Stanley Itkin, in the Library Journal, said of Take Her Deep! A Submarine Against Japan in World War II, “Galatin, commanding officer of the USS Halibut and one of the few submariners to reach four-star rank, has written an outstanding analytical, self-critical history. Beginning with the early war patrols, he recounts the sub's problems with defective torpedoes and primitive radar and electronic systems. He analyzes every attack made by the Halibut and does not hesitate to take the blame for his own failures. Although the Halibut sunk only 13 vessels, it probably holds the record for surviving the longest anti-submarine attack on a U.S. submarine. The recipient of 250 depth charges, the ship was so badly damaged that its hull was bent inward; yet it managed to surface and reach safety. The Halibut never sailed again. A book for all submarine buffs.”

Admiral I.J. Galantin, USN (ret.) “earned his commission in 1933.  After two years in the battleship navy, he transferred to the submarine service.  For his wartime valor as the commanding officer of the Halibut, he was awarded the Navy Cross, three Silver Stars and the Navy Unit Commendation.”  Later in his military career, Admiral I.J. Galantin held a number of submarine assignments, including oversight of the Polaris missile development.  In 1970, he retired at the rank of Admiral.  Admiral I.J. Galantin is the author of Submarine Admiral: From Battlewagons to Ballistic Missiles and Take Her Deep! A Submarine Against Japan in World War II.

Publisher’s Weekly said of Submarine Admiral: From Battlewagons to Ballistic Missiles, “In this memoir of his 41-year military career, from midshipman to four-star rank, mostly in the submarine service, Galantin provides an authoritative overview of the evolution of the sub and its role in the U.S. Navy. A distinguished combat veteran of WWII, he saw postwar service as head of the Navy Department's submarine branch; and, as director of the Navy's Special Projects Office, he had a leading role in developing the Polaris missile system for subs. Galantin recalls the loss of the Thresher at sea in 1963 and explains how that tragedy and the mystery of its cause led to a comprehensive examination of submarine design, construction and operation. Long involved in high-level planning and policy-making in the Pentagon, he gives a good account of how the Navy met the Soviet challenge at sea as well as the submarine's role in the post-Cold War era. Our nuclear subs, he argues, remain the chief deterrent to global strategic aggression. His Pentagon insider's view includes much interesting information about intra-Navy and interservice turf wars.”