Customer Reviews

Nine Minutes, Twenty Seconds: The Tragedy & Triumph of ASA Flight 529

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

As the author indicated in the beginning of the book, this was not meant to be a book about plane crashes per se, he was interested in exploring the human interest side of the story. He did a great job.

NINE MINUTES, TWENTY SECONDS is a gripping, almost minute-by-minute account of the fateful flight of ASA 529 heading for Gulfport, MS from Atlanta, GA. Pomerantz brings you into the lives of the 29 (26 passengers and 3 crew members) on board that commuter plane. His background work into these individuals inject an important prelude towards the account of the actual crash, helping the reader feel for these people instead of treating them as statistics.

Even the cause of the crash (a faulty propeller blade) is given a very personal touch, beginning with the technician at the factory who was responsible for inspecting the blade prior to its being put in use on the plane. The official NTSB investigation and final verdict are also included, just enough to satisfy the reader's curiousity without going too detailed as to lose sight of the actual focus of the narrative.

Ultimately, Pomerantz succeeded in crafting a wonderfully touching work about the strength and nature (both good and bad) of humanity in times of crisis. Since this book was written years after the crash, Pomerantz was able to provide the reader with updates on the lives of the survivors and how the incident has changed their outlook in many aspects. This might not be the book to read if you're looking to read about plane crashes in general, or books that would provide a lot of technical details. It is almost entirely about the individual people that made up the passenger and crew list of flight ASA 529. If you're interested in reading something that would stay with you long after you're done, this is it. I started this book earlier during an afternoon, and finished it late at night. And after I did, I went to bed, and hugged the one I love.

I've just finished reading this book--I read the entire book in one sitting, pausing only to breathe deeply, to shovel food into my mouth, and to wipe the tears from eyes. The first half of the book--in which the reader is right there in the plane during the nine-plus minutes when these 29 people know their plane is going down and each reacts differently--is among the most gripping and compelling prose I've ever read, akin to the best sections of Into Thin Air. But ultimately this book is about so much more than simply a plane crash--it's a psychologically illuminating, real-life drama about ordinary people and how they behave in extraordinary circumstances. Most of us have wondered what we would do to survive a life-threatening situation: How would I conduct myself--would I try to save others in need or only myself? Would others try to save me? How would I be affected by what I experience? Judging by what is revealed in this book, the answers are astonishingly, even upliftingly, optimistic. This book speaks as powerfully about our capacity to care for others as it does about the strength of our will to live, and I found it to be among the richest and most rewarding books I've ever read.

This book will grab you from the very beginning. You feel as though you too are aboard the plane. You get to know your fellow passengers and the staff. Then the countdown begins. In minute detail it starts counting down the minutes and seconds as structural problems begin. I found this to be absolutely chilling. Find out who survives, who doesn't and how they handle it. The book also contains photos of the plane and passengers So you could refer back to them if needed. This was a remarkable true story.

I am a Flight Attendant, so I read any book I can related to this subject matter. The events are usually written from a technical standpoint. However, I soon discovered that this book was very different. Mr. Pomerantz brought incredible humility and heroism to this story - he lent a voice that allowed us to understand that kind of toll that this took on all involved, rather than the toll it took on the airplane. I applaud the bravery of each and every person involved in this tragedy and am very happy that Mr. Pomerantz allowed these people to have their story told in such a dignified manner. Don't pass this up.

Quite simply --- this book is just terrific. If you are interested in aviation, or how ordinary people react to extraordinary situations, or how terribly dependent we are on other people, you will not be able to put this book down. And besides all this, it is beautifully written.

I have lived in Carroll County all of my life, so I was familiar with the tragic incident that happened so close to my home. I had no idea, though, of the heroism and bravery that took place minutes before the plane hit the ground. Mr. Pomerantz tells a wonderfully uplifting story of how a tragedy can bring the best out of people. While the story is told from many of the passengers and rescuers perspectives, the theme is the same - the overwhelming desire to help others. During this traumatic time in our country, it enriches the soul to hear the stories of these survivors.

I bought this book in early Sept. after "The Today Show" named it one of the fall's top books (with "Black House" by Stephen King & Peter Straub, Nancy Milford's biography of Edna St.Vincent Millay, etc.) After Sept. 11th, I waited several weeks to begin reading this: a plane crash story seemed too hard to take on. But I must say, this book made me feel better about life and old-fashioned goodness, and it made me understand Sept. 11th in a new way. The stories in this book about the two pilots, the flight attendant and a young passenger named Jennifer Grunbeck made me understand what real heroes are made of. Their courage reminded me of New York city's firefighters and the passengers on United Flight 93. This book is filled with courage, optimism and hope. It's even more important to read now after Sept. 11th. I loved it!!

Ordinary people can perform extraordinary feats in extraordinary circumstances. Gary Pomerantz brilliantly written story of the ill fated flight 529 is sure to become an aviation classic!

The author cleverly describes the passengers on the fatal flight without telling whether they lived or died. This creates suspense and curiosity, pulling the reader along. He includes a good amount of technical and medical information, but manages to make it understandable and interesting--no mean feat. He tells his story from the viewpoints of people involved in the prelude, actuality, and aftermath of the crash. He is wise concerning how much detail to relate about each of these people--except in the case of Robin Fech, the stewardess. He inflates her role, as, apparently, have the media. He also lapses into bathos: we get too many accounts of prayers, tears, and hand-holdings. Nonetheless, the book is a real page-turner. I read it during an airplane journey, and found that it distracted me quite well from flight nerves. Summary: educational and absorbing, if not as moving as the author seems to want.

This is a well-written narrative. While the crash of ASA flight 529 is the pivotal event, Pomerantz covers pertinent events years before, and years after, the crash. Unlike other non-fiction about aviation disasters, which tend to lean to the technical, there is a continuous focus on the people directly involved, all the way back to an original examination of the part that brought the plane down.

Pomerantz story's strength is its concise and unambiguous nature. The story is not complicated in its writing--it is rich in its detail.

Every named character is portrayed as a good soul, if not outright heroic. Again, compared to other stories in this genre, the lack of a personified villain may give you the idea that there's a CBS movie of the week in there. This may be a flaw to some.

Highly recommended for the aviation buff looking for a less technical read or those interested in a good human interest story.