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The Lost Boys of Montauk: The True Story of the Wind Blown, Four Men Who Vanished at Sea, and the Survivors They Left Behind
An immersive account of a tragedy at sea whose repercussions haunt its survivors to this day, lauded by New York Times bestselling author Ron Suskind as “an honest and touching book, and a hell of a story.”In March of 1984, the commercial fishing boat Wind Blown left Montauk Harbor on what should have been a routine offshore voyage. Its captain, a married father of three young boys, was the boat’s owner and leader of the four-man crew, which included two locals and the blue-blooded son of a well-to-do summer family. After a week at sea, the weather suddenly turned, and the foursome collided with a nor’easter. They soon found themselves in the fight of their lives. Tragically, it was a fight they lost. Neither the boat nor the bodies of the men were ever recovered. The downing of the Wind Blown has since become interwoven with the local folklore of the East End’s year-round population. Its tragic fate will never be forgotten. In this “riveting man-vs.-nature story and compelling tribute to those who perished” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review), journalist Amanda M. Fairbanks seeks out the reasons why an event more than three decades old remains so startlingly vivid in people’s minds. She explores the ways in which deep, lasting grief can alter people’s memories. And she shines a light on the powerful and sometimes painful dynamics between fathers and sons, as well as the secrets that can haunt families from beyond the grave.
328 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 25, 2021
750 people are currently reading
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About the author
Amanda M. Fairbanks
1 book111 followersAmanda M. Fairbanks is a journalist and author of The Lost Boys of Montauk: The True Story of the Wind Blown, Four Men Who Vanished at Sea, and the Survivors They Left Behind. Her writing has appeared in the New York Times, the Boston Globe, the Atlantic, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Columbia Journalism Review, and the East Hampton Star. A graduate of Smith College and a former Teach for America corps member, she has two master’s degrees from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. The California native lives in Sag Harbor with her husband and two children.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 456 reviews
December 22, 2021
This one didn't do it for me.
I wanted to like this one. I feel bad that 4 men lost their lives and were never found and their family still mourns them. The author is trying to keep these men alive even just in memory with her book and that is commendable.
However, there were frequently too many TMIs, and maybe I'm not a man so maybe they're wired differently, but personally if I had died I would not want someone writing about the age I lost my virginity and whether or not I have sex while my girlfriend is on her period.
The book is super disjointed. The first part is called "before", but jumps around in time even in that section, and then focuses on two of the men, then "after", then more of the men and its just so all over the place that I could feel my eyes glazing over. Each chapter jumps around in time and it just didn't seem coherent.
I can't recommend unless maybe you're really really into fishing and fishermen?
Also why are there so many 5 star reviews of this book where the people only liked this one book?
I wanted to like this one. I feel bad that 4 men lost their lives and were never found and their family still mourns them. The author is trying to keep these men alive even just in memory with her book and that is commendable.
However, there were frequently too many TMIs, and maybe I'm not a man so maybe they're wired differently, but personally if I had died I would not want someone writing about the age I lost my virginity and whether or not I have sex while my girlfriend is on her period.
The book is super disjointed. The first part is called "before", but jumps around in time even in that section, and then focuses on two of the men, then "after", then more of the men and its just so all over the place that I could feel my eyes glazing over. Each chapter jumps around in time and it just didn't seem coherent.
I can't recommend unless maybe you're really really into fishing and fishermen?
Also why are there so many 5 star reviews of this book where the people only liked this one book?
June 2, 2021
The Lost Boys of Montauk tells the story – through interviews and much research – of the commercial fishing boat Wind Blown, owned and skippered by husband and father of three boys, Mike Stedman with first mate Dave Connick, twenty-three, and deckhands Michael Vigilant, nineteen and Scott Clarke, eighteen. Wind Blown was a 65 foot long-line trawler; their planned catch would be tilefish, and Wind Blown was Mike’s pride and joy. But many would later say it was unseaworthy, especially seeing as Mike would head 120 nautical miles offshore from Montauk Harbour.
March 1984, when the fishing fleet headed out to sea, was relatively calm, but it wouldn’t be too many days later, and the weather would turn. The fleet’s captains, on hearing the weather report, all headed for home, including Mike. The last person in contact with Mike heard they’d be back in the harbour by lunch time; Mike was a little rattled as the weather was brutal, but they were all fine.
Amanda M. Fairbanks interviewed Mike’s wife Mary in intricate detail; they spent hours together. There were many others she talked to, received photos from and gained insights from. The tragedy of the Wind Blown still haunts survivors to this very day and is the second worst nautical disaster suffered in Montauk’s fishing industry in over 100 years. I found The Lost Boys of Montauk very interesting, tragic and heartbreaking. I also felt it was too long and drawn out, and quite choppy in its delivery. That said, it’s a part of history I hadn’t heard of, and I’m glad to have read it. Recommended.
With thanks to Gallery Books, Simon & Schuster UK via NetGalley for my digital ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.
March 1984, when the fishing fleet headed out to sea, was relatively calm, but it wouldn’t be too many days later, and the weather would turn. The fleet’s captains, on hearing the weather report, all headed for home, including Mike. The last person in contact with Mike heard they’d be back in the harbour by lunch time; Mike was a little rattled as the weather was brutal, but they were all fine.
Amanda M. Fairbanks interviewed Mike’s wife Mary in intricate detail; they spent hours together. There were many others she talked to, received photos from and gained insights from. The tragedy of the Wind Blown still haunts survivors to this very day and is the second worst nautical disaster suffered in Montauk’s fishing industry in over 100 years. I found The Lost Boys of Montauk very interesting, tragic and heartbreaking. I also felt it was too long and drawn out, and quite choppy in its delivery. That said, it’s a part of history I hadn’t heard of, and I’m glad to have read it. Recommended.
With thanks to Gallery Books, Simon & Schuster UK via NetGalley for my digital ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.
November 13, 2021
Most of the positive reviews of this book on Goodreads seem to be from paid accounts. Wealth can buy so much, can't it? But it can't buy good writing apparently, or an editor who knows how to do their job.
This book has about 100 pages of relevant content, and the rest is filler. If the men who died on that ship had been just run-of-the-mill poor people nobody would have bothered to write this book. But two of them came from filthy rich families and had country club memberships, so the book makes sure to devote literally hundreds of pages to their lifestyles, which has nothing to do with the actual vanishing ship. It's made pretty clear that the author believes that these men's net worth makes their death more sad and tragic than when anyone else is lost at sea. The parts of this book dedicated to the incident or even the men involved are dwarfed by the long descriptions of how rich and important their families were, and how much property they owned. The author even manages to name-drop her own famous and wealthy family members, as if I care or it's relevant. Most of the stories are completely common and boring. There is absolutely nothing noteworthy about a single person in this book besides the fact that they are 1) rich, and 2) died in a storm. That doesn't mean that their death isn't sad, or tragic. Only tell that to the author who devotes so few pages to the tragedy and those left behind instead of chapter after chapter of detailed descriptions of country clubs and people who maybe talked to people who knew those who were involved at one time.
The author at the beginning of the book says that the friends and family of these men got angry with her as she continued to ask them questions about the deaths. She implies that it's because she's such a good journalist, asking the hard questions like journalists do. Only she isn't, because 90% of the book is the result of irrelevant prying into the lives of people who barely even knew anyone involved. I wouldn't be surprised if she asked these people what kind of underwear they had on. It's like finding a 13 year old's diary where they describe getting their period for the first time and insisting on publishing it because "THE PEOPLE NEED TO KNOW." No, we don't, Amanda.
This book has about 100 pages of relevant content, and the rest is filler. If the men who died on that ship had been just run-of-the-mill poor people nobody would have bothered to write this book. But two of them came from filthy rich families and had country club memberships, so the book makes sure to devote literally hundreds of pages to their lifestyles, which has nothing to do with the actual vanishing ship. It's made pretty clear that the author believes that these men's net worth makes their death more sad and tragic than when anyone else is lost at sea. The parts of this book dedicated to the incident or even the men involved are dwarfed by the long descriptions of how rich and important their families were, and how much property they owned. The author even manages to name-drop her own famous and wealthy family members, as if I care or it's relevant. Most of the stories are completely common and boring. There is absolutely nothing noteworthy about a single person in this book besides the fact that they are 1) rich, and 2) died in a storm. That doesn't mean that their death isn't sad, or tragic. Only tell that to the author who devotes so few pages to the tragedy and those left behind instead of chapter after chapter of detailed descriptions of country clubs and people who maybe talked to people who knew those who were involved at one time.
The author at the beginning of the book says that the friends and family of these men got angry with her as she continued to ask them questions about the deaths. She implies that it's because she's such a good journalist, asking the hard questions like journalists do. Only she isn't, because 90% of the book is the result of irrelevant prying into the lives of people who barely even knew anyone involved. I wouldn't be surprised if she asked these people what kind of underwear they had on. It's like finding a 13 year old's diary where they describe getting their period for the first time and insisting on publishing it because "THE PEOPLE NEED TO KNOW." No, we don't, Amanda.
June 7, 2021
It's a rare day I give a book one star, but frankly I thought this book sucked. There's no plot, no real story, it's mostly all very uninteresting filler. Either there's just not enough known about what actually happened to merit a book or the author just isn't talented enough to tell the story. Either way it's pretty lame alright. I can't believe it's made it to "book of the month" category.
June 28, 2021
I wanted to love this book as a girl who grew up on the East and of Long Island and had her first job working in East Hampton. I enjoyed all of the history and references to Gosman’s and Shagwong places I have been to and love.
Unfortunately, I felt like the author at times was all over the place and also gave us every fact she found, out. It felt exhausting and I as if we were given all this information but also told nothing all at the same time.
Unfortunately, I felt like the author at times was all over the place and also gave us every fact she found, out. It felt exhausting and I as if we were given all this information but also told nothing all at the same time.
July 3, 2021
This book was so poorly-written that it hurt my eyes. The only reason it gets even one star is because of the tragedy of the story. The writer committed so many rookie reporter mistakes - including irrelevant details to show she did the research (who cares what Ed Koch said in an obit of a tangential character?), cringeworthy cliches ("siren song of Manhattan" - OUCH - "weekend people seem to breathe more rarified air" - DOUBLE OUCH - "The Wind Blown became Mike's mistress" - STOPPPP) and factual errors (were rich people really driving station wagons in the 1980s?) Other annoyances: how do you mention Joyce Maynard without mentioning J.D. Salinger? Pete's nephew Truman puts rocks on Dave's headstone - why would he follow a Jewish tradition? "A check never materialized" at a private club - DUH - that's what private clubs do. The structure of the book was also very difficult to follow - it careened across decades back and forth without rhyme or reason. There are way too many irrelevant characters and there's no index to remind the reader who they are. The writer also threw herself into the book for no apparent reason other than to give herself a pat on the back - Chris Stedman told her she's "authentic." The writing also seemed to change dramatically at Part Five. Did someone else write the final chunk? I guess I should have stopped when the writer confessed she believes in ghosts. Shame on me.
June 13, 2021
While this was a well written, interesting and well researched book, as it went on, I couldn't help but wonder about the ethics of a journalist writing a book about the private lives and secrets of ordinary people who are not public figures. At times it felt invasive and disrespectful.
April 15, 2021
2.5 stars! The publisher was nice enough to reach out to me with a free copy of this book. The author definitely did a lot of research into the various histories of the families involved but I didn’t feel like I got to know the four men themselves enough. It was a little too long and drawn out as well.
June 16, 2021
This book was so disappointing. This is the first book I've ever wanted my money back for. I can only give one star because it was good to learn about the crew of the Wind Blown and know they're not forgotten. Some of the history of Montauk and Long Island was interesting, as well.
But the content is so disjointed. It was hard to follow the list of people that the author kept dropping into the story. And a lot of the content was unnecessary filler. The book was way too long for the limited amount of relevant information provided. Also, it seemed like the author shared some very personal information about the deceased and their families that did nothing to further the story. Just because it might be true doesn't mean it's relevant. But that's just my opinion. I'm sure some people appreciate this writing style. It just wasn't my cup of tea.
But the content is so disjointed. It was hard to follow the list of people that the author kept dropping into the story. And a lot of the content was unnecessary filler. The book was way too long for the limited amount of relevant information provided. Also, it seemed like the author shared some very personal information about the deceased and their families that did nothing to further the story. Just because it might be true doesn't mean it's relevant. But that's just my opinion. I'm sure some people appreciate this writing style. It just wasn't my cup of tea.
June 22, 2021
Until I got to the end, this was going to be 3.5 stars rounded down to 3 stars, but I decided that the ending (at least for me) helped me see the purpose of the book, so I decided to round up. Throughout the story, I kept thinking that this would do well as a documentary, with photos and video footage (recreated or otherwise), and there were definitely passages where I could almost hear an announcer's voice talking about the story. It makes me wonder what this would be like as an audiobook--somehow I think it would enhance the story for me. Instead, as I slowly made my way through the book, I kept trying to figure out the author's purpose in writing this book. Ultimately, I feel like this story was a way for the survivors to remember the four men, and perhaps for some to find some sense of closure. I came away from this story realizing that Sea is a powerful force, to be respected, feared, and loved and that these men (and many of their families) had a powerful connection to the ocean that has never gone away. I personally don't have that kind of connection, but it makes me appreciate just how hardy and hardworking anyone who lives off of the sea has to be. Oddly enough, it gave me a new appreciation for Jesus' four fishermen disciples. This is not a happy story, as one can imagine, but I like what became of Mike's three sons, especially the oldest, and I think that was in part due to the Charron family's influence and generous hearts.
Overall, I think this story could have been helped with a little bit more editing, but I'm still glad I read it. I knew nothing about Montauk before and had definitely never heard of this tragedy. I thought the author did a good job of helping us see the long-lasting effect of this tragedy on those they left behind, and all the what-ifs that haunt the survivors to this day. Some were hit more permanently and negatively than others, while others have managed to find a way to live with the pain. Remarkably, everyone the author interviewed remembered these days with much clarity, even after all these years. This in itself tells me just how affected these people were. If this book helps some of them find some closure, then blessings to them.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Overall, I think this story could have been helped with a little bit more editing, but I'm still glad I read it. I knew nothing about Montauk before and had definitely never heard of this tragedy. I thought the author did a good job of helping us see the long-lasting effect of this tragedy on those they left behind, and all the what-ifs that haunt the survivors to this day. Some were hit more permanently and negatively than others, while others have managed to find a way to live with the pain. Remarkably, everyone the author interviewed remembered these days with much clarity, even after all these years. This in itself tells me just how affected these people were. If this book helps some of them find some closure, then blessings to them.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
June 8, 2021
There’s definitely a chance I’m rating this higher than deserved because I’m drawn to the material. I have no doubt there will be a million comparisons to The Perfect Storm by Sebastian Junger and, rightly so. It’s very similar in style, but also, how else could you really tell such a story? While I wouldn’t say it’s as good as TPS, it still has great character development, interesting information from great sources, and, well, heart.
If you enjoy stories of peril at sea, I think you’ll be glad you got this one. If not, this won’t be the one to convert you. Still, I found I hate to rate it highly because it was certainly written with love.
If you enjoy stories of peril at sea, I think you’ll be glad you got this one. If not, this won’t be the one to convert you. Still, I found I hate to rate it highly because it was certainly written with love.
June 5, 2021
Disappointed
I wanted a story about the sea, maybe another perfect storm. What I got was a boring history of the families and friends.
I wanted a story about the sea, maybe another perfect storm. What I got was a boring history of the families and friends.
March 4, 2022
Sometime during the night of the 29th of March in 1984, a fishing boat disappeared off Montauk Point, New York. There were four men on board, trying to make their way back from days of non-stop fishing, the boat most likely laden down with heavy loads of tilefish. There was no Mayday call, no request for help. Nothing. The boat and the men disappeared forever during a nor’easter that swooped down on them with alarming speed. This book starts with the shipwreck, but the focus of the pages within is to explain the grief of the survivors and THEIR stories, both before and after the event. This is a different take upon your standard missing ship tale.
The fishermen who had examined the Wind Blown up close, shaking their heads, knew it was the wrong boat. Hell, all of the fleet knew it was the wrong boat. For the survivors, the guilt crept in afterward.
The boat was named, Wind Blown, a perfect name given its outcome. It was really a party boat being used for commercial fishing, which meant it was probably on its way to a sorrowful ending no matter what the weather. The boat hung low in the water with a steel hull, a plywood wheelhouse and a long extension on the back. Seaworthy enough for drunken Wall Street frat boys out for a day of boozed fishing near land but not for serious heavy-duty tile-lining. And so the book quickly dispenses with the vessel, for there will be no discovered shipwrecks here. There will be no long examined causes written by the Coast Guard. The reader learns about the tragedy and then moves along to learn who was left behind.
The real star of the book is the hamlet of Montauk, at the eastern tip of Long Island in New York. Actually, it’s the entire South Fork area which used to be a working-class area full of fishermen but which has become a place of multi-million dollar homes for part-time NYC residents. Each crew member is examined along with their families. Some came from wealth but all had seawater in their veins. Some were also surfers and each family had some issue. Everyone seems to have tried to live the best lives they could even as the old neighborhood shanties were torn down and replaced by McMansions. Secrets hidden away previously get torn open and brought to the fore by the book, making the reader somewhat of an interloper.
The author does not make up historical fiction in order to explain the boat’s demise. There are no imagined dialogues among the crew or guessing of their last moments. This is a real non-fictional narrative working with what was left after the crew’s loss. The book acts as a memorial to the four “boys”, giving them a background which they may never have received if they had lived to old age. There is the widowed wife who lives by her own rules. There is the mother who lost first a husband and then a son to the sea. There are children who get the surprise of their lives many years after the loss of their father. It’s all very readable. My only qualm was the introduction of so many extra people, who come and go throughout the book. I didn’t realize the importance of some of them while others were brought in to explain something else. But all in all, a satisfactory read.
The Wind Blown was not the only loss of their local community. In 1951, the Pelican went down within sight of the Montauk lighthouse. There were forty-five casualties in that party boat. In 1993, the Ann Louise sunk, taking the two-man crew to the depths below. There is now a bronze statue at Montauk Point, remembering all the lives lost through the centuries in the waters where the Atlantic rushes into dangerous shoals.
Book Season = Winter (umbrellas in a storm)
The fishermen who had examined the Wind Blown up close, shaking their heads, knew it was the wrong boat. Hell, all of the fleet knew it was the wrong boat. For the survivors, the guilt crept in afterward.
The boat was named, Wind Blown, a perfect name given its outcome. It was really a party boat being used for commercial fishing, which meant it was probably on its way to a sorrowful ending no matter what the weather. The boat hung low in the water with a steel hull, a plywood wheelhouse and a long extension on the back. Seaworthy enough for drunken Wall Street frat boys out for a day of boozed fishing near land but not for serious heavy-duty tile-lining. And so the book quickly dispenses with the vessel, for there will be no discovered shipwrecks here. There will be no long examined causes written by the Coast Guard. The reader learns about the tragedy and then moves along to learn who was left behind.
The real star of the book is the hamlet of Montauk, at the eastern tip of Long Island in New York. Actually, it’s the entire South Fork area which used to be a working-class area full of fishermen but which has become a place of multi-million dollar homes for part-time NYC residents. Each crew member is examined along with their families. Some came from wealth but all had seawater in their veins. Some were also surfers and each family had some issue. Everyone seems to have tried to live the best lives they could even as the old neighborhood shanties were torn down and replaced by McMansions. Secrets hidden away previously get torn open and brought to the fore by the book, making the reader somewhat of an interloper.
The author does not make up historical fiction in order to explain the boat’s demise. There are no imagined dialogues among the crew or guessing of their last moments. This is a real non-fictional narrative working with what was left after the crew’s loss. The book acts as a memorial to the four “boys”, giving them a background which they may never have received if they had lived to old age. There is the widowed wife who lives by her own rules. There is the mother who lost first a husband and then a son to the sea. There are children who get the surprise of their lives many years after the loss of their father. It’s all very readable. My only qualm was the introduction of so many extra people, who come and go throughout the book. I didn’t realize the importance of some of them while others were brought in to explain something else. But all in all, a satisfactory read.
The Wind Blown was not the only loss of their local community. In 1951, the Pelican went down within sight of the Montauk lighthouse. There were forty-five casualties in that party boat. In 1993, the Ann Louise sunk, taking the two-man crew to the depths below. There is now a bronze statue at Montauk Point, remembering all the lives lost through the centuries in the waters where the Atlantic rushes into dangerous shoals.
Book Season = Winter (umbrellas in a storm)
June 7, 2021
Since I grow up with one of the men, who lost his life at sea, I thought it would have been written with more truth and compassion. I know of 2 incidents that were written as fact in the book and was disappointed how the author decided to write it. It wasn't the story, I was hoping for and certainly did not give my child hood friend Michael Vigilant the respect him and his family deserved.
I would have not recommenced this book to any of my friends and never will
I would have not recommenced this book to any of my friends and never will
February 13, 2021
If you think you know the Hamptons, think again. This book opens up worlds that many of us never see up close. Rarely do we see so many sides of an American community, one that comes together as it is ripped apart by a tragedy that won’t fade away. A craft, fishing, that is as old as man, becomes a thread for the author to weave a timeless tale of grief, love, and resilience.
August 18, 2021
The first third was coherent and interesting, but then things got repetitive and really boring. I don't need the life story of everyone who ever met one of the four fishermen, and some of the details were way too personal. You can only read about how the main guys were bravely ignoring their massive wealth by being ~cool surfers~ so many times.
May 27, 2022
This is a tough book to rate. First off, it is a non-fiction mystery. It is about four commercial fisherman, from Montauk at the tip of Long Island, who were lost at sea during a freak storm in 1984. The author does a decent job at explaining the culture, the job itself, the backgrounds of the men, and finally the memories and stories of those left behind-friends, family members, reporters, etc. it must be difficult to tell a story when the mystery is not solved, though there are guesses. There are some interesting family dynamics, as always with families. My gripe is that the story is disorganized, at least to me. It seems as though it could have been more linear, but instead there was constant jumping about in terms of years and events. I found it distracting. At times it was interesting, at times downright tedious, and rarely did I want to get back to the book because the story was riveting—mostly I wanted to just finish it.
2.5 stars
2.5 stars
July 1, 2021
There was a review in the East Hampton Star of this book that said that there were details about these people's personal lives that should have perhaps stayed confidential and I agree one hundred percent. Because there is not much known about exactly what happened in these men's final hours or how or why the boat sank, the author dives deep into their background and family life in a voyeuristic way. I don't think the victims' parents infidelities and alcoholism should be featured in the book. These were not celebrities, these are private citizens. And all of the peripheral anecdotes about friends' drug uses and lack of ambition feels irrelevant. I think the author became dazzled by the fact that one of the victims came from money and tried to cobble together a story of the have and have nots that felt thin.
March 25, 2021
2 star
The Lost Boys of Montauk
by Amanda M. Fairbanks
This is supposed to be the story of the lost ship Windblown and the men who lost their lives. However, this is more a story of those left behind and their lives than those who died.
This is a strange yet interesting book The author clearly put in a lot of time and research into the book but so much of this book is pure fluff. Fairbanks also has some very strange beliefs that keep creeping in the book for no real reason.
The Lost Boys of Montauk is exceedingly long-winded especially for a book with no real ending.
I recommend skipping this book entirely.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher and Netgalley.
The Lost Boys of Montauk
by Amanda M. Fairbanks
This is supposed to be the story of the lost ship Windblown and the men who lost their lives. However, this is more a story of those left behind and their lives than those who died.
This is a strange yet interesting book The author clearly put in a lot of time and research into the book but so much of this book is pure fluff. Fairbanks also has some very strange beliefs that keep creeping in the book for no real reason.
The Lost Boys of Montauk is exceedingly long-winded especially for a book with no real ending.
I recommend skipping this book entirely.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher and Netgalley.
June 19, 2021
Buried here is a tale of a tragedy at sea, family dysfunction, and a community defined by class differences. Unfortunately, these themes are dwarfed by a disjointed narrative structure and mired in extraneous detail. It’s clear the writer did a lot of research but it seems like she felt compelled to report every single thing she learned rather than edit to tell the compelling story this might have been.
August 23, 2021
Nonfiction about a comercial fishing boat out of Montauk, Long Island that goes down in a storm. All the action is in the first chapter and the rest is the background of the four guys. The end
December 30, 2021
A great telling of a true tragedy.
July 2, 2021
Today Montauk, NY located on the eastern tip of Long Island finds itself in the middle of a major transition. First, it is a vacation/tourist spot with million dollar homes and easy access to the Atlantic Ocean, Block Island Sound, and numerous freshwater ponds. Second, are the locals who try to maintain the quaintness and hope to prevent the “Hamptonization” of their town. It is a struggle as the commercial fishing boats still ply the waters that surround the area, but also it is exposed to more and more people who either settled in year round because of Covid-19 which allowed them to work virtually from anywhere, or others who used their second homes to escape the pandemic that overwhelmed New York City.
In her new book, THE LOST BOYS OF MONTAUK: THE TRUE STORY OF THE WIND BLOWN, FOUR MEN WHO VANISHED AT SEA, AND THE SURVIVORS THEY LEFT BEHIND, Amanda M. Fairbanks, a former reporter for the East Hampton Star and New York Times creates a history of the Montauk region as she presents the lives of Michael Stedman, David Connick, Michael Vigliant, and Scott Clarke who perished at sea on March 29, 1984, and the ramifications of those deaths for those left behind. Fairbanks examines the profound shift of Montauk from a working class village. “a drinking town, with a fishing problem,” to a playground for the wealthy. In addition, the author explores why a fishing accident forty years ago still resonates so strongly in the minds of locals.
The book is a heartwarming and judicious account of the accident, what led up to it, how the different personalities involved interacted, and the implications for the future for survivors. The motivating force in the story is Mike Stedman, a young man who was married to the water. Whether he was surfing, running a party boat, or becoming a commercial fisherman, Mike was an intense individual who seemed to know what he wanted and did not want anything to get in his way. His goal in life was to own his own boat and stop working for others, and in 1982 he purchased the “Wind Blown,” a commercial boat out of Freeport, TX. His wife Mary felt bad karma from the outset, and many believed that the boat which had three previous owners and suffered mechanical difficulties on the trip back from Texas, was not seaworthy enough to engage in commercial shipping in the North Atlantic.
The crew of the Wind Blown formed a brotherhood despite their varied backgrounds economically and socially. Michael V. and Scott C. were young deckhands from a hardscrabble background while Michael S., and Dave C. came from a privileged background. Mike and Dave bonded easily as they shared poor relationships with their straight laced fathers and just wanted to be part of the water which their parents could not accept. The four men worked as a team, many times to exhaustion as bringing in tilefish was very lucrative in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Fairbanks does a marvelous job explaining the rigorous life of commercial fishermen and its impact on their families.
On March 28, 1984, the National Hurricane Service in New York posted a gale warning, later it issued a winter storm warning as the Montauk Light House reported wind gusts of over 100 mph. The Wind Blown which had been out to sea for a few days headed back to Montauk and ran into a full blown nor’easter, the worst since 1962. In describing how the crisis transpired, the author relied on extensive research that included interviews with family members, friends, and local townspeople. What was clear is that the four young men were well liked and respected throughout the community. This was highlighted by many contributions that helped pay for the search and rescue operations performed by private groups once the Coast Guard had pronounced that the ship and men had vanished.
Fairbanks integrates a study of the socio-cultural nature of the region, even providing a history of the tilefish’s migratory patterns and the money it brought to commercial fisherman. She also focuses on the Maidstone Club and its history to highlight the economic dichotomy that existed as well as racism and anti-Semitism. It was a club the Connick’s belonged to and it was the epitome of “old money.” Fairbanks provides insights into many of the characters who spent most of their lives in Montauk and its environs. Most were fisherman, bar owners, surf shop owners and the like who formed a special bond who resented many of the interlopers that began to pour into Montauk. Throughout one must keep in mind that Montauk is the largest commercial harbor in New York State. Its home to the greatest sports fishing on the east coast – species such as shark, tuna, and marlin proliferate at certain times of the year which attracted many outsiders.
The issue of closure for survivors is an important theme that Fairbanks develops. It is a very complex situation emotionally when no bodies were located, though parts of the Wind Blown and its crews’ personal effects were found. The Coast Guard did conduct a full five day search that included the Air National Guard and the US Navy. Twenty fishing boats, five planes, and three helicopters scoured the 25,000 square miles of ocean between Block Island and the Delaware coast to no avail. Once completed the privately funded search continued for another ten days, but is that enough for closure? For many to this day the snuffing out of four promising young lives is still hard to accept.
To Fairbanks’ credit unlike other books on boating disasters she focuses more on the living than the dead. She also is able to seamlessly integrate the cultural upheavals of the 60s and 70s and the impact on the crew and their families, in addition to the rift between townies and the weekend set from New York. Fairbanks writes that she “wanted to understand how tragedies become imprinted in our memories, how trauma and grief wend their way through generations and become a kind of inheritance bequeathed to our descendants.” If this was her goal, she has accomplished it with a well written and poignant book that exhibits a great deal of love, but tremendous sorrow and grief.
In her new book, THE LOST BOYS OF MONTAUK: THE TRUE STORY OF THE WIND BLOWN, FOUR MEN WHO VANISHED AT SEA, AND THE SURVIVORS THEY LEFT BEHIND, Amanda M. Fairbanks, a former reporter for the East Hampton Star and New York Times creates a history of the Montauk region as she presents the lives of Michael Stedman, David Connick, Michael Vigliant, and Scott Clarke who perished at sea on March 29, 1984, and the ramifications of those deaths for those left behind. Fairbanks examines the profound shift of Montauk from a working class village. “a drinking town, with a fishing problem,” to a playground for the wealthy. In addition, the author explores why a fishing accident forty years ago still resonates so strongly in the minds of locals.
The book is a heartwarming and judicious account of the accident, what led up to it, how the different personalities involved interacted, and the implications for the future for survivors. The motivating force in the story is Mike Stedman, a young man who was married to the water. Whether he was surfing, running a party boat, or becoming a commercial fisherman, Mike was an intense individual who seemed to know what he wanted and did not want anything to get in his way. His goal in life was to own his own boat and stop working for others, and in 1982 he purchased the “Wind Blown,” a commercial boat out of Freeport, TX. His wife Mary felt bad karma from the outset, and many believed that the boat which had three previous owners and suffered mechanical difficulties on the trip back from Texas, was not seaworthy enough to engage in commercial shipping in the North Atlantic.
The crew of the Wind Blown formed a brotherhood despite their varied backgrounds economically and socially. Michael V. and Scott C. were young deckhands from a hardscrabble background while Michael S., and Dave C. came from a privileged background. Mike and Dave bonded easily as they shared poor relationships with their straight laced fathers and just wanted to be part of the water which their parents could not accept. The four men worked as a team, many times to exhaustion as bringing in tilefish was very lucrative in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Fairbanks does a marvelous job explaining the rigorous life of commercial fishermen and its impact on their families.
On March 28, 1984, the National Hurricane Service in New York posted a gale warning, later it issued a winter storm warning as the Montauk Light House reported wind gusts of over 100 mph. The Wind Blown which had been out to sea for a few days headed back to Montauk and ran into a full blown nor’easter, the worst since 1962. In describing how the crisis transpired, the author relied on extensive research that included interviews with family members, friends, and local townspeople. What was clear is that the four young men were well liked and respected throughout the community. This was highlighted by many contributions that helped pay for the search and rescue operations performed by private groups once the Coast Guard had pronounced that the ship and men had vanished.
Fairbanks integrates a study of the socio-cultural nature of the region, even providing a history of the tilefish’s migratory patterns and the money it brought to commercial fisherman. She also focuses on the Maidstone Club and its history to highlight the economic dichotomy that existed as well as racism and anti-Semitism. It was a club the Connick’s belonged to and it was the epitome of “old money.” Fairbanks provides insights into many of the characters who spent most of their lives in Montauk and its environs. Most were fisherman, bar owners, surf shop owners and the like who formed a special bond who resented many of the interlopers that began to pour into Montauk. Throughout one must keep in mind that Montauk is the largest commercial harbor in New York State. Its home to the greatest sports fishing on the east coast – species such as shark, tuna, and marlin proliferate at certain times of the year which attracted many outsiders.
The issue of closure for survivors is an important theme that Fairbanks develops. It is a very complex situation emotionally when no bodies were located, though parts of the Wind Blown and its crews’ personal effects were found. The Coast Guard did conduct a full five day search that included the Air National Guard and the US Navy. Twenty fishing boats, five planes, and three helicopters scoured the 25,000 square miles of ocean between Block Island and the Delaware coast to no avail. Once completed the privately funded search continued for another ten days, but is that enough for closure? For many to this day the snuffing out of four promising young lives is still hard to accept.
To Fairbanks’ credit unlike other books on boating disasters she focuses more on the living than the dead. She also is able to seamlessly integrate the cultural upheavals of the 60s and 70s and the impact on the crew and their families, in addition to the rift between townies and the weekend set from New York. Fairbanks writes that she “wanted to understand how tragedies become imprinted in our memories, how trauma and grief wend their way through generations and become a kind of inheritance bequeathed to our descendants.” If this was her goal, she has accomplished it with a well written and poignant book that exhibits a great deal of love, but tremendous sorrow and grief.
September 22, 2021
As one of the people said who refused to answer her questions :"The perfect storm has already been written." Which it has--which I've read--and it's better. This book couldn't make up its mind what the story was. Frankly, who gives a crap about the life and marriages of the dead men's parents? And if you want to prove that everything was hippy dippy great in the seventies and eighties with all the drugs and free living, this didn't sell me on it. These people were all spectacularly unhappy before they died; most were living self-destructive lives (at least the two men, maybe not the two adolescent/young men who drowned). So the point of it all? Not sure.
The Perfect Storm is a book to read about fishing and its perils. Not this one.
The Perfect Storm is a book to read about fishing and its perils. Not this one.
July 5, 2021
I am conflicted about how to rate this one. The book makes for interesting reading throughout, but the narrative is extremely choppy and unfocused, to the point of being occasionally chaotic. The emotional weight of many characters' secrets seems nakedly exposed rather than cohesively considered and packaged. As a reading experience, it's entertaining but also feels like rubbernecking.
July 10, 2021
I didn't finish reading this. 1. The audiobook narrator is awful. 2. I expected a story and got jumbled facts instead. 3. The author is writing like it was the Titanic. I feel bad that the 4 men died but why is this even a book?
July 21, 2021
While I gave it a good try, I decided not to finish this book. It was very detailed, but only regarding the crew members' family back stories. I would have preferred to learn more about the ship, the crew members themselves and theories as to what specifically might have happened at sea.
June 4, 2021
Boring. Could not keep my interest.
November 17, 2021
Sorry but this is lame. Random facts all over the place, backstory about high school antics - I came for seafaring tension and that was not visible in the first third of the book. DNF.
Read
February 11, 2022DNF... The story wasn't focused on the loss. Had lots of filler random facts.
Being a native of NYC and spent time on the beach of Long Island my entire life. My family owns a house across the street from the sand in Atlantic Beach.
Was super curious about this happenstance and the struggles fisherman went through. It sounded interesting based on the summary and I hoped to learn more about this piece of the island's history. As I have family roots that go back before NY is a state. Or, America is even a country.
A quarter of the way through decided to drop the read. I have SO many books on my 2022 reading list didn't wanna go any further with this one.
It might be for you if you wanna hear random details about lots of info unrelated to this cover and book summary promoted sad historical events.
It's not for me because some of the random details unrelated to the event are very personal and felt exploitive for book sales. Just because the information was shared during an interview for the book doesn't mean it'll work in explaining what happened.
Feels more like fiction than fact and could have been shorter. Lots of filler to thrill not pay homage to a sad event we’re curious about for history's sake, in my opinion
Being a native of NYC and spent time on the beach of Long Island my entire life. My family owns a house across the street from the sand in Atlantic Beach.
Was super curious about this happenstance and the struggles fisherman went through. It sounded interesting based on the summary and I hoped to learn more about this piece of the island's history. As I have family roots that go back before NY is a state. Or, America is even a country.
A quarter of the way through decided to drop the read. I have SO many books on my 2022 reading list didn't wanna go any further with this one.
It might be for you if you wanna hear random details about lots of info unrelated to this cover and book summary promoted sad historical events.
It's not for me because some of the random details unrelated to the event are very personal and felt exploitive for book sales. Just because the information was shared during an interview for the book doesn't mean it'll work in explaining what happened.
Feels more like fiction than fact and could have been shorter. Lots of filler to thrill not pay homage to a sad event we’re curious about for history's sake, in my opinion
Displaying 1 - 30 of 456 reviews