About this item
Military ways can be enigmatic, resulting in an alien world where acronyms often replace words and where "1330" is a time of day. Add to that, the Navy is not only military, it is nautical, which adds centuries of sea-going terminology and practices to the confusion. While the young men and women who sign on to become Sailors in the United States Navy receive extensive indoctrination and training, their parents do not. As their sons and daughters are becoming uniformed, the parents remain uninformed.This book is both a translation manual and a cultural guide to their son's or daughter's chosen new world. Alongside chapters covering uniforms, ranks, ships, and aircraft, are explanations and guidance as to what to expect when their child first joins the Navy, the many benefits their Sailor will enjoy, and what families should bring and do when visiting their s\Sailors in their new and somewhat alien world.
About the Author
Thomas J. Cutler is a retired lieutenant commander and former gunner's mate second class who served in patrol craft, cruisers, destroyers, and aircraft carriers. His varied assignments included an in-country Vietnam tour, small craft command, and nine years at the U.S. Naval Academy, where he served as Executive Assistant to the Chairman of the Seamanship & Navigation Department and Associate Chairman of the History Department. While at the Academy, he was awarded the William P. Clements Award for Excellence in Education (military teacher of the year) .
He is the founder and former Director of the Walbrook Maritime Academy in Baltimore. Currently he is Fleet Professor of Strategy and Policy with the Naval War College and is the Director of Professional Publishing at the U.S. Naval Institute.
Winner of the Alfred Thayer Mahan Award for Naval Literature, the U.S. Maritime Literature Award, and the Naval Institute Press Author of the Year Award, his published works include The Citizen's Guide to the U.S. Navy; NavCivGuide: A Handbook for Civilians in the U.S. Navy; A Sailor's History of the U.S. Navy [one of the books in the Chief of Naval Operations Reading Program]; The Battle of Leyte Gulf; Brown Water, Black Berets: Coastal & Riverine Warfare in Vietnam; and the 22nd, 23rd (Centennial) , and 24th editions of The Bluejacket's Manual. His other works include revisions of Jack Sweetman's The Illustrated History of the U.S. Naval Academy and Dutton's Nautical Navigation as well as several hundred articles in Proceedings and Naval History magazines. He and his wife, Deborah W. Cutler, are the co-editors of the Dictionary of Naval Terms and the Dictionary of Naval Abbreviations.
His books have been published in various forms, including paperback, e-book, and audio, and have appeared as main and alternate selections of the History Book Club, Military Book Club, and Book of the Month Club.
He has served as a panelist, commentator, and keynote speaker on military and writing topics at many events and for various organizations, including the Naval History and Heritage Command, Smithsonian Institution, the Navy Memorial, U.S. Naval Academy, MacArthur Memorial Foundation, Johns Hopkins University, U.S. Naval Institute, Armed Forces Electronics Communications and Electronics Association, Naval War College, Civitan, and many veterans' organizations. His television appearances include the History Channel's Biography series, A&E's Our Century, Fox News Channel's The O'Reilly Factor, and CBS's 48 Hours.
