Gales of November: The Sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald

Out of all the books written about the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, this one remains by far the best. Not only is the book filled with stunningly accurate details about the ship, it reads like a gripping novel. I especially admire the way the author chose to piece together the facts that he knew to recreate the story of the ship's actual sinking. Most other books I have read on the Fitz have been afraid to tackle such a challenge. Robert Hemming's compelling story will leave you on the edge of your seat and sometimes even reduce you to tears. This one is hard to put down and a must have for any maritime enthusiast.

This is a great book about the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald. If you have never read a book on the Fitz this is a great start. The author does a great job of introducing you to the crew and what life is like sailing on the Great Lakes. He takes several of the crew and introduces you to their personality and their history. This helps you to develope feelings for the crew member as they sail on the Lakes. Hemming also does a good job of presenting the facts of the sinking and helps you to understand what the last several hours were like on the Fitzgerald. The book is very inclusive when it comes to describing the factors that lead to the Fitz's eventual demise. The only complaint that I have about the book is that Hemming described vividly the crews last actions immediately prior to the sinking when no further contact was made with any other ships. Since nobody knows exactly what happen during this period of time the author may have created a scinario to keep the book real. He accomplishes this but it may compromise the facts. All in all I learned a lot about the story and I think most readers will too.

I've been fascinated with the Edmund Fitzgerald sinking for many years, partially because I've lived around the great lakes most of my life. This book answered many of the haunting questions about the ship and what happened to her. The examination of the incident by Hemming is excellent and his proposed explanation of the cause is far better than the Coast Guard's excuses. I highly recommend this book on several levels, especially for its writing and research. Thanks to Gordon Lightfoot for bringing this to our attention.

hARD TO PUT DOWN