Shadow Divers: The True Adventure of Two Americans Who Risked Everything to Solve One of the Last Mysteries of World War II [ABRIDGED] [AUDIOBOOK] (Audio CD)

by Robert Kurson (Author), Campbell Scott (Reader)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Kurson's chronicle of an extraordinary deep-sea discovery makes for a captivating audio experience. In 1991, divers John Chatterton and Rich Kohler came across the buried remains of a German submarine just off the coast of New Jersey. Unable to identify the ship and mystified as to its origins, the two men became obsessed with learning where the U-boat came from and what brought it to the bottom of the sea. Although the story's set-up, which comprises most of the first disc, drags, the pace picks up when the partners begin traveling the world, digging up clues. Reader Scott uses character voices but keeps them subdued, even when dealing with the salty language of the seamen. This is a wise move, since there's plenty of drama inherent in the text; lengthy and detailed passages describing deep-water dives, and the horrible things that can go wrong with them, evoke mental pictures that are atmospheric and downright claustrophobic at times. A segment featuring interviews with Chatterton and Kohler rounds out this satisfying audio edition.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From The New Yorker
Deep-wreck divers are used to operating with almost no headroom and in zero visibility, navigating by touch alone; it is a compliment to be told "When you die, no one will ever find your body." Despite the dangers, wreck divers are typically weekend warriors, men who leave families and jobs behind to test themselves at two hundred feet down. Kurson's exciting account centers on two divers, John Chatterton and Robert Kohler, who in 1991 found an unidentified U-boat embedded in the ocean floor off the coast of New Jersey. The task of identifying it leads them to Germany, Washington, D.C., and the darkest corners of the submarine itself. Some of the most haunting moments occur on land, as when the divers research the lives of the doomed German sailors whose bones they swim among. Once underwater, Kurson's adrenalized prose sweeps you along in a tale of average-guy adventure.
Copyright © 2005 The New Yorker --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: Random House Audio; Abridged edition (June 29, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0739311999
• ISBN-13: 978-0739311998
• Product Dimensions: 6.3 x 5.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (299 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #550,282 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

80 of 84 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Exciting even when you know the outcome!, July 11, 2004

By	Howard L. Dixon (Hopewell, VA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Shadow Divers: The True Adventure of Two Americans Who Risked Everything to Solve One of the Last Mysteries of World War II (Hardcover)

This is one of those rare books that you know within the first dozen pages it's going to be a great read and you're going to be disappointed when it ends. Robert Kurson's tremendous research combined with a great historical narrative style results in learning not only about the lives of the living players such as Chatterton and Kohler, but the dead sailors on the submarine as well. While this is Kurson's book, you can see the extensive contribution provided by Chatterton, Kohler and others who shared the experience. This book fits beautifully with "The Last Dive", which I reviewed here a few years ago. I did learn things here, which surprised me relative to "The Last Dive". I thought they had been doing mixed-gas diving much longer on U-869 then just before the Rouse's arrival. Chapter 2 is about the dangers of wreck diving and sets the stage of what to expect throughout the remainder of the book. Kurson makes sure the reader understands this wasn't just a bunch of treasure hunters looking for some "stuff". These guys respected this dive site as sacred resting place for these German sailors and their actions (including their own research) supported that belief. And in the end, I was right...it was a disappointment to see it end.

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Breakout work by a gifted Storyteller, March 4, 2005

By	Michael D. Trimble (Connecticut) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Shadow Divers: The True Adventure of Two Americans Who Risked Everything to Solve One of the Last Mysteries of World War II (Hardcover)

This retelling of true events is as good and as close as you can get to the excitement of made up fiction. Admittedly the author, Robert Kurson, had good material with which to work, but a writer of lesser talent could have easily botched this little gem of an opportunity. As it is, Kurson's ability to grab the reader and maintain his/her full attention throughout a story that spans more than six years, is a testament to his writing prowess.

Kurson puts us in the center of the action as we learn about the discovery of a mysterious submarine shipwreck--not one of ours--just 60 miles east of Pt. Pleasant, NJ. In nautical terms this is literally in our backyard. Resting on the bottom of the ocean at 233 feet, it is a depth that is tantalizingly close, yet dangerously deep and accessible to all but a few of the most experienced deep diving specialists.

Central to the story are the truly larger than life main characters: hard drinking rough hewn John Nagle, Captain of the dive-boat and world renowned wreck diving legend; two peas in opposing pods, John Chatterton and Richie Kohler, wreck diving enthusiasts who idolize Nagle and only hope to share in some of the excitement that he has experienced in the past; and a rather odd assortment of other players who come and go at different times. Along the way we witness relationships destroyed, marriages ruined, jobs forfeited, sanity questioned, and even lives tragically lost, all in the single minded pursuit to solve a seemingly unsolvable puzzle.

Kurson pulls it all together nicely, and without revealing the end, I will just say that this book is a richly rewarding experience for the reader. Good books like this leave me wanting to know so much more about the characters, sort of "where are they now?" Fortunately, the adventures experienced by these fascinating men don't end with the telling of this story; John Chatterton, and to a lesser extent Richie Kohler, can be seen quite regularly on the History Channel as the hosts of the Deep Sea Detectives docudrama television series.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Real life adventure!, June 29, 2004

By	Jenny Blickman "from the block" (USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Shadow Divers: The True Adventure of Two Americans Who Risked Everything to Solve One of the Last Mysteries of World War II (Hardcover)

My reading tastes have always been fiction: action, adventure, thrillers, and since going away to college two years ago I have not had time for any fun reading, But started this book last week and then could not put it down. It is TRUE action adventure!

This is the story of two deep sea wreck divers who dive into a long lost wreck in over 200 feet of water, which they identify as a German U-boat. The book follows the lives of these two men as they attempt to discover the identity of the U-boat and discover things about themselfs. There lives are greatly changed by the discovery, Jobs changed, marriages lost, diving companions killed on the wreck, and lost to the bottle.

The story is more than just about the men's dives on the wreck and there attempt to discover its identity, and the adventure involved in such an endeavor, but also about the characters (which are rich in this story) involved, the history behind the boat and Hitlers 3rd Riech. there is so much to learn on every page. In the end though it is the under water action that kept me enthralled. If you read this book you will gain an appreciation of the wonders and dangers of deep water diving.