. Above all he was audacious, determined, knew how to fight and became a great leader of men. What comes over very powerfully from Callo’s biography is a sense of a man who continually succeeded against the odds through sheer willpower….This is a gripping and heroic story straight out of the pages of Homer, told with the confidence of an author who fully understands and admires his subject but never lets that blind him of his shortcomings. Highly recommended.”
– Nick Slope, The Nelson Dispatch, review (UK)
“John Paul Jones was the first American naval hero to exemplify the modern Navy's ideals of honor, courage and commitment. Joe Callo highlights those traits in Jones as he describes the former Scotsman's efforts to build a navy and carry the fight to the enemy in support of the ideals of his adopted nation. Driven by the cause of liberty and sacrificing personal gain for the greater good, Jones died underappreciated. Now, thanks to writers like Callo, new generations can realize just how much we owe to John Paul Jones. He fought for carrying the fight to the enemy. He fought for a navy. He fought for the young United States of America. We owe him much. We owe Joe Callo much for bringing us this important story.”
– Vice Admiral Robert F. Dunn, USN (Ret.)
President, Naval Historical Foundation
“…a fresh, long-overdue biography….Employing a solid yet eloquent narrative pace….Along the way, 200 years of erroneous legends and deconstructionist views are investigated and demythologized.”
– Don DeNevi Navy Times, review
“…a biography that eschews both the blind idolization of past accounts and the inaccurately deconstructionist present accounts of Jones’ amazing life….scrutinizes both the well-known aspects of Jones’ life…and lesser-known aspects such as his relationship with civilian leaders like Benjamin Franklin, which in turn set precedents for a fledgling nation’s concept of civilian control of the military...even-handed and meticulously accurate.
– The Midwest Book Review’s Reviewers Bookwatch
“Admiral Callo takes us to sea with Jones, with the perspective of a naval leader with more than thirty years of experience as a reserve officer and a seaman with far-ranging experience under sail, including three hurricanes at sea. And above all is his strong devotion to seeking out the factual basis of history. Callo singles out the points of decision that defined Jones’s life and career…he gets to Jones’s core purpose.”
– Peter Stanford, President Emeritus, National Maritime Historical Society
“An excellent book that discusses the character and complexity of a U.S. Navy icon.”
– Youssef Abdoul-Enein, The Waterline, review
“At one point in the melee, the Bon Homme Richard began taking on water. The British captain urged Jones to strike his flag and surrender. It was then that Jones gave his famous reply, ‘I have not yet begun to fight.’
It was Jones’ doctrine that ‘I will never give up,’ Callo said. ‘(The fight) was long past the point when other commanders would have surrendered. He could have done it and no one would have blamed him. But Jones wouldn’t give up.’
An hour later, it was the British who struck their flag and surrendered.”
– Doug Tsuruoka, Investor’s Business Daily
Excerpt from “Leaders & Success”
“Exceptional work and great presentation.”
– Unsolicited e-mail comment from a reader
“The genesis of such an entity (The U.S. Navy of 1943-45) is therefore important not only to itself but to the rest of the world. This explains the continuing focus on the ambivalent character of John Paul Jones….an excellent biography of John Paul Jones that does not gloss over the substantial number of dubious incidents in his life….there is no doubt that Jones’ military achievements were well out of the ordinary for a fledgling navy and his place in its pantheon is well deserved….if you want to know and understand John Paul Jones, this is the book to buy.”
– G.F. Liardet, The Naval Review (UK)
“An excellent new biography examining the influence of Jones on the U.S. Navy past and present.”
– Marine & Cannon Books, catalogue description (UK)
“I enjoyed this book. Admiral Callo presented a balanced history that placed the strategic, operational and tactical achievements of John Paul Jones’s career in perspective.”
– Amazon.com review from Baghdad
“I’ve read several accounts of his (Jones’) life, but yours is the best by far. I particularly appreciate the excellent research you must have done and the inclusion of the relevant letters in your book….you make JPJ come alive with your descriptions of his character and love for his adopted land.”
– Unsolicited letter from a reader
“For Admiral Callo, Jones’ drive for success raises him to the level of one of America’s founding fathers, and a good number of naval-minded people might agree. This book is highly recommended for a succinct and accurate account of our first sea warrior.”
– Dr. William Dudley, article in Naval History Magazine
“Rather than looking at Jones in a rear view mirror, Callo illuminates how this unique naval hero is linked to the nation’s present and future.”
– The Kedge Anchor, Newsletter of The 1805 Club, review (UK)
“Admiral Callo…has written this penetrating new look at Jones examining several lesser know aspects of his naval career, including his relationship with Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson and the Russian Navy of Catherine the Great.”
– The Naval Club of London Newsletter (UK)
“Callo sets out to capture this officer and make him relevant to the modern world….Callo’s biography challenges us once again to reflect on this officer and the cause for which he fought.”
– Proceedings, review
“Rear Admiral Joseph Callo (retired), an expert on the age of sail, has produced a solid, up to date biography of this often elusive character. This title does an admirable job of stripping away the myth in front of the man, and is an excellent life study of America’s first naval hero….Jones, warts and all was ultimately a patriot, dedicated to the American cause, and a sailor who pledged his life and sacred honor in pursuit of American independence. This makes the last chapter of the book, dealing with the strange post mortem story of Jones’ corpse, all the more poignant.”
– Roderick Gainer, International Journal of Naval History
