The Perfect Storm: A True Story of Men Against the Sea

Overview

A real-life thriller that leaves us with the taste of salt on our tongues and a terror of the deep.
"Takes readers into the heart of the maelstrom and shows nature's splendid and dangerous havoc at its utmost." --Philadelphia Inquirer

"Ferociously dramatic and vividly written." --Entertainment Weekly

"Harrowing, relentless . . . and thoroughly enjoyable." --Kansas City Star

"A terrifying, edifying read. . . . Readers . . . are first seduced into caring for the book's doomed characters, then compelled to watch them carried into the jaws of a meteorological hell. Junger's compassionate, intelligent voice instructs us effortlessly on the sea life of the sword-fisherman, the physics of a sinking steel ship, and the details of death by drowning." --Dava Sobel

Editorial Reviews

In meteorological jargon, a "perfect storm" is one unsurpassed in ferocity and duration--a description that fits the so-called Halloween Gale of October 1991 in the western Atlantic. Junger, who has written for American Heritage and Outside, masterfully handles his account of that storm and its devastation. He begins with a look at the seedy town of Gloucester, Mass., which has been sliding downhill ever since the North Atlantic fishing industry declined, then focuses his attention on the captain and the five-man crew of the Andrea Gail, a swordfishing vessel. He then charts the storm--particularly formidable because three storms had converged from the south, the west and the north--that created winds up to 100 miles an hour and waves that topped 110 feet. He reconstructs what the situation must have been aboard the ship during the final hours of its losing battle with the sea, and the moments when it went down with the loss of all hands. He recaps the courageous flight of an Air National Guard helicopter, which had to be ditched in the ocean--leaving one man dead while the other four were rescued--then returns to Gloucester and describes the reaction to the loss of the Andrea Gail. Even with the inclusion of technical information, this tale of the "Storm of the Century" is a thrilling read and seems a natural for filming. BOMC main selection and QPB selection; Reader's Digest Today's Best Nonfiction selection; first serial to Esquire; $235,000 paperback floor; simultaneous Random House Audio; British rights: Fourth Estate. Copyright 1997 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Author Information

Bio of Sebastian Junger

Sebastian Junger is the author of A Death in Belmont and Fire. He has been awarded a National Magazine Award and an SAIS Novartis Prize for journalism. Most recently, he has been reporting on the war in Afghanistan for Vanity Fair. He lives in New York City.

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Additional Info

Imprint

W. W. Norton & Company, Incorporated

Filesize

2.23 MB

Number of Pages

234

eBook ISBN

9780393076608

Awards

• American Library Association Notable Books
• New York Times Notable Books of the Year
• School Library Journal Best Books of the Year