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

I'd seen the movie in 2001 or 2002 and so I knew how the story would end but I was curious to know how the author, Sebastian Junger, would present the story of the Andrea Gail when there'd been no survivors. One of the things I really liked was that Junger didn't try to make a fictional accounting of what might have happened. He said straight out he didn't know. Instead, he interviewed people who'd survived the storm, rescuers and people in need of rescue. I learned more than I ever wanted to know about the two ways a person can drown. Reading the accounts of survivors and what happened when the boats were rolled by ginormous rogue waves was hair raising! To balance it out, I enjoyed reading about the area's fishing history and how the industry evolved. The background information was informative, not boring. Most of all, I felt for the loved ones left behind

I began this book late one night after finishing the last book and immediately was swept in. This is not my typical reading faire but I do love any stories of the sea so it still follows suit. The storytelling isn't anything unique, the plot isn't one that hasn't been explored before, but whatever this writer did - it sucked me straight in, tearing apart the book in a little over a day. The story is about 6 fisherman abord the Andrea Gail during the Halloween Gail of 1991. No one survived and no distress calls were ever heard from the ship, making it very hard to come up with the last minutes aboard the ship but the writer does a fairly good job at that and you can almost put yourself on the deck with those men, feeling the rise and fall of the swells and the sheer terror they must have felt seeing 100 + foot waves about to break on the bow. The only criticism is that I feel that the author could have wrote a bit more chronologically (he does bounce a bit) and done more of a back story on the fisherman than just on Bobby. I think it would have filled out the story just enough but the book was quite well without it.

This was an incredible book. Not only was it a story of the Andrea Gail which was totally lost at sea. But it was also the story of other life threatening experiences during this horrendous “Halloween Storm”. Like the 5 men of the American National Guard that had to be rescued from the water during the storm. And the 3 people on board the sailboat that was headed to Bermuda. Junger gave a detailed and very eery description of what it’s like to drown. He also gave the reader a good idea of what the life of a fishing town was like. A very close knit, keep to themselves kind of group. I think he was lucky to get anyone to talk. In a way, I was kind of glad I saw the movie first. I at least had a vision of what it was really like. Even if some of it was speculation. Glad I read this.

I saw the movie before I read the book and because I thought the movie was so awful I almost didn't read it.
The book is FABULOUS!! It grabs you early on and doesn't let go until the last page. Even though I already knew how it was going to end I just couldn't put the book down.

This book is up there with 'In Harm's Way' and 'Into Thin Air.' Riveting, an intriguing picture of the life of a fisherman, and the stunning, horrific choices on one fine day that lead to disaster. You won't be able to put it down. One of my all time favorites.

Much better than the movie.