Customer Reviews

Adventures of a Sea Hunter: In Search of Famous Shipwrecks

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

First of all, I love adventure stories. This is more of historical adventure looking for lost ships and their past history. Some questions may never be answered but, their story of how they became wrecks that are still around today. Facts or still unknown nautical history? Get into it, go underwater and visit without leaving your chair. Good reading.

I like the topic and written information, but it would have been more interesting if the book had more pictures of the original object and then follow up pictures of the search for the object and in various stages. The author could have followed more of the process Clive Cussler used in his Sea Hunter series. Over-all, I still like the subject and the written historical information.

I've had a fascination with shipwrecks since my grandpa showed me an encyclopedia painting of the Lusitania sinking when I was about 3 years old. I'm also a #1 fan of Clive Cussler and his NUMA adventures.

This book gives a little story about each ship, then goes into the results of what is there now, or was when the author visited each site. There are some fascinating bits and pieces here. His attitude about access to the ships didn't bother me as much as the poor editing and lack of substantial photos. I'd get this buildup to each vessel, but the carrot at the end of the stick was nothing but text. Maybe his publishing budget didn't allow for more photos, but I really think it would've sold better if he added a little more pizzazz to it.

Still, for anyone interested in shipwrecks, I highly recommend this one, despite the flaws.

I have been thinking about what I wanted to say in a review of this book as I finished it up over the past few days. Then I read the review by "Scotty Mon" and he says it all. I agree with him 100%. I got real tired of the attitude that Delgado constantly pushes that only archaeologists should be allowed to dive on these wreck sites (because everyone else is a treasure hunter who steals all the artifacts without studying the history). He echoes the opinions of Dan Lenihan (author of Submerged), founder of the NPS SCRU, and actually credits Lenihan with instilling this attitude in him. I want to read about the history of the wrecks and what they're like on the seabed now; the professional archaeologists do precious little to present that info and observations to the general public in an interesting and accessible manner.

There are very few pictures in this book and nothing that significantly serves to illustrate what Delgado saw when he was diving. Actually, most of the back half of the book is a promo for his Sea Hunters TV show. I guess you have to buy the series on DVD or watch it on TV if you want to see anything insteresting that he describes in his dives.

However, with all of the previous said, I still recommend this book as he presents interesting historical info on each wreck and then gives a brief writeup of his dives and digs. His brevity leaves you wanting so much more though! He does a good job sharing his observations and makes you feel like you are there; and his writing style is well-paced and enjoyable.

Personally, I found this book fascinating and intriguing look into underwater archaeology. Having been on archaeological sites myself this type of book is like candy for the mind. It's like a real life Indiana Jones. Besides, a lot of archaeology is getting excited about something as mundane as a peanut. It allows us to see how people ate, farmed, etc in the past and to draw parallels into how we live now. Also, to rebut the previous commentary about the book sounding like it was written by a bureaucrat spending tax payers dollars let me enlighten you about how this works. 1) It can be very hard to get tax dollars to do archaeology. 2) A lot of work researching in books and archives goes into a site before it is even excavated/dived on. 3) Depending on the type of site determines how much excavation is done. 4) Private funding went into some of the sites mentioned in the book.
Clive Cussler, who wrote the foreword, pays for, and does, a lot of research without ever tapping into the governments piggy bank. Same with how the Vrow Maria was discovered, etc. So, a word to the wise, before you trash something down and harshly critique it understand just what you're talking about. Uninformed commentary just sounds ignorant. Shipwrecks are sacred gravesites, and accident sites in some cases, but they do need to be treated with respect and care. Would one have so callous an opinion about the pyramids in Egypt? Or perhaps an American Civil War battlefield? You tell me.

This book wouldn't be so disappointing if the title wasn't so midleading. "In Search of Famous Shipwrecks"? Delgado didn't search for or find any of them. The author simply writes about previously discovered wreck sites and offers mundane accounts of his visits. His enthusiasm and historical perspective are commendable but reeks of a bureacrat trying to justify flying around at taxpayer expense.

The book offers nothing more than the author's very pedestrian assessments of these wreck sites. He discovers nothing and takes zero risk. Where is the adventure?. He describes finding a 150-year old peanut on one wreck. So what! Delgado begs the reader to pay homage to him but the title should be "The Follow-Up Visits of a Sea Janitor".

It gets old reading the ongoing proclamation by the author and his bureacratic archaeology brethren that these shipwrecks are sacred gravesites and should only be accessible to his kind. These sites are accident scenes and none of the victims were properly laid to rest.

If you are looking for true adventure try "Shadow Divers" or any Robert Marx book.