Customer Reviews

Coming Back Alive

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I've read the other readers criticisms -- it's not that I disagree, I just don't think they interfere with one's enjoyment of the book. Walker may have used too many adverbs or told us more than we needed to know about some families (I imagine he was going after Junger's technique in The Perfect Storm), but he still writes an absolutely riveting account of harrowing helicopter rescues over the most treacherous water in the U.S. The thought of a huge helicopter being blown back a few hundred feet is hard to imagine, yet that is just what happened during 3 rescues the same night with 100 foot rogue waves almost swallowing the helicopter. I enjoyed the descriptions of Alaska's fishing industry and thought Walker did an excellent job of weaving together various interviews. There may be smaller flaws with the book, but you still won't be able to put it down!

Although his two previous works--Nights of Ice and Working on the Edge--are tough acts to follow, Walker rises to the occassion with Coming Back Alive. With his uncanny ability to immerse the reader into the situations in which his unfortunate subjects find themselves, Walker provides an incredible account of the ill-fated crew of the Salmon boat La Conte. Walker's vivid descriptions make you feel as if you were floating along side the La Conte crewmembers during the frigid January night or sitting on the flight deck of the H-60 helicopters that attempted to perform a rescue in the brutally hostile conditions.

If you enjoyed works such as the Perfect Storm, The Ship and the Storm, etc, this is a must read. Once you finish the book, you'll hope Walker is working on another book to satisfy the insatiable urge to experience the harrowing tales he so aptly tells.

If you liked "A Perfect Storm", you'll like this one. Although the first part where the stage is set and all those involved are introduced went on a bit long, part 2 was incredible. I really got the sensation of what it must have been like being in the water or being aboard a helicopter in those conditions. I would rank this next to "A Perfect Storm" for ocean/storm/rescue books and would highly recommend it.

I was captured by the edge of the seat writing. I never questioned the events. For years I have been closely associated with commercial fishing in Alaska. At one time or another I have worked on every commercial harbor in the USA between Lost Angeles/Long Beach and Kotzebue. I am also a pilot and I grew up in Alaska. Spike Walker's descriptions are excellent. He did not need to fluff things to make the story work. From what some have said about the book I almost feel like one needs to have experienced the fury of the Bering Sea and Gulf to accept his account.

I passed the book to a reader unfamiliar with Alaska, commercial fishing, and the maritime industry. He had a hard time accepting it. I was stunned that people were so out of touch. Then I reminded myself storms that happen every year in Alaska only come once in 20 - 100 years on the east coast of the USA.

Spike Walker kept me involved. I might have been involved with a lesser writer but I kept thinking "Right on." I have seen the USCG show up when things looked grim. Spike's writing brought personal feelings back from 30 years ago.

As a writer I found myself studying the style. Anybody can report a storm but Spike let me feel the wind cutting through my fireside recliner. This is a five star book. It is a five star subject but only a five star writer like Spike Walker could have turned out "Coming Back Alive."

There is no overlapping of themes, events, or characters, between "Coming Back Alive" and "Inherit the Tide", but I wish I would have read Walker's book earlier. I got the sense his grip on the reader is developed by dragging them into the action. This same action-based relation with the reader is what makes his characters real. Being able to do that without overblown descriptions and accounts is a real talent. Nevertheless there is something to be said about the value of understated events that let the reader's imagination fill the gaps.

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I was spellbound the whole way. In January 1998 the fishing vessel,La Conte sank,leaving its crew struggling in 100 mph winds and 90-foot seas. Spike Walker took me there emotionaly and made me see and feel the heroic Coast Guard rescue of the ship's crew. I can still visualize the helicopter below the tops of the gigantic waves. Spike Walker doesn't tell the story, he takes you there and places you in the middle of the ocean fighting the gigantic waves and freezing water. You can see and feel every emotion.It's hard not to get goose bumps. After reading this book I have a completely different view of the Coast Guard. I can't imagine anything harder to do than to patrol Alaskan Waters, determined to rescue anyone in danger, no matter what the odds. My hat is off to Spike Walker:

Spike Walker has a gift of taking the reader off the page and into the frigid, storm-swept Alaskan waters where fishermen -- and sometimes their rescuers -- find themselves, fighting to stay alive. Mr. Walker painstakingly details the accounts of a few choice Alaskan rescues -- and failures, all heroic. The action is gripping and real because the author knows how to tell a story. Coming Back Alive is extremely informative without weighing down the reader with too much technical and superfluous information. There's no guessing about what happened out there in the isolated Alaskan seas because Mr. Walker has followed through with years of research and interviews.

I'm no writer, and certainly no professional literary critic, but I know what I like to read. My wife gave me an autographed copy of this book, after we both read and raved about "Working On The Edge." (Which I bought because I recognized the writer's name from when we competed in the shot put in junior high school, 37 years ago.)
Coming Back Alive is one of those rare books that grabs you, and actually evokes a physical response. I had to occasionally set it down, and rest, because it was so powerful. The incredible drama of what happened when the lift of Doyle and Morley was attempted was like a blow to the gut. (Told you I was no writer.)
Compliments and congratulations to Mr. Walker. He has produced some tremendous books, and this is his best yet. Now, if I can get it away from my wife...

Roger Bennett

After 20 years in the Coast Guard as a rescue pilot, I can attest, Spike has got it right! I flew the HH-52 in the prologue of "Working on the edge", spent 10 of 20 years in Kodiak and know some of the people involved. He captured the fear, the pride, the adrenaline rush, the feeling of accomplishment, the bravery and the "spirit de corps" of our noble service. Those who attack the grammar and use of adverbs missed the point and flavor of this great story teller. It wasn't all scary crap in the USCG as evidenced in my book "I Never Liked Those C-130's Anyway". Keep them coming Spike!
Malcolm Smith

After reading the reviews of this book, i came away with the feeling that most people loved this book. I did more than read it, I lived it. I was a crewman in the first CG helo that arrived on scene. unless you have lived through it, it's hard to imagine 90 foot waves. but its true. this book portrays the events of the night of jan. 30 1998 as real as you can possibly do without having actual video. On the other hand, i have to agree with one reviewer. what happened on that night was not heroic, we just did our jobs as we are trained, and i would do it again if asked. this is what makes the USCG the best air/sea rescue agency in the world.

Really good, captivating story. Once you get into Part II, it's hard to put the book down. However, there is something funky about the writing that I can't put my finger on. It's a bit wordy at times and the use of big words and multiple adverbs feels a little over kill at times. I must question the editing of the book as well. It seems like "the story" wasn't long enough for a full blown book, so elements were added afterward to help fill the pages. The early chapters do not synch and all along you're waiting for them to tie in together or for characters introduced in the beginning to come back later in the book... but they never do.

Don't get me wrong, I highly recommend this book, but I can't give it 5 stars based on some editing and writing issues.