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Summary: The Hungry Ocean - Unabridged Audiotape
Review: Linda Greenlaw does a fine job of reading her terrific, gripping story of swordfishing off Newfoundland with her five unique crewmen. In a mere seven hours one can hear rather than read this book about commercial fishing and all of its exciting twists and turns. Greenlaw expertly weaves background details about herself into chapters that she fits among the main story chapters, calling these contextual pieces, Mug-ups. She successfully conveys the excitement and anticipation of awaiting the outcome of a day's fishing, life on the boat, including its many hardships, the crew's problems and virtues, and her love-hate relationship with her boat's owner. As a former summertime mate on a party fishing boat, all I can say is "What a book!" I can almost feel, again, the continued rocking on dry land I used to feel following a day at sea. I plan to listen to this one again.
Rating: 
Summary: Good Reading
Review: This is a very good if also somewhat routine reading of a day in the life of a swordboat. Although no where close to the action or adventure of the Perfect Storm, it's nonetheless true to life account of life at sea is very entertaining. Linda Greenlaw is no novelist alright, but she writes well enough to make this book very enjoyable.
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Summary: Fishing: the reality
Review: Yes, I loved the Perfect Storm, with its scenes of wild ocean drama interspersed with meteorological data and semi-fictionalized biography. But this is the real thing, one of the fishermen written about tangentially in The Perfect Storm telling her own tale of swordfishing from the point of view of the boat's skipper. It's the real scoop on how people working in a small space on a dangerous ocean eat, sleep and struggle to get along while endeavoring to catch the elusive fish that provide their income. It's about the details - the place where the devil really lies - rather than about one tragic event. It's a slice of real fishing life. A must.
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Summary: A fast and enjoyable read
Review: Linda Greenlaw makes the life of a modern-day fisherman come alive in her book, The Hungry Ocean. Linda paints a picture of the day-to-day world that set the stage for The Perfect Storm. For her, it was practically the only world she knew; but for us, it is a rare glimpse into the energetic and sometimes enervating life of catching fish for a living. She does her job with such dedication and gusto that it made me want to go out, haul a "double marker" over the side of a boat, gut it, put it on ice and race it to market. And I have never fished. Although she scarcely mentions the impact of being female in an almost entirely male profession, the fact of her gender has everything to do with why this is such an interesting book. Linda is an unwitting pioneer. She provides another example for me to point to my daughters and say, "See? You can be anything you want to be. This is an amazing lady." As a fisherman, Linda does her homework and applies all her lessons learned every time she goes out, which is why she is so successful. And her personal portraits of the colorful characters that she has known provide funny and captivating reading.
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Summary: do not read this book if you care about the planet
Review: The literary values of the book are few or non-existent. The reader that could be interested will be probably a commercial fisherman. If you do not understand why a tale of butchery, animal cruelty or brutal exploitation of a disappearing fauna gets published do not buy it or,if it is too late, do not read it.
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Summary: A Surprise and a Treat
Review: When I first picked up this book I thought "Here is someone trying to cash in on 15 minutes of fame" as a character in Sebastian Junger's A PERFECT STORM. Nothing could be further from the truth. Linda Greenlaw does not write about the storm that claimed the crew of her sister ship, the Andrea Gail, but rather describes the routine of a normal month-long fishing trip on board the Hannah Boden to the Grand Banks in search of swordfish. I found the narrative to be honest and straightforward with wonderful moments of humor. The book was difficult to put down. Greenlaw captures both the adrenaline rush and the utter fatigue brought on my thirty days spent at sea. When I came to the end of the book, I had the same question the owner of the Hannah Boden always had for Greenlaw when she returned to Gloucester. "When are you going back out?"
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Summary: EXCELLENT COVERAGE OF THE WORLD OF COMMERCIAL FISHING
Review: In addition to being an excellent Captain, Linda Greenlaw is a very good author. Though having brought her boat and crew safely through the infamous 'Perfect Storm', she elected to write here not about that dramatic and very well publicized experience, but instead to tell us of the somewhat equally difficult everyday world of the commercial fisherman. She takes the reader through a normal month long commercial fishing trip, from the New England coast to the Grand Banks and return. Every detail is covered from 'turn-around'(the unloading, cleaning, restocking and preparing of the boat between trips), through navigating, fishing, competing, managing the crew and handling the weather, to returning and satisfying the demands of the boat owner. Miss Greenlaw presents the narrative of this experience in a smooth, flowing way that captures and holds the reader's attention from beginning to end. And, the knowledge that this is a true account, taken from the day-to-day log entries of an actual trip, adds to the excitement for the reader.
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Summary: Made me realize what a 9 to 5 landlubber I am
Review: The author, Linda Greenlaw, captained the "Hannah Boden", a swordfishing boat out of Gloucester, MA. Her vessel, and her command of it, were an element of THE PERFECT STORM book and movie, which told the tale of the sister ship "Andrea Gail", lost in a 1991 tempest off the East Coast. In THE HUNGRY OCEAN, Linda invites the reader aboard the "Hannah Boden" for a 30-day fishing expedition to the Grand Banks, 1100 miles distant in the North Atlantic, during the month of September sometime in the mid-90s. Interspersed in the narrative of this particular voyage are Linda's memories from her childhood and previous sailings, all of which experiences contribute to make her one of the most successful swordfisherman on the ocean. This is a memoir that's hard to put down. As I sat reading in the comfort of home with a pet cat in my lap, I was reminded how cushy a 9 to 5 indoor job is. Even if I was 30 years younger, I can't imagine enduring fourteen successive 20-hour days, each one of which is spent setting down, and then hauling-in, the 40-mile fishing line carrying 900 very sharp, baited hooks capable of catching several tons of thrashing swordfish (or unwanted, but dangerous, sharks). Especially if one is struggling to keep from falling overboard (much less stand upright) on a rolling deck in the face of 40-knot (or greater) winds, driving rain, and heaving seas. Just call me a landlubber with a capital "L". Proud of it, too! Though I wouldn't have otherwise given much thought to the gender distinction, Greenlaw herself points out that being a female swordboat captain is unusual. Her obvious ability to handle a diverse, sometimes difficult, all-male deck gang of five, plus her talent for finding and bringing home the catch, inspires me to snap off a salute and call her "Cap'n" with all due admiration. If I was so inclined to enlist as part of a crew, I'd sail with her to anywhere. This is a first-rate, salty yarn. Buy it, and you'll enjoy it. Now, where did I put that can of tuna? The cat and I are both hungry.
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Summary: Great Read & a Metphor for life
Review: Greenlaw does an exceptional job balancing the human side with the gritty details in a way that captures the reader's attention from start to finish. She is at once proud and unpretentious, and conveys the sense that she truly loves the seafaring life. While I found myself churning through the pages to find out how things turn out, I realized halfway through that I was missing the point. The story is a metaphor for life, regardless of your chosen profession.
Rating:
Summary: the hungry ocean
Review: It was great. If you like fishing youll love this book. Its very interesting especially the stories she tells about past fishing trips.
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