Customer Reviews

Shadow Divers: The True Adventure of Two Americans Who Risked Everything to Solve One of the Last Mysteries of World War II

5 star:		(285)
4 star:		(51)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

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.

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.

....but a mite overwrought. Kurson does a remarkable job recounting the story of the men who found and identified a German submarine of the coast of New Jersey. The story transcends its gripping details to become a story of redemption: self-interested treasure-hunters in the habit of hauling mementos from shipwrecks ("Andrea Doria" china and the like) become genuinely interested in the history of the boat, genuinely frightened of the dangers in exploring it, and genuinely respectful of the German sailors who died in it.

From time-to-time Kurson lays it on pretty thick stylistically; the story is so dramatic (several divers died during the search) that it does not need melodramatic prose. There is an interesting but strangely apologetic chapter on the German sailors; Kurson seems a little too eager to prove that many of them had anti-Hitler leanings. This is surely true, but the story of the lost men, whose bones still rest on the bottom of the Atlantic, is tragic and touching regardless of their politics.

Still, if you like true adventures, you can't do better than this.

If you like books such as The Perfect Storm or Into Thin Air, you'll enjoy Shadow Divers. It's the true adventure story of 2 American divers who discovered Hitler's missing-and-presumed-dead submarine off the coast of New Jersey.
It was long believed that this missing German sub, number U-869, had been sunk somewhere off Gibraltar. Then two death-defying wreck divers from the US began delving into this boat found off NJ in 1991 and discovered the German U-boat had actually been sunk by its own torpedo, killing all on board. But that wasn't the end of the killing. During the discovery/exploration phase of this expedition, 3 wreck divers died, mostly from the complications of SCUBA diving in 230 feet of cold water.
But the physical aspects are only part of the tale. There are also the relationships and psychological games that are played out among weekend warriors wearing wet suits.
Mystery, action, danger, history, drama, fame: who could ask for more from a true adventure book?

As a WWII history buff and a diver, I had read "The Last Dive", which is based on the U 869. After reading the Pre-release info about "Shadow Divers", I pre-ordered this book from Amazon, and waited with baited breath for it to arrive. When I received it on July 2nd, I immediately started reading. I was not disappointed. The book is not written in a sensationalistic journalistic fashion as it could have been. It was immediately obvious that Robert Kurson did a lot of homework before putting pen to paper. Kurson doesn't delve into the intricacies of tech diving as others before him, instead, he concentrates his efforts on the lead characters, Chatterton, Kohler and the U869. While reading about some of Chatterton and Kohler's close calls, I found my nerves on edge, the frightening situations almost tangible. Kurson does a great job of bringing back to life the U boat crew, memories that probably would have been forgotten if it was not for Chatterton, Kohler and Kurson. The author did this phenomenal story great justice.
This book is as good as any suspense novel out there, but the diffference is that it is true. I highly recommend this book to diver and non-diver alike!

Bought it on a whim having no real interest in wreck diving or even scuba diving. It's one of the best whim purchases I've ever made. This book reads like a suspense novel and I couldn't put it down. The story alone is facinating, and Kurson's presentation makes for a wonderful read.

The world's greatest fiction authors would be hard-pressed to top Robert Kurson's Shadow Divers, a breath-taking depiction of the true tale of American ship-wreck divers who discovered an actual W.W. II German U-boat sunken off the coast of New Jersey. Once you pick this book up, the pages turn themselves, your fingers mere passengers helplessly submitting to the momentum of page after page of Kurson's gripping story. (A word to the wise: Don't attempt to read and eat at the same time with this book, you don't have enough hands!) If it didn't actually happen as Kurson has told it, through the eyes of lead divers John Chatterton and Richie Kohler, you would swear it had to have been made up. When the Hollywood types get their hands on this one, they will thank their lucky stars they didn't have to create it, because they couldn't.

As many reviews will indicate this is a gripping piece of history, both in terms of plot and the characters involved. It would be difficult to find another work of non-fiction that combines excellent pacing, deeply drawn, complex individuals and a story that would is almost impossible to make up.

What truly sets this book apart from many other works of this type is how the author makes the words come alive. For example, when the divers face danger you will feel the tension and your breathing patterns will change along with theirs.

Real credit goes to any author who can tell a story in a compelling manner and impart large amounts of information at the same time.

Finally, the temptation will be to view this as a guy's book. I would recommend this to all readers.

If you have ever dived any sort of scuba rig, or ventured down on a shipwreck, or just thought about doing it, you absolutely have to read Robert Kurson's book,"Shadow Divers." It is the most authentic, chilling, and compelling story about wreck diving that can be imagined--and every word is true. Those who dive for pleasure in warm waters of the Caribbean will not be acquainted with the problems wreck divers find offshore New Jersey: bone chilling water, hard currents, near total darkness, and most to be feared, water depths over 220' feet. Narcosis comes on quickly, and every dive is a decompression dive. Kurson's book combines history, bravery, human passions, and diving situations that are totally absorbing. One incident concerning a father and son on a deep wreck is horrifying. Kurson leads the reader through it without a word of hype, but with a terrible sense of foreboding. Forget any other book you thought you'd read this summer; go get "Shadow Divers."

This book has the marks of the next "Perfect Storm," "Seabiscuit," or "Into Thin Air." Like each of those, its topic normally wouldn't get wide readership, in this case, deep sea diving. The reader is transported into the world of diving and the extreme physical dangers of working 200+ feet down in the ocean; one of the early dives covered here is deadly, and you're hooked on learning more about what drives men to dive for "fun.". You are introduced to two main characters who initially dislike each other but grow into friends as they explore a sunken U-boat off the coast of New Jersey and try to glean its identity. You learn U-boat history, as well as how historians have written it; the divers end up re-writing history by doggedly pursuing their boat's identity. Let's put it this way: I usually drift off to sleep shortly into my nightly reading, but this one kept me up 'til 2:45 a.m. You'll like this one if you liked any of the classics mentioned above, and even more so if you're a World War II history buff. A well done adventure tale sure to get a wide audience, especially after reviews in the Wall St. Journal (6/29/04) and other major publications. Bravo!