I actually enjoyed this far more than I thought I would. Tougias does an excellent job of relating the Coast Guard rescue of two tankers which both broke in half during a huge storm. While in audio format, it is a little difficult to keep some of the men straight ( I had to backtrack a few times), it is still an engaging story. I like how Tourgias took it in into the modern era.

A fascinating piece of history this book goes into detail the events of this rescue. Where the read might be dry in parts, I enjoyed it quite a bit.

I found the first half of the book, with the narration of the crisis, interesting and informative. The second half was filled with facts, statistics, comparisons of boats and subsequent similar or dissimilar tragedies, etc, and I had a hard time slogging through that much dry information.Overall a book worth reading.Content: a few profanities

I have to confess up front, I'm a bit biased about this book. The Finest Hours is about one of the most dangerous rescue missions in the history of the U.S. Coast Guard, and I spent 13 years of active and reserve duty in the Coast Guard. Moreover, this book focuses on the exploits of four men who were members of my part of the Coast Guard—the Boat Force, those Coasties serving in small boats who "have to go out, but don't have to come back." On February 18, 1952, two WWII-era T2 oil tankers brok...

I wanted this book to be more interesting than it was. I usually enjoy these tales of harrowing survival in hostile environments, whether it be on the slopes of Mount Everest, the wilds of Alaska, or the Arctic seas. The Finest Hours is about four Coast Guardsmen who ventured out into a New England storm in 1952 to save the crews of two tankers that cracked up in the waves.It is a harrowing and heroic story, but it was also a fairly straightforward one. The Pendleton and the Fort Mercer were bot...

This is a very straightforward, no-frills telling of the Coast Guard rescue of several crewmembers of two merchant vessels that both broke in half during the same storm in 1952. It's not clear which is more astonishing: the lengths the Coasties went to in order to save lives (braving 70 foot waves in 36 foot boats) or their humility afterwards with respects to their heroic deeds. The account was well-researched with some recent interviews of survivors and a few photos, but overall a little on th...

The actual rescue, or what I could put together about it, was amazing. The courage and skill demonstrated by those men are incredible. They truly deserve the honors they received. For that alone, I would recommend this book if you are looking for a story of great heroism. However, I really struggled to follow this story. (That may be partly due to listening to this as an audio-book) The cast is huge. He quotes from dozens of people as they recount various moments of the disaster and rescue. It

I normally love Tougias. I will be the first to admit that he is a great researcher, but only a decent writer. Usually, however, his stories are so fast paced and terrifying (since they're all true) that I just tear through the books. Theyre the sort of book that you read in one day, enthralled on the couch- or in a tent because its pouring outside :DBut this one, this one was scattered for Tougias, who normally weaves multiple storylines in much more coherently. I found the story to be jumping

by Andrea Renee CoxWhat an amazing story! The Finest Hours recounts the true story of the most daring sea rescue in US Coast Guard history. This book completely blew me away with how two large tankers split in half during a huge winter storm, and the heroic rescue efforts that were made during horrible weather conditions. A must-read!Thank you to the US Coast Guardsmen who put their lives on the line during that rescue mission, and countless others throughout the decades since. Your work does no...

This book is a well-written, easy to read (and listen to) non fiction. The narrator for the audiobook does a really good job, and even though it is non-fiction, it is just as gripping and heart-pounding as a fiction book. I highly recommend this book to anyone with a passing interest in history, especially American history. This is a true story of reluctant heroes.

This book tells the true story of a 1952 Coast Guard rescue mission off the coast of Cape Cod, where two oil tankers, the Fort Mercer and the Pendleton, each broke into two sections, thirty miles apart, in the same storm. Fighting towering waves, the Coast Guard crews try various methods to get the stranded men off the ships. The story shifts between the two rescue efforts, telling the tale through eye-witness reports and interviews with survivors. The scenes of the rescues are riveting. Toward

This feels like the type of typical "local lore" story that fills small book shops across the Vacationland of Cape Cod. The authors all mean well - - because they have extraordinary history to tell. This is no exception. The tale of near-simultaneous tanker accidents in the middle of a deadly February Nor'easter is hair raising no matter who is telling it. Admittedly, I tore through it in 2 sessions and enjoyed it very much. When ordinary men do what has to be done at great peril, their heroism

Four separate Coast Guard lifeboats descend on 2 oil tankers in the North Atlantic Sea which have broken in two due to poor craftsmanship during World War II. Both pieces of the tanker Pendleton and both pieces of the Fort Mercer have crew on board. Depending on the broken section, some have radio contact, some have heat and lights, others are adrift on a ragged portion of a tanker without any means of communication or comfort. The day was February 12, 1952. There was a nor'eastern blowing snow

First off, what an incredibly heart wrenching story. I vaguely remember learning something about this at some point in my life but being completely immersed in every vivid detail of each event made it way more real. Reading something like this, feeling the terror and death surrounding the characters, and then realizing they are not "characters" but actual people who have lived through said events makes the experience way more...meaningful.The only thing I can say that caused me to dock a star wa...

2.5*'s. If it wasn't for the fact I'm from the region where the story took place and know every single lighthouse, harbor, city, town, road and nearly every building mentioned in detail I'm not sure I would have liked this book at all. It's basically an audio documentary but I've read a lot in this style and this one was pretty boring. I think you need to be a nautical buff or from southern Massachusetts or preferably both to enjoy this one.

I thought as an overall this book was pretty good but I definitely think that part 1 was better than part 2. In part 1 it had more action and was better. This is one of the few times that I thought the movie was better tan the book because I saw the movie and I got more out of it like how it would feel if I was in that situation, on the ship or rescuing the people from the ship, but the book didn't have enough description but I still liked it.

I was pulled into the drama almost immediately! A great recounting of 3 days in the winter of 1952 when brave coast guardsmen simply "did the job" and rescued dozens from 2 ship wrecks. It was fascinating to read how they were able to pull it off, with little to no technology and in seas that rival the scene of the small fishing boat climbing a tower of water in the perfect storm. Read the book - the pictures at the end cannot do the ordeal justice. Congratulations to local writer Michael Tougia...

If this was a triller novel you might of said this is crazy but it was history. This happen to people and both rescues were just incredible. The Coast Guard. The movie is coming but read this book, I put off reading this, what a mistake.

In February 1952, New England was being battered by one of the worst nor'easters in years, and two oil tankers, the Pendleton and the Fort Mercer, both broke in two.The two tankers were both built of "dirty steel," and were welded, not riveted. Both things made them more brittle and more at risk of precisely the disaster that befell them both. The dozens of men on each ship were at risk, especially given that both halves of each ship were at risk of capsizing. Rescuing them was not a job for ama...

I enjoyed this book with my sweetie! We both loved the excellent story-telling. It’s amazing how much you learn from books, especially true stories. We spent a great deal of time learning about the Coast Guard, the Sea, ships, and especially the heroic actions of brave men. Wonderful, inspiring book.