Product Description

"A stupendous feat of reportage."
–Ron Powers, cowriter of Flags of Our Fathers

Praise for Desperate Hours

"Goldstein′s book is packed with detail. . . . This description of the Doria′s sinking is especially moving."
–The New York Times

"A stupendous feat of reportage. Goldstein has virtually put us into lifeboats and sent us hurtling into the North Atlantic on the night of July 25, 1956."
–Ron Powers, cowriter, Flags of Our Fathers, and author of Dangerous Water and Tom and Huck Don′t Live Here Anymore

On an extraordinary summer′s night in 1956, in a fog off Nantucket, the world–renowned ocean liner Andrea Doria collided with the Swedish liner Stockholm and, eleven hours later, tragically sank. But in that brief time the Doria became, after the Titanic, the most storied vessel of the century, as nearly 1,700 people were saved in an unforgettable rescue punctuated by countless acts of heroism amid confusion, terror, and even cowardice.

In the tradition of Walter Lord′s A Night To Remember, Desperate Hours re–creates the ill–fated voyage, from the passengers′ parting waves at Genoa, to their last evening highball in the Doria′s lavish lounge, to the unbelievable realization that catastrophe was imminent. Richard Goldstein draws from dozens of interviews, court documents, memoirs, and reports that relate never–before–told stories. He also presents technical findings that shed light on the blame for the disaster. The result is a definitive history of a fateful day, a legendary liner, and a deadly shipwreck now considered by scuba divers to be the Mount Everest of the deep.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1388980 in Books
• Published on: 2001-10-24
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 288 pages

Review
"A compelling and definitive account... Desperate Hours reveals why the allure of the Doria continues to attract and fascinate even now, almost 50 years later." (The Boating Channel,www.boatingchannel.com)

On July 25th, 1956, the modern Swedish liner Stockholm collided with the equally modern Italian luxury liner Andrea Doria. The sea was foggy but calm, and both vessels had radar and experienced bridge crews. Eleven hours later, the Doria was lying on the bottom of the Atlantic, having lost 46 of its 1700 passengers; five lives were lost on the Stockholm. An editor and writer for The New York Times and author of Mine Eyes Have Seen, Goldstein focuses on the stories of the people, with just enough attention to the technical issues and the various legal battles to round out the account. Following the story from ship to ship, deck to deck, he clearlly dissects the rescue of the passengers and crew. As often in large disasters, some committed acts of heroism, some cowardice; others just muddled through. The causes of the accident have never been fully adjudicated. The collision may have been the result of a concatenation of minor mistakes in judgment, but, as Goldstein demonstrates, the rescue was the result of a number of organizations, ships, and people who cooperated smoothly under extreme pressure. Recommended for most public libraries. (Library Journal, October 15, 2001)

The leading disaster story of 1956 was the collision during a foggy Long Island summer night of the Italian liner Andrea Doria with the Swedish liner Stockholm. Here, journalist Goldstein (Mine Eyes Have Seen, 1997) offers the definitive history of the Doria′s sinking and the rescue of 1,700 people. Despite the modest death toll (46), the Doria′s story bears striking resemblance to the Titanic′s. Both were luxury liners built to the most advanced technology, sailing too fast in a dangerous area with poor visibility. In both, it was clear soon after the collision that the ship would sink. Both evacuations, however, were chaotic. Despite many heroic exceptions, too many crewmembers panicked, crowding into the first lifeboats. Unlike the Titanic, the Doria carried enough boats, but half were unavailable. At any angle above 15 degrees, boats on the high side couldn′t be launched, and the Doria′s list quickly reached 18 degrees. Because boats on the low side had to be dropped into the sea before loading, passengers were forced to climb down rope ladders or jump into the water. If the Doria had sunk in the Titanic′s two–and–a–half hours instead of eleven, the death toll would have been catastrophic. After the rescue came the usual recriminations, investigations, and lawsuits. Each side gave conflicting versions of the collision, so no blame could be assigned. Even today the Andrea Doria continues to exact a toll. Resting at 250 feet, the limit for a skilled diver, it receives a steady stream of visitors. They explore, extract souvenirs, and sometimes die, at the rate of nearly one per year.
Goldstein has interviewed a mass of participants and experts. The result: a detailed and authoritative history ranging from the background of the liners and the technical details of ship construction and transatlantic navigation to a gripping account of the collision, rescue, and aftermath. (Kirkus Reviews, September 1, 2001)

"...provides an interesting insight into how people react when faced with a catastrophe at sea..." (Lloyd′s List, 11 January 2002)

"..perfectly readable and..engaging (The Mail on Sunday, 3 February 2002)

Review

"A compelling and definitive account... Desperate Hours reveals why the allure of the Doria continues to attract and fascinate even now, almost 50 years later." (The Boating Channel,www.boatingchannel.com)

Goldstein focuses on the stories of the people, with just enough attention to the technical issues and the various legal battles to round out the account.... Following the story from ship to ship, deck to deck, he clearly dissects the rescue of the passengers and crew." (Library Journal, October 15, 2001)

"[J]ournalist Goldstein (Mine Eyes Have Seen, 1997) offers the definitive history of the Doria′s sinking and the rescue of 1,700 people." (Kirkus Reviews, September 1, 2001)

"...provides an interesting insight into how people react when faced with a catastrophe at sea..." (Lloyd′s List, 11 January 2002)

"..perfectly readable and..engaging (The Mail on Sunday, 3 February 2002)

Library Journal, October 15, 2001
"Goldstein focuses on the stories of the people, with just enough attention to the technical issues and the various legal battles to round out the account.... Following the story from ship to ship, deck to deck, he clearly dissects the rescue of the passengers and crew."

Customer Reviews

Lacks objectivity.
One gets the clear impression from reading this book that the author is lacking the resolve to come out and say what he thinks.

In 1956, two passenger ships collided some miles off New York. One, the Stockholm, was in the hands of the ship's third officer Carstens. He was alone at a time when regulations demanded two officers be on the bridge. Over the years both his testimony and his ability have been thrown into considerable doubt by some of the world's leading marine accident experts. In my own view, this officer's two most important failings were; (A) This was his first time as officer of the watch (i.e. his very first time at being in charge of a ship!) and he never called the captain for help or advice at any time - even though he had been instructed so to do on encountering fog. (B) It was later proved that his radar screen was set to the 5 mile range when Carstens thought it was set to the 15 mile range and, consequently, he thought the oncoming ship was much further away than was actually the case.

On the bridge of the other ship (the Andrea Doria) Captain Calamai had taken command of his vessel because of the foggy conditions. He had also reduced speed and was assisted in his duties by two other officers.

This author can write and, in this book, he tells a story and tells it well. For me, however, he glosses over those salient points which would ordinarily allow the reader to reach their own conclusion. It is as though the author is content to see a point mentioned (and sometimes the most important points are barely mentioned at all), before moving on.

I don't know whether Goldstein personally undertook all the research necessary for a book of this nature or whether he read a number of other books on the same subject before putting his own version together. Either way, I remain disappointed with the end product.

NM

It's like actually being there, Fantastic!
What a fantastic book, the authur actually puts you inside the Doria and sends you on this nightmare journey, the detail is so graphical, and the explainations so detailed, you can almost smell the panic and feel the cold, an absolute must for anyone who is interested in this which was a truly magnificent ship and amazing rescue story!