Fighting Bob

 Author's Summary

You are most suited to complete the mission that I require With those spoken words I began a ten day journey with the ghost of my great-great-great grandfather Commodore 'Fighting Bob' a journey filled with adventure, danger and conquest. I would witness the duels with British Officers while narrowly avoiding capture and imprisonment, subdue both Barbary Pirates and savage tribesmen and invade the California Territory, wresting it from rebel armies in pitched battle. Why was I selected? What skills or knowledge did I possess that I was the one uniquely qualified to carry out his mission? It wasn't long before the answer to these questions and more would be revealed. I was about to embark on an unforgettable odyssey.

MWSA Review

What does a man leave behind but his name and the stories told about him? It’s in our DNA to keep our family history alive by sharing those stories of the ones who came before us with each new generation.  Author Bob Stockton explores what it would be like to actually sit down and talk with an ancestor whose exploits have not only been passed down father to son but have been recorded, incorrectly it seems, in history books.

The ghost of his great, great, great grandfather Commodore Robert F. ‘Fighting Bob’ Stockton suddenly appears to his modern day namesake bringing to life the events from nearly 200 years ago. Commodore Stockton is well known here in California history books. He was appointed the first Military Governor of California in 1847 and the city of Stockton is named in his honor.

Much research has gone into this historical novel to maintain authenticity and accuracy in retelling the Commodore’s adventures during the War of 1812, the Barbary Pirate War and the capture of California during the Mexican/American war. Little known fact, Commodore Stockton would later sponsor a bill to end flogging as Navy punishment. The novel finishes in California but the Commodore went on to become a New Jersey senator and was drawn back into the military during the Civil War so perhaps there will be another book forthcoming.

It would be great listen to our ancestors’ stories firsthand, but only if they were as interesting  and influenced history as much as “Fighting Bob’s.”

Reviewed by: Gail Chatfield (October 2011)