Looking for that special gift that will have that certain special warship/navy geek in your life sitting on the floor oohing and cooing like little kids used to do with the Sears Christmas toy catalog? Or, are you that person who needs to drop a hint that, while gifts of new ties, sweaters, new tires and the like are nice and all, what you would really like is . . . THE NAVAL INSTITUTE GUIDE TO COMBAT FLEETS OF THE WORLD, 16th Edition Their Ships, Aircraft, and Systems by Eric Wertheim:

Called “the nation’s premier naval reference book,” Combat Fleets of the World is internationally acknowledged as the best one-volume reference to the world’s naval and paranaval forces. Updated regularly since 1976, it has come to be relied on for all-inclusive, accurate, and up-to-date data on the ships, navies, coast guards, and naval aviation arms of more than 170 countries and territories. Large fleets and small maritime forces get equally thorough treatment. Comprehensive indexes make the book easy to use and allow for quick comparisons between ships and fleets.

So, just what kind of naval force does Thailand have? What about Brunei? Brazil? Switzerland?

Yes, it’s all there. And if you think that I am joking about the hours of fun your friendly neighborhood wannabe naval expert can have with this book, I invite you to check with my wife.

I think that she’s around here someplace, but I haven’t seen her since my copy of this book arrived in the mail . . . well, perhaps after I read about Montenegro’s fleet, I’ll try and find her.