The Perfect Storm : A True Story of Men Against the Sea (Cassette/Abridged)

Junger, Sebastian

ISBN 10: 0679460357 ISBN 13: 9780679460350

Publisher: Random House Audio, 1997

Synopsis

2 cassettes / 3 hours
Abridged
Read by Stanley Tucci

It was the storm of the century -- a tempest created by so rare a combination of factors that meteorologists deemed it "the perfect storm."

When it struck in October, 1991, there was virtually no warning. "She's comin' on, boys, and she's comin' on strong," radioed Captain Billy Tyne of the Andrea Gail from off the coast of Nova Scotia. Soon afterward, the boat and its crew of six disappeared without a trace.

The Perfect Storm is a real-life thriller, a stark and compelling journey into the dark heart of nature that leaves listeners with a breathless sense of what it feels like to be caught, helpless, in the grip of a force beyond understanding or control.

About this title

Review:

Meteorologists called the storm that hit North America's eastern seaboard in October 1991 a "perfect storm" because of the rare combination of factors that created it. For everyone else, it was perfect hell. In The Perfect Storm, author Sebastian Junger conjures for the reader the meteorological conditions that created the "storm of the century" and the impact the storm had on many of the people caught in it. Chief among these are the six crew members of the swordfish boat the Andrea Gail, all of whom were lost 500 miles from home beneath roiling seas and high waves. Working from published material, radio dialogues, eyewitness accounts, and the experiences of people who have survived similar events, Junger attempts to re-create the last moments of the Andrea Gail as well as the perilous high-seas rescues of other victims of the storm.

Like a Greek drama, The Perfect Storm builds slowly and inexorably to its tragic climax. The book weaves the history of the fishing industry and the science of predicting storms into the quotidian lives of those aboard the Andrea Gail and of others who would soon find themselves in the fury of the storm. Junger does a remarkable job of explaining a convergence of meteorological and human events in terms that make them both comprehensible and unforgettable.

From the Publisher:

"Superb."
-- Washington Post Book World

"[A] true-adventure story."
-- Newsweek

"Powerful. . .gripping."
-- New York Times

"A+"
-- Entertainment Weekly

"Mesmerizing"
-- Boston Globe

"Junger's compassionate, intelligent voice instructs us effortlessly on the sea life of the swordfisherman ... It is a terrifying, edifying read."
-- Dava Sobel, author of Longitude

About this edition

• Publisher: Random House Audio
• Publication date: 1997
• ISBN 10: 0679460357
• ISBN 13: 9780679460350
• Binding: Audio Cassette