Product Description

In 1991, three weather systems created a storm off the coast of Nova Scotia which overwhelmed the "Andrea Gail", with six crew aboard. Through the story of the doomed crew, the narrative recreates the elemental force of the storm.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #443560 in Books
• Published on: 2000-06-21
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 256 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
The Perfect Storm is the tale of a doomed ship caught in the middle of what some meteorologists have called the storm of the century. At its heart is a gripping narrative about struggling for survival in a tempest of ferocious winds and 100-foot waves. But rookie author Sebastian Junger does more than simply spin a good yarn. His account of how fishermen ply their trade and lead their lives in the 1990s is fascinating. The same goes for his descriptions of storm formation, wave physics and the terror of drowning. Anybody who enjoys Jon Krakauer's work or "Drama in Real Life" from Reader's Digest will appreciate The Perfect Storm.

Customer Reviews

"What was the final moment? What was the final,final thing?"
Sebastian Junger's The Perfect Storm is a masterpiece of "disaster writing," written in a crisply paced, masculine style while still incorporating much scientific detail about the meteorology of this "perfect" storm of October 28, 1991, and the physical forces it unleashed on the Andrea Gale, a seventy-foot commercial boat, fishing for swordfish at the end of the season, near Georges Bank. The result is the gripping story of Capt. Billy Tyne and five Gloucester fishermen who ran into the "perfect" conjunction of three major storms and never returned.

Junger begins his story with the maritime history of Gloucester, Massachusetts, a city from which over ten thousand men have perished at sea since the fishing industry began in 1650. Gloucester fishermen and their families are extremely close, and The Crow's Nest bar, vividly described here, is their "homeport" between trips and in times of emergency. To gain insight into the character of Gloucester and its fishing fleet, Junger lived above the Crow's Nest in Bobby Shatford's room while he did his research, became friends with Bobby's mother, who was a bartender at there, came to know and like the regulars, and gained confidences shared with few "outsiders."

As Junger introduces the six men aboard the Andrea Gail, he shows their both their lives and their motivations for going out on one last trip, which would bring thousands of dollars to each crew member, if successful. At the same time, he also presents technical information about fishing boats and how they are engineered, the changes in the center of gravity which occurred on the Andrea Gail with the addition of a "whaleback" storage area on deck, the science of long-line sword-fishing, and the daily lives of the men aboard.

Six other boats in the same area off Cape Cod at about the same time as the Andrea Gail report on their boats' terrifying behavior during this unexpected storm, allowing the reader to imagine the various tragedies that might have happened aboard the Andrea Gail. The Coast Guard rescue of three crew members from a large sailboat (which almost cost the lives of three rescuers) shows the ferocity of the storm and the near impossibility of rescuing the Andrea Gail's crew, even if they had been found in time. Filled with the kind of detail which brings this "perfect," hundred-year storm to heart-pounding life, The Perfect Storm is a gripping story which honors these fishermen without exploiting them or their families--a classic story of maritime disaster. Mary Whipple

John A. McPhee of the sea.
Just as John A. McPhee outlines the history of oranges in the book "Oranges", Sebastian Junger outlines "Men Against the Sea."

In the very beginning of the book Sebastian Junger tells you that this is not a novel or a fictionalization of the events of the last moments of the Andrea Gail. He believes if you read any fiction that you would doubt the parts that are real facts. To this end He has includes many pieces of information about men against the sea; He describes the sea, equipment needed to deal with the sea and the lifestyle of the men who deal with the sea.

Now some people may find his writing style has a feeling of tedium, tedium, and t-e-d-i-u-m. I find it just being through enough to not leave out any piece of information to tie this all together. How ever you may have to make an effort to continue through it.

Also Like John McPhee, Sebastian Junger actually was writing about different dangerous jobs and magazine articles when he sold this book before it was put together. He struggled to balance this between a sort of documentary and thrill of the story. I think he did a good job.

John A. McPhee of the sea.
Just as John A. McPhee outlines the history of oranges, (ISBN: 0374512973), Sebastian Junger outlines "Men Against the Sea."

In the very beginning of the book Sebastian Junger tells you that this is not a novel or a fictionalization of the events of the last moments of the Andrea Gail. He believes if you read any fiction that you would doubt the parts that are real facts. To this end He has includes many pieces of information about men against the sea; He describes the sea, equipment needed to deal with the sea and the lifestyle of the men who deal with the sea.

Now some people may find his writing style has a feeling of tedium, tedium, and t-e-d-i-u-m. I find it just being through enough to not leave out any piece of information to tie this all together. How ever you may have to make an effort to continue through it.

Also Like John McPhee, Sebastian Junger actually was writing about different dangerous jobs and magazine articles when he sold this book before it was put together. He struggled to balance this between a sort of documentary and thrill of the story. I think he did a good job.