Review by Felix Bustelo

Flower Class corvettes were the true workhorses of the Allied navies in the Battle of the Atlantic. They herded convoys critical to the war effort back and forth across the Atlantic and filled in the gap for escorts until larger and faster ships, like frigates and escort destroyers, were built to conduct these duties. In the mean time, Flowers provided ASW support and screened convoys from the U-boat threat. These ships were not sleek and fast like destroyer escorts and frigates, but they were easy to operate, easy to build (therefore numerous), sturdy and seaworthy. However, due to the hull's trawler design, they were not suitable to deep-water service and they were susceptible to extreme rolling.

The latest and greatly anticipated volume from WR Press covers these often overlooked ships that played such a vital role in World War II. This very ambitious work is an excellent reference on this class of vessels and provides a cornucopia of information for modelers and naval enthusiasts alike. John Lambert's text is concise and easy to read and provides a very good summary of the development of this class of ship, reviewing the needs present at the beginning of the war that lead to the design requirements. The evolution and modifications made necessary by wartime experiences and shortages are outlined and a special brief section focuses on Canadian built Flowers. These ships formed the backbone of the Royal Canadian Navy and can be considered the foundation for this nation's current navy. Tables alphabetically listing all Flowers completed under both the Admiralty and Canadian Building Programs are included towards the back of the book.

The 96 page, softbound book is crammed full of photos (52 in total with some never before seen) and plenty of plans, drawings and artwork. All of the drawings and plans were drawn by John Lambert and include hull lines, hull plating and detailed plan and profiles of several ships in several fits. Very detailed drawings are also included for every type of armament that were found on Flowers (and there were many in various combinations, depending on availability and needs), each of the 6 different bridge types developed, the searchlight, the Type 271 radar and lanterns, the minesweeping steam winch and other deck details. No stone seems to have been left unturned!

The center of the book contains 24 camouflage schemes, drawn by Alan Raven, of 23 ships complete with color references. All of the ships included here had identical port and starboard schemes with the exception of the HMS Spirea and Mr. Raven includes both views here.

Three pages are also dedicated to funnel emblems worn on certain ships as well as the unique gun shield artwork found on the HMS Oxlip. I strongly believe that this topic along with the camouflage schemes of all Flowers could fill up an entire book of this size. And just when you thought that was all, there is a stunning foldout plan, glued to the inside of the back cover, of the HMS Anemone as she appeared modified as a fleet tug in July 1942.

It would be impossible to include the details of each and every Flower corvette built into this one book, as it would easily fill volumes. This book will be considered the premiere source of information on this important class of ships. John Lambert has done an excellent job of sifting through tons of information in order to strike a nice balance in what is included in this book. If you are planning to build a model of a Flower, you must buy this book. My one complaint is that with all of this information, I just don't know which specific ship to model! My thanks to WR Press for providing me with this review copy.