Into the Raging Sea : Thirty-Three Mariners, One Megastorm, and the Sinking of El Faro
Author(s): Rachel Slade
WINNER OF THE MAINE LITERARY AWARD FOR NON FICTION
NATIONAL BESTSELLER
A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK
AN NPR BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR
ONE OF JANET MASLIN’S MUST-READ BOOKS OF THE SUMMER
A NEW YORK TIMES EDITOR'S CHOICE
ONE OF OUTSIDE MAGAZINE’S BEST BOOKS OF THE SUMMER
ONE OF AMAZON'S BEST NONFICTION BOOKS OF THE YEAR SO FAR
“A powerful and affecting story, beautifully handled by Slade, a journalist who clearly knows ships and the sea.”—Douglas Preston, New York Times Book Review
“A Perfect Storm for a new generation.”
—Ben Mezrich, bestselling author of The Accidental Billionaires: The Founding of Facebook
On October 1, 2015, Hurricane Joaquin barreled into the Bermuda Triangle and swallowed the container ship El Faro whole, resulting in the worst American shipping disaster in thirty-five years. No one could fathom how a vessel equipped with satellite communications, a sophisticated navigation system, and cutting-edge weather forecasting could suddenly vanish—until now.
Relying on hundreds of exclusive interviews with family members and maritime experts, as well as the words of the crew members themselves—whose conversations were captured by the ship’s data recorder—journalist Rachel Slade unravels the mystery of the sinking of El Faro. As she recounts the final twenty-four hours onboard, Slade vividly depicts the officers’ anguish and fear as they struggled to carry out Captain Michael Davidson’s increasingly bizarre commands, which, they knew, would steer them straight into the eye of the storm. Taking a hard look at America's aging merchant marine fleet, Slade also reveals the truth about modern shipping—a cut-throat industry plagued by razor-thin profits and ever more violent hurricanes fueled by global warming.
A richly reported account of a singular tragedy, Into the Raging Sea takes us into the heart of an age-old American industry, casting new light on the hardworking men and women who paid the ultimate price in the name of profit.
Review(s):
“For sheer drama on the water, it’s hard to beat the tragedy recounted in Rachel Slade’s Into the Raging Sea. . . . a fast-moving cinematic adventure. But for all of the drama, the worst scares are in the epilogue. This sinking was no simple accident.”
“A powerful and affecting story, beautifully handled by Slade, a journalist who clearly knows ships and the sea.”
“Riveting.”
“A sea disaster tale unlike any other . . . an exciting, terrifying, and deeply sad story.”
“Harrowing, moving...a taut adventure tale...The depth of research and reporting, and Slade’s skill at pacing and selecting the telling details produce a richly detailed narrative, tense and sad and true.”
“In addition to a gripping narrative of a cargo ship’s tragic voyage into the eye of a hurricane, Slade explains the fascinating world of commercial shipping and the essential—but often hidden—role it plays in our economy.”
“More than the story of how a ship was overcome by a storm, Into The Raging Sea is an allegory for what it means to be a part of the nation’s largely invisible working and middle class.”
“Riveting.”
“With skillful narrative prose and sensitivity, Slade takes readers on the final voyage of the El Faro . . . provid[ing] a haunting intimacy to this maritime disaster.”
“Intimate, eerie, and gripping.”
ISBN: 9780062870322