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Indianapolis: The True Story of the Worst Sea Disaster in U.S. Naval History and the Fifty-Year Fight to Exonerate an Innocent Man Audiobook
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NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * “GRIPPING…THIS YARN HAS IT ALL.” —USA TODAY * “A WONDERFUL BOOK.” —The Christian Science Monitor * “ENTHRALLING.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review) * “A MUST-READ.” —Booklist (starred review)
A human drama unlike any other—the riveting and definitive full story of the worst sea disaster in United States naval history.
Just after midnight on July 30, 1945, the USS Indianapolis is sailing alone in the Philippine Sea when she is sunk by two Japanese torpedoes. For the next five nights and four days, almost three hundred miles from the nearest land, nearly nine hundred men battle injuries, sharks, dehydration, insanity, and eventually each other. Only 316 will survive.
For the first time Lynn Vincent and Sara Vladic tell the complete story of the ship, her crew, and their final mission to save one of their own in “a wonderful book…that features grievous mistakes, extraordinary courage, unimaginable horror, and a cover-up…as complete an account of this tragic tale as we are likely to have” (The Christian Science Monitor). It begins in 1932, when Indianapolis is christened and continues through World War II, when the ship embarks on her final world-changing mission: delivering the core of the atomic bomb to the Pacific for the strike on Hiroshima.
“Simply outstanding…Indianapolis is a must-read…a tour de force of true human drama” (Booklist, starred review) that goes beyond the men’s rescue to chronicle the survivors’ fifty-year fight for justice on behalf of their skipper, Captain Charles McVay III, who is wrongly court-martialed for the sinking. “Enthralling…A gripping study of the greatest sea disaster in the history of the US Navy and its aftermath” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review), Indianapolis stands as both groundbreaking naval history and spellbinding narrative—and brings the ship and her heroic crew back to full, vivid, unforgettable life. “Vincent and Vladic have delivered an account that stands out through its crisp writing and superb research…Indianapolis is sure to hold its own for a long time” (USA TODAY).
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“Simply outstanding…Sea battles, adventures, the secret mission to deliver materials for the assemblage of the atomic bomb to the Pacific Islands, tragedy, disaster, an epic ordeal—sharks included—in the open ocean, courtroom drama, political intrigue, and the uphill battle by the band of survivors to exonerate the ship’s captain will all have readers unable to put this book down…A tour de force of true human drama.”
— Booklist (starred review)
Quotes
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“A beautifully told and incredibly detailed narrative that brings this famous disaster to life.”
— Kate Andersen Brower, New York Times bestselling author -
“Valuable and illuminating. Vladic and Vincent’s work brings to life the history of this valorous and extraordinary ship.”
— Doug Stanton, New York Times bestselling author -
“The story has long been incomplete. Vincent, a Navy veteran, and Vladic, a filmmaker, offer a fuller view of the episode.”
— New York Times Book Review -
“Vividly detailed…In a brisk, fact-based narrative, Indianapolis mixes horror and scandal…An account that is compelling yet comprehensive.”
— Los Angeles Times -
“A gripping and engaging tale that features grievous mistakes, extraordinary courage, unimaginable horror, and a cover-up…This exhaustive and comprehensive assessment is as complete an account of this tragic tale as we are likely to have. It is compelling history.”
— Christian Science Monitor -
“Chilling…The facts are more horrible than fiction.”
— New York Daily News -
“The sinking of the USS Indianapolis during WWII and the survival of its 300-plus crew members in shark-infested water are so compelling that no false drama in the narration is needed. John Bedford Lloyd wisely lets the story carry the listener along. His tone is even but not without emotion, and the survivors’ stories are harrowing and compelling.”
— AudioFile
Awards
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An Amazon Best Book of the Month selection
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New York Times bestseller
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A 2019 Audie Award Finalist for Best Narration in History/Biography
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A New York Times Book Review pick of Books Now in Paperback
Indianapolis Listener Reviews
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Rene Bancroft, 8/5/2022
About the Authors
Lynn Vincent, a US Navy veteran, is a New York Times bestselling author and coauthor of eleven nonfiction books with more than sixteen million copies in print. A veteran journalist and author of more than 1,000 articles, her investigative pieces have been cited before Congress and the US Supreme Court.
John Bedford Lloyd, Earphones Award–winning narrator, is a graduate of the Yale School of Drama, has appeared in many major motion pictures, including The Bourne Supremacy, Crossing Delancey, The Abyss, The Manchurian Candidate, and Philadelphia. His television credits include Suits, Pan Am, Law & Order, Spin City, and The West Wing.
About John Bedford Lloyd
John Bedford Lloyd, Earphones Award–winning narrator, is a graduate of the Yale School of Drama, has appeared in many major motion pictures, including The Bourne Supremacy, Crossing Delancey, The Abyss, The Manchurian Candidate, and Philadelphia. His television credits include Suits, Pan Am, Law & Order, Spin City, and The West Wing.