The Perfect Storm by Sebastian Junger

'The Perfect Storm', written by Sebastian Junger, is a true story, as well as a haunting account of the sword fishing boat, the Andrea Gail’s, 1991 encounter with a monster storm in the waters of the Grand Banks that costs the entire crew their lives. The first part of this book is filled with exact accounts from friends and family of the crew members, as well as information from journals, ship logs, and radio conversations with the Coast Guard and other fishing boats. But, because of the disappearance of the Andrea Gail and all of its crew members, the second part of the book is a collection of other accounts of storm disasters have been combined to make the closest possible guess as to what happened to the fishing boat, simply because there was no way for anyone to know for sure. Intermixed with these two parts of the book are very interesting nautical details about components of seamanship and the sea such as rogue waves, hurricanes, drowning, marine life, and shipwreck disasters.
The book, 'The Perfect Storm', makes the reader feel as if they are very close to the horrible situation on the Andrea Gail, which leads to a haunting feeling that gives the reader an uncertainty of their own safety while they read the book. The fact that this novel is a true story that really happened makes the book that much more enjoyable for readers. Though the book does go through some rough spots where the excitement tends to slack off a little bit in order to include many facts that are important to the progression of the story, I would still recommend this book to anyone who is interested in books with substance and real information. Readers who are interested in book such as the 'Twilight' series and 'Harry Potter' series, I would not recommend 'The Perfect Storm' to you, simply because there is little to no elements of fiction in this book whatsoever. But, if you find yourself interested in books about natural disasters, such as 'The Perfect Storm', I would also recommend the books 'Into Thin Air' and 'Into the Wild', both written by Jon Krakauer.
In my opinion, the famous motion picture, 'The Perfect Storm', follows the book almost exactly, but leaves out a few minor details. Therefore, between the two, I would definitely recommend reading the book instead of watching the movie. I read the book before I watched the movie, and I felt as if the film didn’t live up to my expectations. As I was reading the book, I imagined the characters as well as the harsh weather elements differently than they were portrayed in the movie, and I realized that it was a possibility that the film couldn’t live up to my expectations after reading the book. Even though the book was outstanding, the film was still excellent and I recommend it as well.
'The Perfect Storm' topped the New York Times bestseller list for many different reasons. It is such an outstanding book, in my opinion, because it is a very personal account of a thrilling and unexplainable event. The facts of this once in a lifetime storm can be recorded over and over again, but experiencing this event is very different, and that is what drew me to read this excellent novel, 'The Perfect Storm', by Sebastian Junger.