Hard Charger! The Story of the USS Biddle ( DLG-34) By Jim Treadway (278 pages, photos) Reviewer:  Bernie Ditter Overall Rating: Three stars--Recommended. A solid effort. For the technical minded among the readers this book is a treasure trove of arcane information describing in excruciating detail the transition of gunboats into missile ships. Introducing us to over two hundred and twenty acronyms and more names of systems, software, hardware, training missions and operations than the average person has the capacity to digest the author transports us from the laying of the Biddle’s keel to her decommisioning. From 1967 through 1993 the story of the USS Biddle DLG-34 is told mainly through a review of her logs, except for a few years where none were available, augmented by interviews with many of her skippers (there were fifteen), officers and crew. Like many books written about the ships at sea and their crews this book is sprinkled with anecdotes that are humorous, tragic and complex but always interesting. The experience with the lost memory cores alone is worth the price of admission. In this reviewers opinion the real story is the transformation of the surface ships of war from guns to missiles and so far into the information age that the gunner’s mates from the past have almost become anachronistic. The incongruity of three and five inch guns aft on the Biddle in contrast to her missile systems and their capability to track over one hundred targets concurrently and fire within ranges in excess of 60 miles is almost absurd until you read about those guns taking out a target that had gotten inside the range of the missile systems. The book certainly helps to educate the reader in the way battles are fought. When one compares the surface battles in the Pacific during World War II to those of Viet Nam the differences are startling. Naval warfare has undergone quantum leaps in technology. The Aegis systems of today are even more advanced than the systems described in this book. This book is an excellent read for those who are comfortable sorting through the arcana. For those not as inclined it will be difficult to get to the rest of the story but if they persist they will be better off for having done so. Availability: Order on-line at www.turnerpublishing.com or call 1-800-788-3350 or send all materials, checks and orders to Hard Charger! The Story of the USS Biddle Turner Publishing Company 412 Broadway PO Box 3101 Paducah, KY 42002-3101