The Finest Hours

In the winter of 1952, New England was battered by the most brutal nor'easter in years. As the weather wreaked havoc on land, the freezing Atlantic became a wind-whipped zone of peril, setting the stage for one of the most heroic rescue stories ever lived.
On February 18, while the storm raged, two oil tankers, the Pendleton and the Fort Mercer, were in the same horrifying predicament. Built with "dirty steel," and not prepared to withstand such ferocious seas, both tankers split in two, leaving the dozens of men on board utterly at the Atlantic's mercy. The Finest Hours is the gripping, true story of the valiant attempt to rescue the souls huddling inside the broken halves of the two ships.
The spellbinding tale is overflowing with breathtaking scenes, as boats capsize, bows and sterns crash into one another, and men hurl themselves into the raging sea in a terrifying battle for survival.
Not all of the eighty-four men caught at sea in the midst of that brutal storm survived, but considering the odds, it's a miracle-and a testament to their bravery-that any at all came home to tell their tales. Title Info. Dedication. Prologue
Part One. Chapter 1. Chatham Lifeboat Station
Chapter 2. The Pendleton
Chapter 3. The Fort Mercer
Chapter 4. "It Can't Be True"
Chapter 5. "You Got to Take the 36500 Out"
Chapter 6. Blowout at Chatham Bar
Chapter 7. Chatham Mobilizes
Chapter 8. "He Came to the Surface Floating"
Chapter 9. Losing All Hope: On Board the Pendleton Stern
Chapter 10. All but One: The Rescue of the Pendleton Stern
Chapter 11. Thirty-six Men in a Thirty-six-foot Boat
Chapter 12. Pandemonium in Chatham
Part Two.Chapter 13. The Mercer's Bow Capsizes
Chapter 14. A Maneuver for the Ages
Chapter 15. Tuesday at Chatham Station
Chapter 16. Thirteen Men Still on Board
Chapter 17. Search of the Pendleton Bow
Part Three. 18. The Inquiry
Chapter 19. Being Labeled a Hero Can Be a Burden
Chapter 20. Tanker Trouble
Chapter 21. Beyond the Rescue
Chapter 22. The Restoration
Epilogue: They Were Young Once
Appendix
"Narrator Malcolm Hillgartner's approach is a combination of you-are-there suspense and historical narrative that catches the listener's undivided attention…This is an edge-of-your seat true-life adventure not be missed."
"Nearly fifty-seven years later, it's a breathtaking story that still defies the imagination."
"This book captures the wit, grit, and sacrifice of Coasties and their boats."
"Tougias and Sherman never sensationalize, never go beyond the facts, and yet capture all the pain, physical and emotional, of the survivors and their families."
"It's good to know that real heroes exist…Incredible."
"Gripping…Will make readers appreciate the bravery of the men who put their lives on the line."
"Tougias and Sherman reach their peak of tension in the sink-or-swim moments when mariners abandoned ship and chanced their lives on their rescuers' skill and bravery…Excellent."
"A gripping read."
"A rousing page-turner, a fascinating history, and an inspiring ode to the courage and professionalism of men who face bitter winds and black mountainous seas…all to do a dangerous job."
"Tougias and Sherman have told a mesmerizing story about Coast Guardsmen under the stress of extreme conditions and the self-imposed pressure to perform…The real miracle is that such performances are timeless."