Sailing True North: Ten Admirals and the Voyage of Character

By James Stavridis

Categories: Biographies & Memoirs, History

Sailing True North (Penguin Press, 2019) is retired admiral James Stavridis's study of character through the lives of ten naval leaders across some 2,500 years. He profiles Themistocles, victor at Salamis; the Chinese explorer Zheng He; Francis Drake; Horatio Nelson; the strategist Alfred Thayer Mahan; Jacky Fisher, who built the Royal Navy's dreadnoughts; Chester Nimitz; Hyman Rickover, father of the nuclear navy; Elmo Zumwalt; and the computing pioneer Grace Hopper. Each chapter weighs their strengths and failings for lessons on integrity and judgment.

Recommended by 1 person

• Ryan Holiday: “I really like Admiral James Stavridis, his book Sailing True North and To Risk It All. These are about great naval leaders for the most part... Highly recommend.”