Mike Botula

Lst 920 Mike Botula

In his newly-enhanced, second edition story, LST 920: Charlie Botula's Long, Slow Target! author Mike Botula gives an historical account of the role of the LST's or Landing Ship, Tanks, the amphibious landing ships, which were so instrumental in the Allied victory in World War Two. From the beaches of North Africa, Italy, Normandy, to the island fortresses of the Pacific, these lumbering ships delivered the troops and their weapons and supplies where they were needed. The men who sailed them called them Long, Slow Targets. This is the story of one of them. The author pays tribute to his father, Lieutenant Charles Botula, Jr. who served as LST 920's second in command, and the other sailors - Americans and British who, at great peril, rescued survivors of a deadly U-boat attack. Included is the back story of the LST 920's mission, and her Skipper - Captain Harry Neil Schultz, who disobeyed strict wartime orders to save the lives of the survivors from his sister ship, LST 921, torpedoed by a relentless enemy - U 667. In this account of his father's story, the author puts his skills as an award-winning journalist to work solving the mystery of the fate of the enemy sub, and what the survivors faced following their rescue. It's also the story about the challenges facing an ordinary American family during the greatest war that the world has ever seen.