Rating: 
Summary: The writing is worth more than the gold.
Review: The stories concerning the sinking of the S.S. Central America and the eventual recovery of its treasures and artifacts would be enough to sell this book; but, I want to put in a plug for the writing---it is exceptionally good. Kinder weaves mountains of research notes and reels of interview tapes into a smooth, flowing, sometimes poetic narrative---without fictionalizing! The descriptions of the storm-tossed steamer and the violent sea could qualify this book as literature; these descriptions are well researched, very detailed, and wonderfully evocative.The subtext of this book is a rather profound meditation on the scientific, or empirical, method and problem solving in general (it's not a biography of Thompson, and is mainly concerned with his approach to solving problems). This aspect of the book never becomes a lecture, however; it is exemplified unerringly and unobtrusively throughout the recovery effort and in the writing of the book itself. If this aspect of the book interests you, try reading James Gleick's "Genius", Richard Feynman's "The Character of Physical Law", Richard Hamming's "The Art of Doing Science and Engineering: Learning to Learn", John Dewey's "How to Think" and "Democracy and Education", and William Beveridge's "The Art of Scientific Investigation". If this aspect of the book does not interest you, some portions of the book may seem like digressions, which other readers have noted. My only criticism of the book is that after setting up the intriguing problems inherent in deep-sea recovery, almost nothing was said as to how these problems were solved. This may be understandable, but it was still disappointing. Since Kinder could not go into any detail describing the scientific and engineering aspects of the recovery effort, the book veers off into the legal aspects and the structure of the book suffers. When hunting for treasure, it's the hunt---not the treasure---that is the real reward.
Rating: 
Summary: 3 books in 1
Review: Really three books in one; the harrowing, white- knuckle, real-life adventure of a prolonged shipwreck; the agonisingly meticulous search for the remains; the multi-million dollar rescue ... each one different, but inextricably entwined with the others. Without the clues from the diaries and memoirs of survivors, plus ships' logs, and the tenacious convictions of the salvor, this story would never have unfolded. As it is, the first third of the book had me on the edge of my seat for hours - what a tension-filled ride that was! I can recommend the book on the strength of that story alone and give it 5 stars. What follows is less nail-biting, but nontheless exciting, as the clues unfold from information gleaned from all over the US, patched together by a man with a single-minded ambition to recover the richest prize ever recovered from the sea. The fact that it lay in 8,000 feet of water takes up the final third of the book with the almost insuperable technical difficulties, but we are still left hanging, for we don't yet know the full value of the prize. The meticulous recovery methods employed ensured that the treasure was in pristine condition - other quick and dirty methods would have been much cheaper and faster, but would have transformed the coins from 'gem' quality to 'fine' or less, depriving them of a another 2 or 3 times their worth, in a collectors' market. This market has probably still not been fully exploited, so there may still be millions waiting to be recouped ... and they deserve it! A bonus is that the story of the ill-fated Captain Herndon's previous trip down the Amazon is to be released later this year (July 2000); 'Exploration of the Valley of the Amazon' written by the same Gary Kinder, promises to be another spellbinding tale. More like this, please!
Rating:
Summary: Couldn't put it down
Review: Well there I was on honeymoon in Mauritius. The country is beautiful. I was laying on the beach soaking up the sun when I thought to myself, I need a book to read. I popped into the hotels shop and the first book I saw was Ship of Gold by Gary Kinder. Being a diver and having written a published book myself on UK wrecks, I thought I would give it a go. I read the book cover to cover in 3 days. (530 pages and I was on honeymoon!)Absolutely superb story, extremely well written. Was there a camera crew on board to film the discovery? Top marks to Kinder on the way he jumps from 1857 to the 1980's and then back again. Not a dull page in the book. If you like adventure books, historical maritime disasters and a thrilling ending, order this book now. cheers
Rating:
Summary: I wish there were more stars in the Amazon rating system.
Review: One of the best nonfiction books I have ever read, and it's going to be hard to beat. It has many elements tied together into one highly readable volume, I'm surprised this wasn't nominated(as far as I know) for any awards. The book flips back and forth between a historical account of the SS Central America's final journey, and modern day efforts to recover the lost ship. Gary Kinder's extensive research and subsequent account of the SS Central America reads like a high-suspense thriller. The recovery process is a lesson in itself, demonstrating what persistence, determination and innovation can accomplish. Impossible? To Tommy Thompson that word was meaningless. "It can be done...Make it work...There is a way...You just haven't looked at all the possible perspectives." Where most, if not all, would have given up, he persisted and found and recovered a ship that was sitting on the ocean floor at "impossible" depths. The sub-ocean equivalent of putting people into space, this story is not to be missed. Tommy Thompson has since published a coffee-table quality companion book, that shows numerous pictures and details of what he found. If anyone has read "Ship of Gold", this companion book is not to be missed! (can't think of the exact title offhand, but just search: Tommy Thompson) This book would make a fine movie. I don't think a page went by without anything interesting going on. As a matter of fact I'm sure that by now a studio has bought the film rights. And finally, this is the first book that comes to mind whenever anyone asks "Read any good books lately?" and is one that I wouldn't hesistate to give as a gift. Great, great stuff.
Rating:
Summary: Obsession has its rewards!
Review: This book succeeds on several levels. First as an enthralling adventure story - two stories really - one of the doomed ship and one of the man who sought her treasures. The author's recounting of the sinking of the Central America is an enthralling enough adventure story, as is Tommy THompson's quest to find her. But what really makes the book fascinating is the author's chronicle of THompson's obsession with the science of underwater search, underwater technology and recovery, and indeed of his meticulous planning of the entire venture. Thompson never doubted himself, even when the best underwater experts in the navy and the private sector told him his quest was impossible. In reconstructing THompson's life, author Gary Kinder has given us a fascinating portrait of the inventive and obsessed mind at work. Finding the treasure and bringing it up is certainly exciting, but its almost anticlimatic as the real story is THompson himself. Excellent book, even though the full account of the story is not yet complete as unfortunately, the lawyers have taken over.
Rating:
Summary: Great Book
Review: This book was a captivatingn story that I would recommend to anyone!
Rating:
Summary: A very good book--highly recommended
Review: Like many of the other reviewers, I found this to be an interesting and exciting read. It starts out with a quick review of the gold rush, next it goes to the compelling story of the sinking of the US Central America in a hurricane, and finally it spends the last 2/3 of the book recounting the story of how Tommy Thompson puts together the technical plan and the financial consortium that makes the recovery of the gold possible. You do not get very close to Thompson but you do observe how he operates. I consider this book to be a primer on how one raises the money to carry out such an expedition. You get a real feeling in your guts on how "close run" this operation was--the difference between success and failure was very very narrow. The author never tells us how much (in dollar terms) has been recovered from the site or whether the recovery is still going on. We need pictures to bring this story more alive, but Tommy Tompson has published this picture book as Treasures of America (?), which I borrowed from the library at the same time I read Ship of Gold. One last comment--I was surprised at how much bad advice Thompson received from experts--Thompson had to really 'hang on' to his own sense of what he should be doing--he is very strong and focused with a lot of self confidence. My hat is off to him--he brought it off.
Rating:
Summary: Suspense, excitement, and real!
Review: The best part was the story of the sinking, followed by the discovery story. The boring part was Tommy Thompson's life story. The publisher's lack of editing was pretty glaring on occasion. And some photographs would have been nice. I'm sure there's at least one of Captain Herndon in the Herndon, Virginia city history. Even so, this is a very good book, made all the better because it really happened. I didn't honestly care about what Thompson actually salvaged from the wreak, but the story of the archeological work was fascinating. Perhaps a future update will include the final disposition of salvaged gold or whatever, not that it takes away from a good book. This one's definitely a keeper.
Rating:
Summary: THE CRITICAL REVIEWS MISSED THE REAL STORY.
Review: The critical reviews posted thus far have missed the real heart of this story. Everyone agrees that the fascinating history of the Central America is beautifully told and that the ingenuity and determination of Tommy Thompson are inspiring. But Tommy's personal history is as much a part of the story as Captain Herndon's, or any other character in this epic true story. Kinder lets the amazing facts speak for themselves, and yet as the story unfolds it becomes clear that this is our story as well as theirs. It is adventure and exploration, ambition and greed, human hopes and grim realities. It is also self-determination. It is the story of America's 19th Century ambition, Victorian idealism and belief in progress tempered by imperialism, cowardice and greed. Thompson's odyssey shows that our 20th Cenury pride in wealth, technology and freedom is still burdened with the same mix of human weakness and aspiration that went to the bottom with 21 tons of California gold in 1857. The author's preface shows that he has become a character in his story after suffering through 10 years of research and writing, several trips to sea, his daughters growing up and the death of his father and brother, all while he struggled to bring us the story of his own ship of gold, inspiring us to weather the deep blue sea to find our own.
Rating:
Summary: Extraordinarily Suspensful Saga!
Review: The research done to write this gripping story of the sinking of the Panama City with its nearly 600 passengers and hoard of gold and its recovery over 130 years later boggles the mind. But I did not find the research dull or boring but creatively written. The detailing of the life of Tommy Thompson, tinkerer-entrepreneur-and salesman, who dreams of recovering a ship in 8,000ft of water was accomplished in such a fashion that suspense was in nearly every chapter. I found my own emotions being tapped again and again. Thanks for a great book.
| 
