Lost Subs

From Publishers Weekly
Every few years, perhaps thanks to movies like The Hunt for Red October or Titanic, there's a groundswell of interest in bottom-of-the-ocean booty. But year in and year out, there are those who find the subject compelling regardless, those for whom ploughing through stories of the ocean's ferocity and man's folly is treasure enough. This illustrated history is for them. "From poor, primitive Hunley a Confederate sub that was "essentially an overgrown boiler" to the atomic submarine Kursk," Dunmore (In Great Waters) shares tales of disasters, recoveries and subsequent investigations. Full of archival photos, illustrations, diagrams and lushly colored paintings, all packed around nautical stories of warfare and bad luck, this volume traces a brief history of submarining and some of its more memorable losses. Written in simple yet propulsive prose, the volume paints vivid characters caught in treacherous, suffocating circumstances, and never skimps on the details of the technology.Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal
Adult/High School-Beginning with a history of the first attempts at submarine invention, this book provides a chronological look at some of the best-known submarines and the men responsible for the major innovations. The first one discussed, the CSS (Confederate States Ship) H. L. Hunley, is revealed as a marvel of engineering for its time. Dunmore pieces together information from salvage work and historical documentation to present a solution to the mystery of why it sank. In this same manner, each chapter describes the submarines of a specific time period and technological level, as well as their fate. Few are resurrected from the icy depths, but those that are bear witness to the efforts and marvels of technology, engineering, and creative thinking. Paralleling the tragic accidents are the advances that made submarines safer, easier to escape from, and engineered to allow for more sailors to survive until surface help arrives. While these vessels are far safer now than ever before, accidents still cause massive loss of life, as exemplified by the last submarine discussed in the book, the mighty Russian Kursk. Dunmore's compelling work is straightforward and easy to read. Abundant illustrations, including photographs, reproductions, and other visuals, keep the interest high and the pages turning.Pam Johnson, Fairfax County Public Library, VACopyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Book Description
From the Hunley to the Kursk, a full-color exploration of the greatest submarines ever lost--and found. As millions have come to know from such immensely popular books and movies as The Hunt for Red October and U-571, the world of submarines is secretive and dangerous. On the ocean floor lie over a century and a half of subs, lost both in war and in peace. Now, for the first time, the individual stories of these sunken ships are woven together to create an amazing history of underwater warfare and exploration-and the price that hundreds of subs and thousands of sailors have paid. In gripping text and powerful images (including state-of-the-art contemporary underwater photographs), Lost Subs chronicles the fate of some of the most famous subs in naval history-from the sinking of the Confederate Army's sub Hunley to the recent loss of the Russian nuclear submarine Kursk. With a wealth of archival material, modern and period photographs, and stunning paintings by renowned Titanic artist Ken Marschall, this definitive illustrated history brings to life the museum of submarines resting in their underwater graves and the submariners on "eternal patrol." And it vividly re-creates the missions to explore and raise many famous sunken subs, including the Hunley and the Kursk--missions sometimes as fraught with peril as any wartime duty. Filled with mystery, drama, and daring, and as current as today's headlines, Lost Subs is a powerful, true thriller.

About the Author
Spencer Dunmore is the author of In Great Waters: The Epic Story of the Battle of the Atlantic and collaborated with Dr. Robert Ballard on Exploring the Lusitania. He has also written many wartime novels, including Bomb Run, Squadron, and Final Approach, as well as several books about aviation. He lives in Ontario, Canada. Dr. Robert D. Ballard is the President of the Institute for Exploration in Mystic, Connecticut.


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Adult/High School-Beginning with a history of the first attempts at submarine invention, this book provides a chronological look at some of the best-known submarines and the men responsible for the major innovations. The first one discussed, the CSS (Confederate States Ship) H. L. Hunley, is revealed as a marvel of engineering for its time. Dunmore pieces together information from salvage work and historical documentation to present a solution to the mystery of why it sank. In this same manner, each chapter describes the submarines of a specific time period and technological level, as well as their fate. Few are resurrected from the icy depths, but those that are bear witness to the efforts and marvels of technology, engineering, and creative thinking. Paralleling the tragic accidents are the advances that made submarines safer, easier to escape from, and engineered to allow for more sailors to survive until surface help arrives. While these vessels are far safer now than ever before, accidents still cause massive loss of life, as exemplified by the last submarine discussed in the book, the mighty Russian Kursk. Dunmore's compelling work is straightforward and easy to read. Abundant illustrations, including photographs, reproductions, and other visuals, keep the interest high and the pages turning.-Pam Johnson, Fairfax County Public Library, VA Copyright 2003 Cahners Business Information.


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