Black Wave: A Family's Adventure at Sea and the Disaster That Saved Them [Audiobook, Unabridged] [Audio CD]

John Silverwood (Author), Jean Silverwood (Author), Malcolm McConnell (Editor), Carrington MacDuffie (Reader), Joe Barrett (Reader)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 2008

An exhilarating real-life adventure of one familys extraordinary voyage of self-discovery and survival against incredible odds.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The jaw-dropping true tale of the Silverwood family and their awe-inspiring survival when faced with the most harrowing of events on the high seas is a truly remarkable account. Carrington Macduffie and Joe Barrett bring this story to life, capturing the tense journey down to the slightest detail in these realistic readings. While Macduffie certainly offers more in the line of theatrics, both performances are earnest and raw, allowing the listeners to ebb and flow with the story as if they were tucked away on the Silverwood's 50-foot catamaran. The journey is the destination in this tersely written tale, and with skilled, experienced narrators guiding the way, this trip proves seaworthy. A Random House hardcover (Reviews, Apr. 14).(June)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From School Library Journal

Adult/High School—It could be said that the Silverwoods' account of hitting a coral reef off the Scilly Islands is a repeat of history, because their 50-foot catamaran, the Emerald Jane, did exactly what the tall sailing ship Julia Ann had done in 1855. Luckily for John, Jean, and their four children, they had the benefit of 21st-century survival gear, particularly the GPS survival beacon that provided the crucial link to the French emergency crews who saved them. Black Wave is an exciting tale; readers know from the start that the family survives, but what makes for deep engagement is learning the parallel story of Captain Pond and his crew and passengers. It is during John Silverwood's recovery and rehabilitation—his leg is crushed during the wreck and later amputated—that he learns about the Julia Ann. As he delves into its history and learns how the 19th-century crew dealt with their devastating misadventure, it helps him put his family's experience into perspective. This book shows that we all deal with catastrophic events differently, but if our actions are explored and investigated, we learn that human beings, no matter the era, have the same basic instincts and needs to make sense of their experiences.—Joanne Ligamari, Twin Rivers United School District, Sacramento, CA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: Blackstone Audiobooks, Inc.; Unabridged edition (July 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1433249669
• ISBN-13: 978-1433249662
• Product Dimensions: 5.7 x 5.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (57 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,143,847 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I couldn't put it down., July 1, 2008

By 

Mark S (Reston, Virginia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Black Wave: A Family's Adventure at Sea and the Disaster That Saved Them (Hardcover)

If you've ever extended yourself, spent time outdoors or been exposed to the many elements of nature, you know this story could easily be about you. It grips you right at the start as you sense the tearing of the hulls and rushing and pounding of the ocean destroying everything and probably everyone they care about in a matter of minutes. The interweaving of the travels and exploration with the horror of the destruction of boat and flesh keeps you hanging on and waiting for the next piece of news. This is a great story of human bonds, nature and endurance.

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Lessons learned at sea, August 17, 2008

By 

Mary G. Longorio "Texasbookgirl" (Eagle Mountain, UT) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Black Wave: A Family's Adventure at Sea and the Disaster That Saved Them (Hardcover)

John and Jean Silverwood decide to put their busy daily lives aside and take their four children on a round the world adventure at sea. The Silverwoods feel as though the fast pace of life in San Diego has pulled the family in too many directions. They purchase the Emerald Jane and set of on an once-in-a-lifetime adventure with Ben (14), Amelia (12), Jack (7), and Camille (3). Using the sea and new ports as a school and hoping to satiate John's seemingly endless need for adrenalin, the Silverwoods also have to manage worries about pirates, unfriendly ports, balky generators and whatever the sea throws at them. The close quarters of the catamaran make clashes inevitable as Ben, missing his friends and diversions in California becomes sullen, Jean worries and John slips into old habits and the dream voyage threatens to become a battle of wills. However, the beauty of the sea, the sea life, new ports, discovering new friends and discovering new strengths within themselves, the Silverwoods keep on their journey until the unthinkable happens. The Emerald Jane hits a reef and the family`s survival depends on the lessons learned at sea.



This is an engrossing book that kept me hooked right till the end of the first portion. The portion about the Julia Ann and her crew and fate, not as interesting. I also had bit of a hard time with Jean's excusing John's behaviors (selfishness?) and putting herself down in comparison. That said, this is as much a tale of a family's growth as a tale of a journey

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Pefect Summer Read, July 2, 2008

By 

Roy Trakin (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Black Wave: A Family's Adventure at Sea and the Disaster That Saved Them (Hardcover)

If you're looking for the perfect summer read, you won't do much better than this tale of a successful San Diego real estate developer who lives out a lifelong dream by taking his perfect SoCal family of six on a sailing trip around the world, which turns into a nightmare when they run aground on a Pacific reef 350 miles due west of Tahiti, costing him his leg in the process. This first-person diary account reveals the Silverwood family dynamic on board their beloved Emerald Jane, warts and all, from John's own battles with alcoholism to Jean's control issues to the various adjustments of the kids--16-year-old Ben's longing for his friends back home and eventual emergence as a hero, 13-year-old Amelia's blossoming into a self-confident artist, 9-year-old Jack's fascination with ocean life and 5-year-old Camille's angelic innocence. There is something here that anyone with a family can relate to about escaping the rat race of modern life and taking to the high seas, anchoring in exotic ports from Bora Bora and Raiatea to Grenada and the Galapagos, crossing the Equator, sailing through the Panama Canal, being chased by pirates and surviving hurricanes with waves several stories high. The first 150 pages, narrated by Jean, describe the family's day-to-day duties, home-schooling the kids and how each one adapted to the journey, as she keeps coming back to the narrative's singular event--the wreck of the Emerald Jane on a reef in the middle of the night and the boat's giant mast pinning John's leg underneath. It's an amazing tale, with the last quarter including John's ruminations, which have him questioning his judgment and dealing with his own guilt by channeling an accident that took place 150 years ago on the very same reef that ripped apart his own sailboat. The Julia Ann, a vessel on its way from Australia to San Francisco in 1855, carrying coals from Newcastle in New South Wales, along with a group of Mormon missionaries bound for Utah, suffered a similar fate as the Emerald Jane. The story is a tribute to the family's gung-ho spirit of living to the fullest, and dealing with the consequences...as a family. "If real life catches you by the heel sometimes, it is worth it," John concludes. "Life is short anyway, so it may as well be beautiful." Not just a travelogue or a primer on sailing around the world, Black Wave is the story of a family that circled the ocean, only to find what they were looking for was right in front of them all along.