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jacqueshol's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed this book as it described the terrible events of the 1916 New Jersey shark attacks. It is similar to Black December experienced here in South Africa in 1957 when sharks attacked nine people in a localised area over a period of a few weeks. Six of those attacks were fatal.
I particularly enjoyed how the author described the culture and events shortly after the start of the 20th century. I realised that it is scarily similar to what we are experiencing here at the start of the 21st venture. There was major upheaval back then with great technological changes, for example, the horseless chariot (cars), aeroplanes had barely been flying a decade, and electricity started making inroads into hotels for lighting, etc. Does it sound familiar with today's technology? But wait, it gets better. We just survived a major pandemic, but the world was battling polio back then. Today there is a war between Russia and Ukraine, and rumours about China invading Taiwan are not subsiding. Back in 1916, the world was at war with itself (WW1). It is indeed scarily similar.
Back to the book. The storytelling was done well, but at times it seemed to slow down and then speed up again. The pace was all over the place. The story would also jump at times. Therefore, the four stars. I highly recommend that readers watch the movie 12 Days of Terror (2015), which dramatises these events. It is not nearly as scary as Jaws, but a very good and faithful rendition of actual events. I most certainly will recommend the book.
I particularly enjoyed how the author described the culture and events shortly after the start of the 20th century. I realised that it is scarily similar to what we are experiencing here at the start of the 21st venture. There was major upheaval back then with great technological changes, for example, the horseless chariot (cars), aeroplanes had barely been flying a decade, and electricity started making inroads into hotels for lighting, etc. Does it sound familiar with today's technology? But wait, it gets better. We just survived a major pandemic, but the world was battling polio back then. Today there is a war between Russia and Ukraine, and rumours about China invading Taiwan are not subsiding. Back in 1916, the world was at war with itself (WW1). It is indeed scarily similar.
Back to the book. The storytelling was done well, but at times it seemed to slow down and then speed up again. The pace was all over the place. The story would also jump at times. Therefore, the four stars. I highly recommend that readers watch the movie 12 Days of Terror (2015), which dramatises these events. It is not nearly as scary as Jaws, but a very good and faithful rendition of actual events. I most certainly will recommend the book.
justlily's review against another edition
1.0
Disappointed in how this turned a fascinating and horrifying subject into something mind-numbingly boring. Gods how I hate non-fiction.
missespeterson's review against another edition
4.0
Even more terrifying than Jaws, because these victims are real. Capuzzo uses a great narrative to introduce color to the historical figures and time period. I sometimes thought he assumed he knew too much about shark movements, but it was a great, well written boom.
twstdtink's review against another edition
The writer doesn't even get to the the first shark attack until 93 pages in! I feel like I'm stuck in a room with an old rambling man who talks because he likes the sound of his own voice. I don't need a discription about every little detail of 1916: from the fabric people wear to the history of their transportation. Capuzzo spends chapter after chapter describing (in painful detail) the father of the first victim. Who cares? This could have been an awesome book. I was really looking forward to reading it. But, unfortunately, the title and subject are misleading.
ekmartin's review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
2.5
This book was so incredibly detailed that it made the read tedious. I didn't think there could ever be too many facts, but it has happened here. Unfortunate, as there was so much potential. MC really just got bogged down in useless details. You can tell he's passionate though!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
maryehavens's review against another edition
4.0
Well-researched account of the incidences that launched the fear of great whites and shark-related hysteria we know today (I saw on Netflix that "Avalanche Sharks" was a thing :) ). My favorite chapters were the ones that described the shark and the sequence of events that led it to go rogue off the New Jersey coast line.
This book is my second by Capuzzo and he has a habit of writing well but not good enough to make me want to feel that this was an "amazing!" book. I did enjoy this book much more than The Murder Room but I felt like the descriptions of the hotels were a bit long. And he didn't include any pictures nor did he explain why, despite describing pictures of victims/newspaper headlines/etc. in detail.
Still, this book was very good and informative. My husband asked me about it and, 30 minutes later, I was still talking :) If you love the movie Jaws as much as I do, I recommend this book wholeheartedly. Be prepared: the attack scenes are gruesome and heartbreaking.
This book is my second by Capuzzo and he has a habit of writing well but not good enough to make me want to feel that this was an "amazing!" book. I did enjoy this book much more than The Murder Room but I felt like the descriptions of the hotels were a bit long. And he didn't include any pictures nor did he explain why, despite describing pictures of victims/newspaper headlines/etc. in detail.
Still, this book was very good and informative. My husband asked me about it and, 30 minutes later, I was still talking :) If you love the movie Jaws as much as I do, I recommend this book wholeheartedly. Be prepared: the attack scenes are gruesome and heartbreaking.
lizaroo71's review against another edition
4.0
Each time I read a description of an impending shark attack, the music from Jaws played in my head. Get out of the water!!
But this is so much more than a shark tale. It is a slice of American history at a time when the U.S. was changing. There is lots of historical context to what is happening along the East coast (why so many people at the beach?).
I really liked the forward momentum of this one. It is a good summer read (as long as you stay out of the water).
But this is so much more than a shark tale. It is a slice of American history at a time when the U.S. was changing. There is lots of historical context to what is happening along the East coast (why so many people at the beach?).
I really liked the forward momentum of this one. It is a good summer read (as long as you stay out of the water).
lleonora's review against another edition
The thing is: I bought it because a wanted Jaws, instead got a slow burning tale of "Why the shark attack, let's start from the beginning and I mean THE BEGINNING".