In December 1944, Admiral William "Bull" Halsey and the U.S. 3rd Fleet confronted an onslaught as relentless and deadly as any Japanese attack. A powerful typhoon, surging with 150 mile-per-hour winds, struck the warships in the deepest, most shark-infested waters of the Pacific. Tossed around like playthings, dozens of ships suffered severe damage; but the fate of three destroyers was even worse. The USS Hull, USS Monaghan, and USS Spence capsized in the 70-foot waves, each trapping its crew in a giant steel coffin. In all, 790 men died. Using recently declassified official documents, Halsey's Typhoon captures the unfolding of this "natural" wartime calamity.

At the height of the Second World War in 1944, the U.S. Pacific Fleet was struck by a typhoon that sank three destroyers and drowned 800 sailors. Drury (The Rescue Season) and Clavin (Dark Noon: The Final Voyage of the Fishing Boat Pelican) draw on proceedings of a navy board of inquiry and eyewitness recollections to recreate the catastrophe. On the one hand, this is an absorbing if disjointed maritime disaster saga in which shrieking winds and monstrous waves batter warships to pieces. It's also a study in judgment under pressure, as hard-charging Adm. William "Bull" Halsey (motto: "Kill Japs") keeps his fleet positioned in the storm's path because of faulty weather reports, accusations that he improperly left his station during the earlier Battle of Leyte Gulf and general overaggressiveness. Closer to the waterline, the authors contrast the fecklessness of Capt. James Marks of the U.S.S. Hull, which sank, to the steadiness of Capt. Henry Plage of the U.S.S. Tabberer, which braved mountainous seas to rescue survivors. The trumped-up leadership parable is perhaps unfair to Halsey and Marks. Still, the authors make their account a vivid tale of tragedy and gallantry at sea. Photos. (Jan.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

A tale of natural disaster, bad judgment and heroism during World War II. In December 1944, a typhoon overtook a U.S. naval fleet that, under the leadership of Admiral William Halsey, was sailing in the Philippine Sea. The catastrophe was legendary-indeed, some believe it to be the basis for Herman Wouk's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, The Caine Mutiny. All told, three ships were destroyed, and almost 800 men died. Drawing on recently declassified documents, Drury (The Rescue Season, 2001, etc.) and Clavin (Dark Noon, not reviewed, etc.) recreate the terrifying days during which the crew battled the elements. But this is not just a tale of men against nature. It's also a tale of men for, and against, other men: Lieutenant Commander Henry Lee Plage of the USS Tabberer flouted orders in a daring rescue effort. The most moving scenes come at the end of the book, as the survivors reckon with the fate of their many dead comrades. Sailors on the USS Knapp, having recovered a body so mutilated by sharks that it was unidentifiable, recited a service from the Book of Common Prayer, and committed the body back to the sea. Moments later, another body floated up from the depths-it was Lieutenant Lloyd Rust, and he, miraculously, was still alive. The authors' prose is often vivid: The typhoon created not just waves, but "vertical sheet[s] of ocean," slamming against the ships, and the sun that beat down on men struggling to stay afloat is "a red dahlia." Drury and Clavin have managed to avoid the problems that so often plague books with two authors-jerky breaks in the narrative, chapters cast in radically different voices. Still, the book is marred by weak characterization-even the heroic Plage neverbecomes three-dimensional. The inherent drama of the events compensates for the sometimes lackluster storytelling. Agent: Nat Sobel/Sobel Weber Associates

“A powerful and engrossing story of tragedy, survival, and heroism.” —Mark Bowden, author of Black Hawk Down

“A taut chronicle of the storm and its survivors, impeccably researched and thrillingly told.” —Men’s Journal

“This book is so good that I kept forgetting I was reading it to ensure accuracy instead of merely reading because it was captivating. What a terrific story. Where did we find such men?” —Captain Michael J. Jacobsen, United States Navy

“If the Beaufort scale were a thrill meter, Halsey’s Typhoon would rate a force 12.” ––Anthony Brandt, National Geographic Adventure

“An impressive, long-overdue account of the U.S. Third Fleet's encounter with a savage typhoon off the Philippines in the autumn of 1944 . . . Entirely gripping . . . A guaranteed hit with maritime buffs.” —Booklist

“A great strength of this book is how the reader is made to feel the tension between logistical necessity and fate in the form of a storm whose path was rendered unpredictable by the imperfect science of the day. The pay off is in the body of the book, a nonstop, teeth-gritting, nonfiction thriller that is made up of eyewitness accounts of nature doing her worst and men doing their best…under horrific circumstances…. Reads at a gallop and is extremely well researched…. Bob Drury and Tom Clavin have done it.” ––Russell Drumm, East Hampton Star

“For more than 60 years, one of the country’s greatest tales of bravery and heroism has gone untold. The story, told in plain language by dozens of men who witnessed or survived the actual tragic events but kept mum for outdated reasons, spent that time gathering dust in a box amid hundreds of thousands of other boxes in a cavernous government warehouse. Until Tom Clavin and Bob Drury found it.” ––Michael Wright, Southampton Press

“Not just a top pick for World War II history holdings, but for general interest collections strong in wartime adventure stories…. An extraordinary account of an extraordinary, little-revealed event which provoked extreme heroism under extreme conditions.” ––Library Bookwatch

“Drury and Clavin’s book could not be better timed, given the renewed interest in the Pacific theatre … and public awareness now of the infighting between and among military and civilian leaders over policies and procedures in Iraq. Halsey’s Typhoon delivers a fine, fact-filled account of the various rivalries and disagreements of the major players…. The book also provides a suspense-laden account of extraordinary endurance and heroic risk that resonates as a contemporary disaster tale…. Easy, engaging and informative reading.” ––Joan Baum, The Independent

“[Halsey’s Typhoon] is not just a top pick for World War II history holdings, but for general-interest collections strong in wartime adventure stories…. An extraordinary account of an extraordinary, little revealed event which provoked extreme heroism under extreme conditions.” ––Internet Bookwatch

“A riveting tale of the fierce storm that capsized three ships, damaged dozens of others and killed 793 sailors.” ––Carol Comegno, Courier-Post (NJ)

“Superb . . . My father flew torpedo bombers off these same carriers in these same waters, perhaps with these same men. Drury and Clavin’s writing is as clever and compelling as it is rich with detail, and for me, my father lived in each line. He once told me that the second most magnificent sight he had ever seen (after my mother on a blind date) was while flying his TBM off Saipan, and being able to see in all directions nothing but the United States Navy steaming toward Japan. I wish he were still alive so I could present him with this magnificent book.” —Gary Kinder, author of Ship of Gold in the Deep Blue Sea

“I thought I was a student of military history, but until I read Halsey’s Typhoon, I had no inkling that such an epic disaster—and an even more epic rescue mission—struck the U.S. Navy in World War II. This is a brilliant book, a rip-roaring read that puts you, sweating with fear, right in the middle of the action. It’s so good, I’ll ignore the fact that the navy guys are the heroes.” —Colonel (Retired) David Hunt, Fox News counterterrorism and military analyst and author of They Just Don’t Get It

“[Halsey’s Typhoon] tells the story of human heroes and human failure in terms of those who lived the ordeal and suffered great loss. The anecdotal aura, supported by scientific, technical, and naval tactical information, places this story in the peerless category with Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors. It is a part of our history that deserves the light of day because of its valuable lessons and the intrepidity of those who came courageously to the rescue of sailors at sea—a tradition that stands at the pinnacle of man’s responsibilities.” —Vice Admiral (Ret.) Edward S. Briggs, United States Navy

“[Halsey’s Typhoon] is a tale of high adventure that was carefully researched by two established writers… Drury and Clavin have done a fine job. Their work has first place on my Christmas gift list for Navy Friends.” ––Colonel (Ret.) Gordon W. Keiser, U.S. Marine Corps, Proceedings

“I couldn't put this great read down. This account of Admiral William 'Bull' Halsey's Pacific Fleet facing a devastating typhoon during WW II has military history, naval operations, suspense, adventure, tragedy, and triumph interwoven in a little-known episode from the war in the Pacific.” —Rich Daley, Pass Christian Books, Pass Christian, MS, Book Sense quote

“With Halsey’s Typhoon, Drury and Clavin have discovered an epic nautical adventure worthy of Joseph Conrad. What’s more, their telling of the story is at once taut, poignant, and evocative. You can smell the blood in the water, but you can’t put it down.” —Mark Kriegel, author of Namath and Pistol: The Life of Pete Maravich

“Terrifying . . . This is not just a tale of men against nature. It’s also a tale of men for, and against, other men.” —Kirkus Reviews

“Absorbing . . . A vivid tale of tragedy and gallantry at sea.” —Publishers Weekly