In Peril on the Sea: A Personal Remembrance

by Robert W. Bell, D. Bruce Lockerbie

Recounts the August 1942 sinking of the freighter "West Lashway" by a German U-Boat, the terrible ordeal of the survivors of the attack, and the reunion, forty years later, of the submarine crew

Genres: Biography, History, War, World War II, Christian

Hardcover

First published December 31, 1984

Reviews

[Gordon Whitbeck]

This is the story of my Grandmother, Mother, and Uncle written by my Uncle recounting a remarkable experience on a raft for 20 days in WWII. The story includes the reuniting with the German U boat sailors responsible for sinking the ship they were on. An excellent account worth reading.

[Yibbie]

This is a story that haunts you. I had vague memories of the story from my childhood. Mostly though the feeling of desperate suffering haunted me. So, when I found this book again, I couldn’t wait to read it: then, I couldn’t put it down. As a child, the suffering stood out to me; as an adult, the faith and witness of Mrs. Bell and all the children stood out to me.
Would your faith uphold you in such circumstances? Would you know enough scripture to help others in such times? Would you offer forgiveness to those who caused you such suffering? Mrs. Bell’s could. In such dire circumstances, she shared the comfort and hope of the Gospel. Later her children would go on to share the same message with hundreds of others through their ministries, even to the very ones that sank their ship.
Definitely read it. Read it to your children. Let them see that the Gospel shines in darkest days. Let them see the comfort of memorized Scripture. Be encourage and comforted yourself.

[Sarah Mabee]

Gripping

What a powerful testimony of great faith and forgiveness. This is a book that is filled with terrible disasters that were redeemed to God’s glory.

[Dave Hoff]

We purchased this book mid 80s, and it impressed me. The peril of being torpedoed and adrift for days. The re-read was even better than 1st time. probably being retired with lots of time I could sense the hardship Robert, his sister & mother endured in the presence of rough men on a crowded raft. The fright of being shelled by the Brits thinking the raft a U-boat. Time healed some wounds, not all for all involved.

[Grady Adams]

GOD is Sovereign

One of the forgotten stories of war about a woman our CREATOR used in the midst of turmoil! Even though I knew German submarines patrolled the shores of the USA during WWII, I didn’t realize how much damage they did. How a family of missionaries survived along with others with them when their ship was sunk by a German submarine. This shows that in spite of naysayers, GOD is in control.

[Paul]

This is volume 14 in the Jaffray Collection of Missionary Portraits, and one of the best volumes. The author's father was killed in an auto accident while home on furlough, and his widow decided to return to Africa with her two young kids. With the outbreak of WWII and the US's entry in the war after Pearl Harbor, Ethel Bell decided to return to the US. They were able to find passage on a freighter named the West Lashbury. It was sunk in the Atlantic by the U-66 German subnarine. This book recounts their survival of 22 days on a raft. Ethel Bell was not only an incredible mother to her children, but a leader on the raft and a Christian witness to all the others on the raft, despite a hostile bosun.

By God's grace the British destroyer Vimy rescued them after 22 days when their rations were gone.

After the war and after completing his education, Robert Bell was able to contact some of the officers and crew of the U-66. There was a beautiful reconciliation between these men, and Bell was able to witness to them.

[Ashley]

I loved it, it showed how much God was there for all of the crew and the families. It was sad to see how Ethel Bell was treated by some of the crew. But she continued to show them no matter what they said to her that God was there for them. It was sad when the little girl Carol Shaw started to doubt God but in the end Ethel changed so many of the remaining crew and helped them towards God. It was interesting how Robert became and forgave the people who caused him and his family to struggle for so many weeks. But this was one of the best books I've ever read. It made me question if I was in the situation would my faith crack? I would like to think not but I can't be sure. This book has definitely pushed me closer to God, it shows he's always there for you and he has a plan even if it doesn't seem like it.

[Gordon Whitbeck]

This is the story of my Grandmother, Uncle, and Mother along with Richard and Carol Shaw survivors of U boat sinking

This was written by my Uncle Bob Bell describing the event of the sinking of the West Lashaway by the German U66. They survived on a 8 x 10 foot raft, 19 people, for 20 days on the Atlantic Ocean. The event was documented in this book. The culmination of the book was the search for and finding the Germans who were on the U66. It’s a story of God’s protection and reconciliation. My Grandma Ethel Bell, my Uncle Bob(Robert) Bell, my mother Mary Bell and the two Shaw children Richard and Carol(Donna) were on this raft for 20 days.

[Christy]

This was a book from my husband's childhood that was lent to us. It was an interesting glimpse into the ripple effects of WW2 on missionaries and focused on one particular family's journey adrift at sea after their ship is torpedoed. The writing was a bit stilted sometimes, but one of the main characters was one of the authors which lent interest. The mother's faith and the reality of death and other hardships at sea made the story memorable.

[Tim Deaton]

Surviving 20 days adrift on a raft

August 30, 1942. 2 days from port. 2 missionary families fleeing the war as passengers on a freighter. Attacked by a German submarine, the freighter sinks in two minutes, leaving 30+ survivors on four wooden rafts, including 2 missionaries and 4 children. How do any of them survive?

[Dr. Trevor B. Harvey]

Remarkable

Here is an account of a woman against so many odds not over being triumphant in the face of great adversity, but carrying four children and adult men on her faith to victory, a great read.

[Charles]

As far as memoirs go, this is an interesting read. This is one that I think would make a better movie than a book. I am not sure where the climax is, but I feel that the final chapters were more for Mr. Bell than it was for the reader. On that note, my emotions at the end were flatlined so I cannot be excited about the book. For the one who likes to step into history, this book takes you for a ride in a German submarine and lets you feel and smell every part of it. You experience the nightmare of being adrift on the ocean with limited rations, maddening boredom, no ability to control where you are going and no knowledge of which direction you would go if you could. I recommend the book for that experience. The way the book ended left me wanting something that the book did not deliver.

[Connie]

THis book is one in a series of The Jaffray Collection of Missionary Portraits. Ethel Bell and her two children keep the faith on their raft after their ship was torpedoed on the South Atlantic. Kristine Frey, editor of In Part, is the granddaughter of the son Robert Bell and her picture is in the book.

[Bob]

A factual account of surviving a U-boat attack. Told with no self pity, and without hatred toward the attackers.

Something that happened, that could have been tragic : When their raft was spotted by a U.S. Destroyer, it was mistakenly identified as the conning tower of a sub. And shelled! Luckily, the gun crews missed, and the survivors were finally rescued.

[Julie Bell]

So, the 'Life of Pi' reminded me of this book. Except that this book is true and I've met the author (a relative, but I'm not sure how we are related). Look beyond the cover and find a truly amazing story of survival.