Rating: 
Summary: For those in peril on the sea
Review: Life began in the ocean. It thrives in the ocean. It often provides us with delicacies of all kinds, food to keep us alive. And, ironically, the ocean can take back lives in the blink of an eye, without mercy or pardon.This is a very simple tale, the same tale that one finds from the Odyssey down to our age -- man pitted against a cruel sea. Shipwreck tales hold a fascination for us because we can imagine ourselves in the same situation and because they typically unfold so slowly that we can have some choice of action that may or may not allow us to escape death. The enduring appeal of the Titanic is a classic case in point. No millionaires died on the Andrea Gail the night she foundered in the North Atlantic off Nova Scotia. Her disappearance did not herald the end of an entire era. But her crew, who died with her, were fortunate to have a masterful story-teller chronicle their sacrifice. By the time you read this review, you will likely have seen the movie or at least been bombarded by the studio's marketing campaign for it. Please honor the memory of the crew of the Andrea Gail and the U.S. Coast Guardsmen who risked their lives to save others by reading this book. Please remember that their families are real people still struggling with a tragic loss -- children who have lost fathers, parents who have lost children, women who have lost the men they loved. Junger's book is harrowing. Death aboard a sinking ship is not romantic; it's sudden and frightening. Those who make their living on the sea entrust their own lives to a capricious element. And when that trust is betrayed, as Junger shows, the results can be devastating.
Rating: 
Summary: Perfect Waste of Time
Review: I wanted to read the book before I watched the movie. I'm a staunch believer that books are always better than their movie counterparts. For this particular book, I hope this is not the case. I was looking for an human interest story, what I got was a mariner's manual. Of the approximate 290 pages of the book, perhaps 150 of the pages actually had something to do with the Andrea Gail and her seamen. The other 140 pages were dedicated to explaining different aspects of swordfishing, tunafishing, history of Gloucester, history of the New England fishing industry, and nuclear testing, above all things. I do respect the amount of research Mr. Junger has put into his book, but one must wonder if he just lumped together a bunch of magazine articles and tried to bind them together, rather than telling a real story, with some sort of character development. It felt like I was reading a documentary. Let's hope the movie based on the book doesn't become a documentary as well.
Rating: 
Summary: If you know the sea, then you will love the book
Review: This book is written for the reader who has some understanding of the sea- the terms used, the stories told, etc... They all require a reader to grasp the basics. This book is great if you can say that you know this stuff. If not, I would recommend waiting for the movie.
Rating:
Summary: Inside the Perfect Storm
Review: This is not a book of survival. It is not a book with a happy ending. There were times while reading the book I felt salt spray on my face and the sheer terror of being washed overboard. This storm affected the lives of so many people. Many of those people were on land, and many on ships and boats in the ocean. The ocean vessels varied from pleasure craft to large ships, rescue boats and fishing vessels. None were unscathed. This is a book of life and death struggle. I found it to be terrific. It would not allow me to put it down until I had read the last word.
Rating: 
Summary: Good Storyline, Mediocre Writing
Review: I enjoyed the book however the writing was a little hard to follow. The author explains in the book why he chose to write the story the way that he did, but I think he could've done a better job at transition from the main storyline to background information. On the plus side, the author includes a lot of background information on fishing. It can be a little exhausting to read but it adds depth to the main story. I'm looking forward to the movie.
Rating:
Summary: Nerve Racking
Review: I avoided this book at first because tidal waves are pretty scary to me. Although I found the story to be a bit unstructured at times it was truly wonderful. I think a map of the area and a drawing of the boat would have helped. I skipped the part about the hooks and gear, it was so confusing. The technical structure of waves and hurricane was really great and I told myself I would come back and read more of that. The part about the waves being so high and the wind "slinging" the tops of the waves was fantastic. I especially liked the rescue of the PJ's. Now that was very very scary and exciting. My heart was pounding by then. Can you imangine someoone in a 30 wave above you that you are trying to save? Not me -- Wow!. And last but not least the poor souls who appeared as ghosts was very haunting. I've heard so much about the ghosts of sailors and I believe it can be so true. I'm glad a movie is being made and that these hard working sailors in their dangerous work is being brought to our attention. Here we are eating swordfish and not even being aware of the dangerous journey it made to the store. Our hats our off to you sailors everywhere!
Rating: 
Summary: The Perfect Storm
Review: The $5.42 that I spent on the paperback copy of this book should've gone to some charitable organization. There should have been a warning on the cover that says "For seafaring people only". I am an avid reader and can read almost anything in print, but.....I had to HUNT for something in this book to read and understand. The movie looks so awesome, surely it does not follow the story line in the book. The book was full of facts, explanations, and history...but no story about a perfect storm. I will see the movie, because I can't imagine George Clooney doing anything that is not quality, but he must not have read the book! Advice: don't read the book, just see the movie.
Rating:
Summary: A true thrill ride
Review: The anticipation for the upcoming movie is due almost completely to the readers of this marvelous novel, though George Clooney can take some credit. This novel is so well written, it was an instant bestseller. It explains to the non-fishing type, like myself, about the dangers of the trade and what it takes to be a successful fisherman. It does so in a way to spark your interest. His style of retelling boating horror stories of the past that encountered "amazing" storms adds to the thrill and understanding of this book. All this with the action packed true story make it a book not to be missed. This book is tough to put down, especially in the middle when it really starts to get "involved". I would definitely recommend this book.
Rating:
Summary: Wanting More...
Review: There are 3 concepts you had better be open to while reading The Perfect Storm: Drinking, Fishing and the Weather. Lucky for me, that worked out. Although I found the book to be totally enjoyable and impossible to put down, I was left wanting more. The real problem is that no one really knows what happened, when or how. Normally not a problem, but when it's a true story that hurts even more. The author did a fabulous job of putting you right there, in the middle of what must have been sheer hell. I expect the crew of the Andrea Gail to be in my thoughts for some time.
Rating:
Summary: A perfect Storm: A Perfect Dissapointment
Review: I could not wait to read this book. I am often attracted to true stories of tradgedy, or hardship, but this book, and everything that was said about it was not only a tremendous dissapointment, but incredibly misleading. A story about a group of men, and their harrowing tale of life on the sea? Nope. Not even close. I think I would have been more inclined to enjoy the story, had it been printed in Field and Stream, or some type of periodical. I paddled on, pardon the pun, through the book, and kept on waiting for it to start. Once I realized (fairly quickly) that I was reading a series of random notes on random people Mr. Junger had spoken to in Gloucester, I got angry. Where was the story? Was this a history on whaling? On Sword Fishing? On longliners or tankers? On other boats experiences? About oceanography? Topography? Geography? Nuclear Weapons Testing? You decide, because it's all crammed into this book, in random order, unstructured, a total, confusing mess for the reader. The seafaring terms in the book were incredibly confusing, especial if you are like myself, who doesn't know what the difference is between a hull, or a fore or an aft, or a fos's'le... any of it. I would have found some sort of gloassary of terms helpful, but instead, I called my brother who was a student at Mass Maritime. The book was not billed truthfully, it's not a story, it's a stream of consciousness, a series of notes scrawled on a pad, an article on fishing. I would also like to comment on the editor of this book... oh wait, no one edited it, because I still find it so hard to even believe for one second that a publishing house not only picked up this manuscript, let alone let it out to the masses like this. I wonder if any heads rolled on this one? Does this mean the movie is a documentary? To sum up: Huge dissapointment, wait for the movie, or don't bother reading it.
| 
