The Perfect Storm

This classic audiobook, reimagined on film in the late 1990s, tells the story of two storms that combine off the Atlantic Coast to form one monster gale, and its catastrophic effect on one fishing ship. Narrator Richard M. Davidson's deep, authoritative voice effectively captures the book's mood, and his diction and tone allow listeners to easily follow all of the action. He alters his voice slightly to denote dialogue but doesn't commit to full-fledged characters. His tone, however, is a little too hard, and he tends to approach some words and phrases too emphatically, making the book sound like a hard-boiled detective story instead of a tragic tale of human loss. R.I.G. © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine

Starred review from April 28, 1997
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.

In October 1991, a confluence of weather conditions combined to form a killer storm in the North Atlantic. Caught in the storm was the sword-fishing boat Andrea Gail. Magnificent foreshadowing and anticipation fill this true-life drama while minute details of the fishing boats, their gear and the weather are juxtaposed with the sea adventure. Journalist Junger carefully researched the New England fishing industry and created a fascinating account of the fated ship and her crew. The story is superbly read by Stanley Tucci. Tucci expresses the human drama and the cold facts with a brilliant presentation. It's quite subtle, but the shifts in tone and focus keep listeners mesmerized. A parallel story of the plight of a 32-foot sailboat and an amazing sea rescue by the Coast Guard gets shorter treatment, as does the meteorological data. Despite the obvious abridgment, the central story of the Andrea Gail is hair-raising enough, especially its chilling description of drowning. Tucci succeeds, not only because the story is vividly written, but also because his artistic choices in the narration match the intention of the author so precisely. R.F.W. Winner of AUDIOFILE Earphones Award (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine