Book excerpt: "In this colorful operational history of the U.S. Navy's destroyers and destroyer escorts in World War II, Theodore Roscoe pays tribute to the workhorses of the fleet that served in every theater of the war. As submarine hunters, convoy escorts, troop transports, radar pickets, rescue vessels, blockade runners, bombardment ships, and much more, these remarkably versatile ships-and the crews who manned them-took part in more operations than any other type of ship in the U.S. Navy. This is their story of the war." -- Front jacket flap.