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Summary: In Indianapolis' wake
Review: In contrast to the strip of glassy smooth water that is a ship's wake, the sinking of the Indianapolis has left nothing behind but roiling emotions. Still easily brought to the surface after all these years - anger at the navy being the most common expression, and as IN HARM'S WAY shows - it is most appropriate. The 1,196 men who went into the water on the morning of July 30, 1945 were abandoned to their fate by the navy. They were left adrift for 5 days, eventually being spotted and rescued by chance; by this time only 321 were left alive, four of whom died shortly thereafter. The navy then rubbed salt into this open wound by blaming one of the survivors - Captain Charles McVay - for "hazarding" his ship.This book is much more a story of men battling the sea and finding the courage to survive than it is a history of the war. As such it is less about the Indianapolis and its mission but more to do with personal drama of the men. It succeeds by drawing on the stories of three survivors - Captain McVay, ship's doctor Lewis Haynes, and Private Giles McCoy. The facts of the tragedy only put the achievement of survival into its proper perspective. > The ship was sunk by a torpedo from Japanese submarine I-58; the explosion killing about 300 of the crew instantly; the wounded as well as the uninjured jumped into the sea. Escaping a fiery death only brought on other dangers "from dozens of probing bacteria and organisms which, as the men drifted, began gnawing at their flesh. The salt water itself was a caustic brew...not unlike immersion in a mild acid bath." > Perhaps as many as 200 men were eaten alive by sharks. Morning and evening were the sharks feeding times; twice a day for five days the men were preyed on. > Many faced hypothermia and mental and physical exhaustion; for others suffering was in the form of hallucinations and delirium which caused them to swim away to an imaginary rescue or giving up, they drank down sea water which only guaranteed an agonizing death. The author puts it best when he says what this tragedy means to the survivors; "the disaster of the Indy is their My Lai massacre or Watergate, a touchstone moment of historic disappointment: the navy put them in harm's way, hundreds of men died violently, and then the government refused to acknowledge its culpability." Perhaps the only good that this tragedy has produced is that it has spurred young writers like Doug Stanton to preserve these stories of human courage before all the remaining survivors slip under the waves of time. The author at 39 is a little younger than I am, but by writing and by reading these books, we, as a generation can honor the men who fought, died, and survived WWII. The only glory in war is surviving. "All the glory of the world would be buried in oblivion, unless God had provided mortals with the remedy of books." (Bishop Richard De Bury)
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Summary: incredible story
Review: One of the most gripping events ever put on paper. I found myself re-reading lines of the book over and over again as I visualized just what these men went through. Definately an awesome read.
Rating: 
Summary: Sophmoric
Review: I don't feel that this book has done justice to the suffering these men endured. The author does not appear to be writing to a very sophisticated audience. He explains the obvious, uses 4 or 5 words where one "big" word would work better. The book is aimed at about the 6th grader as far as comprehension level. He also liberally uses literary license in describing events, conversations and thought processes that he could not possibly know. Having said all this, the book is generally informative and interesting. It will also serve the very useful function of bringing to the public's attention this most tragic event.
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Summary: My Father's Story Honored Here
Review: Doug Stanton has honored the memories of my father, an Indy survivor, and all the brave crew. This book has personalized the tragedy in a way none of the books about the Indianapolis has ever done. Kudos to Doug Stanton, an excellent writer and wonderful human being, for working so hard to bring the Indy's story to light in such a riveting and compelling book.
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Summary: My dad stepped off her
Review: My father, Albert Ferguson, stepped off the fantail of the USS Indianapolis the night she was torpedoed. He had served aboard her the entire war, a a Chief Machinist Mate in her engine room. He survived the sinking and lived to share the tale with his children. This book propels the reader through a 3-D experience of serving aboard the Indy, her sinking, and the too familiar attempts to lay the blame on those who were targeted by the command staff. My father testified on behalf of McVay at his courts martial, and I have a carbon of the original transcript. IN HARM'S WAY is a riveting tale of honor, sacrifice, and ultimate betrayal of the American fighting man. So what else is new?
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Summary: Terrifying Story
Review: This is the terrifying story of a little-known and now long-forgotten Pacific naval disaster at the end of WW2. The USS Indianapolis was torpedoed and sunk, and its 1,200 sailors left to fend for themselves for five days in shark-infested waters, until quite by accident, the remaining 300 survivors were discovered. The story is everyone's worst nightmare, and Doug Stanton makes every harrowing moment real. I couldn't put the book down.
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Summary: A Must Read
Review: Stanton's writing style makes this book very, very difficult to put down. He outlines clearly, with an emphasis on history, the saga of the sailors on the Indianapolis. It was man against the elements, and if you're interested in how the strong persevere, then this book is for you.
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Summary: Riveting account of an amazing survival story.
Review: You don't have to be a history buff to be fascinated by Doug Stanton's compelling chronicle of the sinking of the USS Indianapolis, the worst catastrophe in the history of the US Navy. Shortly after delivering the atomic bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima and hastened the end of World War II, the USS Indianapolis was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine. The ship sank within minutes, leaving approximately 900 crewmen stranded at sea. Incredibly, the ship's brief distress call was ignored and the Navy did not notice that the ship was missing for over 4 days. Most of the surving crewmen were badly injured and virtually without survival equipment or even basic clothing. After battling vicious shark attacks, dehydration, exposure and exhaustion for days, 321 men were eventually rescued. Stanton's masterful recounting of this epic tale is a worthy testimonial to these courageous surviors. He adroitly combines the historical record with the powerful and poignant personal stories of key survivors. The result is a vivid, forceful book that you will long remember.
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Summary: of ever honored memory
Review: Like, I'm sure, most of you, I first heard of the USS Indianapolis and the horrific events surrounding its sinking in the movie Jaws. You'll recall the Robert Shaw character telling about being adrift in the waters of the Pacific as sharks circled and attacked the helpless men. This story has such a compelling fascination that it has spawned a series of books, documentaries and even a TV movie. Doug Stanton's new account can take its place with the very best of them. Drawing heavily on interviews with survivors and on Captain Charles Butler McVay's account of the sinking and the ensuing ordeal, Stanton presents the story with an immediacy and intimacy that makes it all the more terrible. The men of the Indianapolis were the victims of an entire series of oversights and foul ups, few of their own making. First, the ship had just delivered components of the Little Boy atomic bomb (which was dropped on Hiroshima), and so had been traveling in great secrecy. Then when they set out from Guam to join up with Task Force 95 at Okinawa, they sailed alone and were not warned about known Japanese submarine activity, for security reasons. Thus, when the submarine I-58, commanded by Mochitsura Hashimoto, torpedoed them, they didn't even realize what had happened at first. From there, unfortunate coincidence turns to bitter irony and real tragedy. Damage to the radio rooms was so great and the ship sank so fast, that they did not get a chance to radio for help. Meanwhile, again for security reasons, port authorities had been ordered not to relay messages every time a ship arrived and had interpreted the order to mean that they shouldn't report non-arrivals either. Of the 1196 men on board, 300 probably died immediately, but while the other 900 struggled in the water, no one yet knew of their dilemma. Eventually sharks, salt water, hypothermia, injuries sustained in the sinking, fights among the men, and a host of other maladies, left just 321 men alive to be rescued, four of whom died almost immediately. Stanton renders the crew's five day holocaust in heart breaking detail, with much of the narrative supplied by ship's doctor Lewis Haynes and Private Giles McCoy. Finally, as even these stalwart souls were preparing to give up, they were discovered by Lieutenant Commander George Atteberry in a Ventura bomber, which could do little more than drop some supplies and radio for help. He was followed by Lieutenant Adrian Marks in a PBY-5A Catalina, which Marks heroically set down in the water. Marks and a few succeeding planes were able to start picking up the survivors while they waited for rescue ships to reach the scene. One would think that the awful story had run its course at that point, but the Navy added insult to tragedy by court-martialing Captain McVay, the only captain to that point in US Naval history to be court-martialed for losing being sunk. The Navy, pretty clearly trying to avoid admitting its own mistakes, failed to share much information which would have been helpful to his defense and took the extraordinary step of summoning Commander Hashimoto to testify about the incident. The prosecution's theory of the case was that McVay's failure to zig-zag had been responsible for the sinking, and, despite contrary testimony from both Hashimoto and the prosecution's own expert witness on this issue, he was convicted. In the succeeding years crew members gathered for reunions (organized by McCoy) and worked to clear McVay's name. These efforts went for naught until a High School student in Florida, working on a class project, got involved. On October 12, 2000, Congress passed an amendment exonerating McVay and recommending citations for the crew. It was too late for McVay though, he had killed himself in 1968. This is a terrific book, filled with all the drama you could ever ask for, remarkable moments of human endurance and despair, stupidity and loyalty, heroism and despair. I'm not big on all of the current Greatest Generation stuff, but there is something to the idea that the shared experience of war (and Depression) that this generation shared somehow gives them a common identity and a sense of accomplishment that their successors have lacked. The men of the USS Indianapolis and particularly their captain, Charles McVay, are deserving of our respect and their story should never be forgotten. Doug Stanton's book makes it a painful pleasure to remember the sacrifices they made. GRADE : A
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Summary: It's time we as Americans stand up!
Review: I read this book on a flight to the U.S. from Europe and never set it down. I'm a tough guy and I had tears running down my face at times. The lead flight attendant asked me if I had a problem and I explained the story to him. Few people know the story of the Indianapolis because the Navy has covered it up for more than fifty years. I loaned the book to the attendant for an hour on his break and he brought it back to me shanken. Prior to landing he told the flight they should read this book if they were interested in the story of the USS Indianapolis. It's time we did the right thing. If Clinton can pardon his rich buddies then the United States of America can expunge the record of an honest man...Captain Charles McVay III! We the people will make it happen because we must make it happen. YOU WILL NEVER REGRET READING THIS BOOK.
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