Saved!: The Story of the Andrea Doria, the Greatest Sea Rescue in History

by William Hoffer

Dust jacket missing. First edition.Clean boards have light edge wear. Text is perfect. Same day shipping.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Survival

215 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1979

About the author

William Hoffer has been spinning out international best-sellers for more than 20 years.
He collaborated with Billy Hayes to chronicle the exciting escape from a Turkish prison in Midnight Express, which was later produced into an Academy Award-winning motion picture starring Brad Davis, John Hurt and Randy Quaid.
William and his wife Marilyn worked with Betty Mahmoody to write Not Without My Daughter, the story of Betty and her daughter’s desperate and dangerous escape from Iran. The book became a stunningly successful international phenomenon, and was produced into a motion picture starring Sally Field and Alfred Molina.
William and Marilyn’s Freefall is the nail-biting thriller recounting the near-tragedy of Air Canada Flight 174 that ran out of fuel at 41,000 feet. It was produced into a motion picture starring William Devane, Shelley Hack and Mariette Hartley.
The husband-and-wife team’s latest book is Luke Rules, the adventures and misadventures of Luke Wilde, former Marine Corps sniper turned wily and often contrary private investigator who likes to play by his own rules. Luke Rules is the first in a series of Luke Wilde adventures. The new year will bring William Hoffer's 22nd Torch! A New Luke Wilde adventure.

Reviews

[Grey Rzeznik · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've a huge appetite for maritime history and the story of the Andrea Doria colliding with the Stockholm is a personal favorite. Of the many accounts I've read about this tragic event, this is, in my opinion, the best read. The survivor's stories stay with you and your heart breaks for the senselessness of it.

[Marilyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Around the Year in 52 Books 2018 Reading Challenge. A book about surviving.

A detailed, obviously well researched account of the wreck of the Andrea Doria and the Stockholm in 1956. By luck of many other ships being in the area most of the people aboard the Andrea Doria were saved. It is also important to note that she stayed afloat for 11 hours after the collision giving rescuers time to act. It is also necessary to state that both captains were at fault for this collision. An amazing tale.

[Nora · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read this book once a year for the past, oh, twenty years. The story of how the Andrea Doria collided with the Stockholm is in my mind waaay more interesting than the story of the Titanic. How was it possible for two mammoth ships to steer directly into each other? When tested by this disaster, some people became heroes and some behaved abominably. I will never forget the stories of the last man left alive aboard the Andrea Doria, the girl who was thrown in her bed from one ship to the other, the crewmembers of the Andrea Doria who dressed as women to get into the lifeboats, the woman who threw her baby into the sea because she panicked, the doctor who worked tirelessly to save his wife, or the Captain of the Andrea Doria finally addressing the ship after hours had passed with a single trembling word. With today's sad new "Chicken of the Sea" cruise shipwreck incident, this book becomes more timely than ever.

[Corgi Mom · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the story of the tragic sinking of a great transatlantic liner, the Andrea Doria, on July 25, 1956. The story tells of the rescue attempt. Unlike the Titanic, most of the passengers and crew were rescued and survived, about 1660 people. Forty-six people perished. The author describes the bravery and cowardice, and fears of the passengers and the crew. In reading the book you get the sense that you are right there viewing everything that happens. A remarkable story. Wikipedia claims that "the Andrea Doria was the last major transatlantic passenger vessel to sink before aircraft became the preferred method of travel."

[Eric Mccutcheon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting story. Well researched. The problem is that the book is definitely dated.

[Cindy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the story of the fateful day when the Italian Andrea Dorian collided with the Swedish Stockholm. It describes what happened from the point of view of both crews, how multiple small mistakes or oversights led to a catastrophe.

More interestingly, Hoffer describes the people, both crew & passengers, and what they went through. Some people who would otherwise have died were spared because of a chance decision to do something else before going to bed. Marion Boyer waited impatiently as his wife finished her cup of coffee & cigarette. Father John Dolciamore & Father Richard Wojcik were persuaded to play a game of Scrabble before retiring. These people, if they had gone to bed, would've been in the direct hit zone.

After the impact, some of the people displayed true heroism, risking their own lives to save others. Parents were desperate to save their children. Everything was mass confusion, exacerbated by the fact the captain didn't make announcements to let passengers know what to do. The story is harrowing.

Partly due to luck, and definitely due to the willingness of others to help, 1660 people were rescued and only 51 perished. Contrast that with numbers from the Titanic, and you'll realize just how impressive that was!

William Hoffer did a nice job of weaving together eyewitness accounts and facts presented at the hearings to deliver an engaging, gripping story.

[Theda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredibly well-written. The author interviewed survivors of the Andrea Doria, and when you are reading the scenes from just before the collision through to the final rescue, you feel as if you are there. My heart was racing.

In addition to letting you experience what it must have been like, he does an amazing job at describing all of the crew actions on both ships that led to the Stockholm ramming the side of the Andrea Doria. Two ships in a large ocean, each of which was intent on avoiding the other, collided. How? Why? In the final chapter, he walks us through each of the actions and what could have been done differently that may have avoided that event. To quote: “A reconstruction of events of July 25 reveals a series of mainly minor actions, and inactions, that taken individually were not calamitous. But collectively they added up to a tragic sum.”

I’m not a good enough writer for my review to do justice to this interesting, informative, compelling, tragic, and analytical telling of all that happened that night. Read it.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gripping! It was very hard to put this down. I would have liked to know what consequences there were or lessons learned, if any. Were any laws changed? Did more countries sign on to the protocols that were violated? What about the response of the captain of the Andrea Doria? He seemed to be interested only in keeping the ship afloat and recoverable, and abandoned the passengers to their fate. Everyone was on their own. He did not organize any methodical search of the vessel for survivors and injured, or to make sure that all the passengers got to disembarkation sites. He made no announcements that ships were speeding to the rescue, or where to go to safely get to the lifeboats. I'm just surprised that there were no after action reports. I guess it was a different time. In proof of that, one person who lost six members of his family received only $28,000!

[Valerio Pastore · Rating 5 out of 5]

Curiously, in Italy the loss of the Andrea Doria has not, over time, had the stir it would have deserved. Accomplice to a trial in which the parties involved, both guilty, only wanted to close with a settlement, a press that ended up disinterested in the tragic affair, the Andrea Doria disaster was downgraded to an accident to be absent-mindedly dusted off every July 25.
Peter Hoffer is the only one that I know of who has written a truly engaging, thoroughly documented, strong-toned, unbiased book.
The loss of the Andrea Doria was compensated for by the rescue of almost everyone among her passengers and crew-the casualties were only 46! His story is one of courage and sense of sacrifice of those people.

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Saved!: The Story of the Andrea Doria, the greatest Sea Rescue in History by William Hoffer is a well-documented account of a tragedy at sea, which should never happened. The book details the account of both ships, many of their crew and passengers and those who risked their lives to facilitate the rescue. I thought Hoffer did well at describing the specifics behind the accident. The only fault I found, was that so many of the experiences of the passengers were the same, the book became a bit repetitive. But I did find the book interesting. A pretty good read.

[Gina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book several times as a kid and still remember quite a few of the details, even names and dates. (There was a period of a few years where I devoured disaster stories.) Recently I was curious to see if the book still "held up" after so long, and bought a used copy.

It does. Incredible story, very well told. It's a quick read but, at least for me, an unforgettable one.

[William · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting story about tragedy and rescue at sea. It has all of the elements of surprise, screw-ups, terror, heroism, cowardice, strange luck, faith and loss. I was most surprised that despite the sharing of blame no one was fired and lost their license.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clear snapshot of the sinking of the Andrea Doria. Not too overwrought, but would have liked a bit more context.

[Rick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this one. Non-fiction, so the detailed account is incredibly well researched. A page turner and a fascinating piece of history brought to life.

[Daniel Gallardo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Muy al estilo "A Night to Remember" de Walter Lord. Lo amé profundamente. Debería hacerse una película o serie.

[Austin Kische · Rating 3 out of 5]

Got this book from my Grandma. It was interesting enough though not really my favorite genre. There were some cool personal experience stories in there. Most of it just didn't matter to me.

[Len Knighton · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book with peaks and valleys. The opening of the circumstances that led to the crash, was a peak, along with the account of the trial. The middle section concerning the rescue was less satisfying. History better remembers the Titanic because the the staggering loss of life. It is too bad this story isn't more widely known for the saving of over 90% of the passengers and crew of the Andrea Doria.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really interesting story about the sinking of the Andrea Doria.

[Debra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well-written account of the collision of the Stockholm with the Andrea Doria on July 25, 1956 off the coast of Nantucket.

[Danielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was one of those that I read in an afternoon basically. Very interesting.