Indianapolis: The True Story of the Worst Sea Disaster in U.S. Naval History and the Fifty-Year Fight to Exonerate an Innocent Man

Written by:
Sara Vladic , Lynn Vincent
Narrated by:
John Bedford Lloyd

Unabridged Audiobook

Ratings
Book
129
Narrator
24
Release Date
July 2018
Duration
18 hours 39 minutes
Summary
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).
Reviews
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Jeffrey S.

I love the history of the military regardless. I've heard bits and pieces of Indianapolis. After listening to this book. It brought tears to my eyes what these men went through and just how much they loved the shop and her skipper. What the navy did to this hero is a down right shame. It reminded me of another book I've listed to 3 or 4 times already. Honor and betrayal and the military tried to do to three navy seals made my blood boil. This book did the same thing made my blood boil. Just an incredibly book.

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LaMarr A.

Superb book and narration.

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Joshua M.

An excellent book about the Indi and what happened to her. A must read for any military officer who is responsible for accountability. This shows what happens when officers don't do their job. The price these men paid for the failures of the Navy's Officer Corps cannot be overstated.

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Charles B.

I'm not really A-war book reader or hardly even any non fiction but oh my God this was one of the best books I have ever read in my life The narrator was really good also

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Timothy C.

Great coverage on a sad yet heroic saga in American naval history

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Crompton B.

As a lover of naval history, had read Abandon Ship, Fatal Voyage and thought I knew the story of the Indy even without the somewhat oblique reference in Jaws. But, what a very captivating treatment of a story that continued to play out long after the court-martial of its skipper in 1945. Would agree with others that it does present something of a challenge listening vs. reading, but well worth the effort to track the cast of characters presented over eighteen hours of very high-quality narration.

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Gary P.

Very detailed account of this tragedy. Likely a better read than listen. Hard to keep track of the many many characters.

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