 | Price Comparisons: Rental | | Sorry, the textbook you were looking for is not available as Rental, at any of the stores we searched. | Summaries and Customer Reviews are supplied by Amazon.com | May 23, 1939. Television was being advertised for the first time to American consumers. Europe was on the brink of war as Hitler and Mussolini signed an alliance in Berlin. These were the days before sonar and before the discovery of nuclear power revolutionized submarine design. Dependent on battery power, submarines were actually surface ships that "occasionally dipped beneath the waves." If a sub went down, "every man on board was doomed. It was accepted that there would be no deliverance." Swede Momsen was, according to master storyteller Peter Maas, the "greatest submariner the Navy ever had," and he was determined to beat those odds. Momsen spent his career trying to save the lives of trapped submariners, despite an indifferent Navy bureaucracy that thwarted and belittled his efforts at every turn. Every way of saving a sailor entombed in a sub--"smoke bombs, telephone marker buoys, new deep-sea diving techniques, escape hatches, artificial lungs, a great pear-shaped rescue chamber--was either a direct result of Momsen's inventive derring-do, or of value only because of it." Yet on the day the Squalus sank, none of Momsen's inventions had been used in an actual submarine disaster. In The Terrible Hours, Maas reconstructs the harrowing 39 hours between the disappearance of the submarine Squalus during a test dive off the New England coast and the eventual rescue of 33 crew members trapped in the vessel 250 feet beneath the sea. It's also the story of Momsen's triumph. Under the worst possible circumstances, Momsen led a successful mission and helped change the future of undersea lifesaving. Not only has Maas written a carefully researched and suspenseful tribute to a true hero, in the process he has salvaged a long-forgotten, riveting piece of American history. --Svenja Soldovieri |
Average Customer Rating:   Remarkable story of disaster at sea This book is expertly written by a very popular author and contains every emotion you can imagine. It's a true life story of a dangerous rescue at sea set off the New England coast. It's hard to put this book down. It's as exciting as the most well written mystery. It's truly one you will remember. Writer in need of an editor? I was interested to learn about this true story but couldn't make it past the third chapter. The writing was terrible, or perhaps it was the editing that was at fault. Regardless, this was very poorly done. I'm sorry to say it, but it's so. Book thrown together with little effort This book appears to be thrown together without a lot of effort, i.e., it has no photographs, no illustrations, no maps, no index, and no bibliography.
Anyone with a strong interest in the subject should try to find a copy of the older book by Nat Barrows, "Blow All Ballast". Courage and dedication The Terrible Hours: The Greatest Submarine Rescue in History
Absolutely the best non-fiction book I have ever read. An Ocean Disaster Story with a Remarkable Outcome! Peter Maas lends to this incredible story of courage and ingenuity a master storyteller's gifts that both draw the reader in and hold his interest page after page. From the early, heart-pounding rescue effort of the remaining Squalus crew members at 250 feet below the surface - a rescue previously untried in the short history of submarine operations - to the final, seemingly interminable Squalus salvage operation, The Terrible Hours is a captivating story of man against the sea and of the colossal genius and uncommon tenacity of one remarkable American.
With just the right amount of detail and careful pacing, Maas relates the fascinating story of the Squalus rescue, an event that would transform submarine rescue operations forever. In parallel, he brilliantly captures the essence of 'Swede' Momsen, one part man, the other part 'deep sea creature' who dared to envision a day when trapped submariners would not be consigned to an excruciatingly painful death in the frigid depths of an unforgiving sea.
This book is enjoyable reading whether you are a fan of the author or not. Maas of Serpico and The Valachi Papers fame shifts gears and tells the true story of a mid-career naval officer, Momsen, committed to improving the survival chances of sailors trapped in a submarine on the ocean floor. His considerable intellect and leadership skills (as well as much of the technology he personally designed and tested) are challenged when a malfunction, or human error (we later learn) causes certain compartments of the Squalus to flood during a test dive in the North Atlantic on the eve of World War II. The sub eventually sinks to the ocean floor coming to rest at 250 feet. The remainder of The Terrible Hours details the rescue of the surviving crew members and then the enormous salvage effort required to bring the Squalus to the surface, recondition her, and return her to service.
Fans of Maas will recognize his thorough research and superior ability in developing a character. A gripping page-turner, The Terrible Hours will delight devotees of ocean disaster stories. To general interest readers this book offers a great deal as well. In The Terrible Hours we see much of what has made this country great: scientific discovery; pioneering, technological innovation born of necessity; and, strong, inspired leadership in our military forces.
Through almost superhuman effort and at great risk, those involved in the Squalus rescue propelled submarine rescue operations many light years forward. Much of what was accomplished and learned in this endeavor is still in use in our nuclear submarine fleet today. We can thank a truly exceptional American, Swede Momsen, for not only a heroic rescue of the Squalus crew, but revolutionary improvement in the survival rate of submariners who, prior to his advances, would be tragically entombed in the ocean's deepest recesses.
And we can thank an exceptional author, Peter Maas, for giving life to this incredible story.
An Ocean Disaster Story with a Remarkable Outcome!
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