The Perfect Storm
A True Story of Man Against the Sea
Published on 23. May 2024
Book
Paperback/Softback
240 pages
978-0-00-870618-0 (ISBN)
Description
The worst storm in history seen from the wheelhouse of a doomed fishing trawler; a mesmerisingly vivid account of a natural hell from a perspective that offers no escape.
The 'perfect storm' is a once-in-a-hundred-years combination: a high pressure system from the Great Lakes, running into storm winds over an Atlantic island - Sable Island - and colliding with a weather system from the Caribbean: Hurricane Grace. This is the story of that storm, told through the accounts of individual fishing boats caught up in the maelstrom, their families waiting anxiously for news of their return, the rescue services scrambled to save them. It is the story of the old battle between the fisherman and the sea, between man and Nature, but here Nature is an awesome and capricious power that transforms the surface of the Atlantic into an impossible tumult of water walls and gaping voids, with the capacity to break an oil tanker in two, let alone the 72ft swordfishing boat Andrea Gail with her crew of eight. A typical Hurricane encompasses a million cubic miles of atmosphere and can contain enough energy to, in theory, meet the electric power needs of the UK for a decade. Except that a hurricane will not be controlled.
In spare, lyrical prose 'The Perfect Storm' describes what happened when the Andrea Gail looked into the wrathful face of the perfect storm.
The 'perfect storm' is a once-in-a-hundred-years combination: a high pressure system from the Great Lakes, running into storm winds over an Atlantic island - Sable Island - and colliding with a weather system from the Caribbean: Hurricane Grace. This is the story of that storm, told through the accounts of individual fishing boats caught up in the maelstrom, their families waiting anxiously for news of their return, the rescue services scrambled to save them. It is the story of the old battle between the fisherman and the sea, between man and Nature, but here Nature is an awesome and capricious power that transforms the surface of the Atlantic into an impossible tumult of water walls and gaping voids, with the capacity to break an oil tanker in two, let alone the 72ft swordfishing boat Andrea Gail with her crew of eight. A typical Hurricane encompasses a million cubic miles of atmosphere and can contain enough energy to, in theory, meet the electric power needs of the UK for a decade. Except that a hurricane will not be controlled.
In spare, lyrical prose 'The Perfect Storm' describes what happened when the Andrea Gail looked into the wrathful face of the perfect storm.
Reviews / Votes
'(It) will become a classic for a jaded modern world' The Independent'Writes like a poet who has been to meteorology school' Ruth Rendell
'Terrifying, sad, exhilarating, humbling and unforgettable' Daily Mail
'A magnificent sea-yarn ... it deserves to storm these shores' Observer
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
HarperCollins Publishers
Product notice
Unsewn / adhesive bound
Paperback (UK-B)
Dimensions
Height: 200 mm
Width: 129 mm
Thickness: 17 mm
Weight
184 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-00-870618-0 (9780008706180)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
E-Book
06/2010
1st Edition
Fourth Estate Ltd
€10.52
Available for download
Person
Sebastian Junger grew up in New England and has worked as a tree-feller, Bosnian correspondent, journalist and adventurer. His first book, 'The Perfect Storm', spent over four years on the bestseller lists and its film adaptation was a huge box-office success. Junger has been contributing editor to Vanity Fair, and winner of the National Magazine Award for Reporting. He has also written for magazines including Harper's, the New York Times Magazine, and National Geographic Adventure.