I am a member of the ALA Carnegie Medal Committee. This title was suggested for the 2019 Award but it did not make the Longlist. See the complete longlist <a href="http://www.ala.org/awardsgrants/carnegieadult/longlists/"> here.

I enjoy reading about history and learning more. Sometimes it is difficult, but I feel it is important as well as interesting and often tragic. This is a well written book and wonderfully detailed and researched, which I appreciate. It is a true event and it an emotional read. It is also approached with quality writing and skill -- I recommend it.

After requesting and reading just the first chapter of this book, I bought a hard copy because I knew I just had to add it to my library. Indianapolis is the true story of the U.S. Naval ship that secretly delivered the H bomb to Tokyo during World War II. The authors begin with a detailed chapter of the ship being built in its shipyard, and then describe it's missions and identifies many of the sailors who were actually aboard her. Many of these men describe that horrible night when a Japanese submarine shot two torpedoes into her side and sank this magnificent warship. The men that weren't killed had to go through a harrowing ordeal in the sea for the next few days and nights. Many suffered from sickness, hallucinations, and shark attacks. Many of their friends became the victims of these deadly sharks.. This book is so well written that I found myself many times feeling as those I was actually there with the men during their ordeal in the water until they were rescued. Another interesting part for me was reading about it's Captain being tried by the Navy and actually court martialed after being found responsible in part for it's sinking. Years later, he will be exonerated only after several key people come forward to clear his name. Sadly, it is a little to late for the Captain. I highly recommend you buy this book and read about it's history, as well as the survivors of the Indianapolis still around today. It is their story, and it is important that we all hear this story! A fantastic book to read.. I couldn't put it down!

Impeccably researched and told in a captivating narrative, this book recounts the events leading up to the sinking of the USS Indianapolis, the tragic event itself, the wrongful court martial of the captain and his eventual exoneration, and the discovery of the ship's wreckage. The book jumps back and forth between the viewpoints of the men and women involved, including the Japanese and the man responsible for the sinking of the ship, Hashimoto. The book is written in an engaging narrative form that makes history come alive for the reader. There are many helpful resources included in the book such as maps, footnotes, appendices with author notes, and an extensive and impressive list of sources and research. I highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to learn more about the Indianapolis as well as anyone who enjoys historical accounts that are backed up by extensive research.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. A positive review was not required, and all opinions expressed are entirely my own.

I felt this book was a bit dry for a war story. I wanted more experiences from the men who survived. I thought this was an ok read but not one that i would recommend.

Loved learning about the history of the Indianapolis. However there were times I got lost in all the extra information about the boat and crew. Almost needed to keep notes to keep it all straight. Wish it would have been a little easier to read in the beginning, the end was much better for a flowing story. Happy to have read about this amazing crew and ship!!!

Genre: Historical Non-Fiction
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Canada
Pub. Date: July 10, 2018

If you did not see the movie “Jaws” (1975) you missed the actor Robert Shaw’s iconic scene describing the experiences the boys/men endured during WWII when their ship the USS Indianapolis was sunk by enemy fire. They spent four horrific days in shark-infested waters watching each other being eaten alive. The late actor will put more goose bumps on you than my words ever could: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=204&v=u9S41Kplsbs.
In this book, you will find that there is so much more than just sharks to this historical non-fiction that reads like a fictional page-turner. If you are unfamiliar with worst sea disaster in U.S. naval history you may not be aware that the ship was on a secret mission to deliver some of the components for the atomic weapons that were used on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Albert Einstein makes an early appearance since he signed a letter to President Franklin Roosevelt urging that the bomb be built. However, he also repeatedly warned the world about the dangers of nuclear weapons and its impact on the human race. In 1954 he wrote another letter “I made one great mistake in my life was…recommending that the atom bombs be made; but there was some justification – the danger that the Germans would make them first.” Einstein’s conflicted feelings pave the way for the rest of the rollercoaster ride the reader will be on before the book ends.

The beginning chapters alternate between the Japanese Lieutenant Commander Mochitsura Hashimoto who torpedoed and sunk the ship, and the “Indy’s” Captain Charles B. McVay III giving the reader a ringside seat into their surprising similar thoughts and feelings, making one feel as if they knew them both personally. The same is true (on the American side) of the crew. One of this reviewer’s favorites is Adolfo “Harpo” Celaya. He is a Mexican American who lied about his age and enlisted in the navy at 17. Most serving on the Indianapolis were between the ages of 17 and 21—heartbreaking. In 2016 the U.S. post office in Florence, Arizona, where he lived, renamed their Post Office in his honor. How could I not mention this fact when in 2018 there is much American anti-Mexican behavior in the White House?

When McVay and his men were finally rescued from the waters McVay’s nightmare was just beginning. He went on trial with the charge of failing to zigzag which caused the ship to sink when it was hit. Many ships were lost in combat during World War II, McVay was the only captain to be court-martialed for the loss of his ship. The pressure for his trial came from the deceased’s families. To add salt to the families’ wounds, the men died immediately before the end of the war. Many received the dreaded telegram while watching other Americans celebrate in the streets. The families, as well as the press, were out for the captain’s blood as if they were great white sharks themselves. If not a naval person, the trial scenes could get dull from the technical and naval jargon. However, the authors manage to have most of the dialogue reading like a suspenseful courtroom drama. Complete with a jaw-dropping witness who happened to be the Japanese commander Hashimoto.

Many of the surviving members of the crew were always claiming that their captain did nothing wrong and was innocent. In the 1990s they still hadn’t stopped trying to clear his name. In 1998, they received help from a very usual source— a sixth-grade male student who researched the sinking of the Indy for his history fair project, which led to a United States Congressional investigation and exoneration for its captain. Interestingly enough, one of the co-authors of this book, was just a 13-year-old schoolgirl when she learned of the USS Indianapolis and was captivated by the story. She wanted to know what really happened. She figured some grown-up was bound to explain, but that never happened. However, she never lost interest on why out of the 1,196 men aboard only 317 survived. How come no one immediately came to their rescue?
In this meticulously researched book, 25% of its pages are in the endnotes. It is extensively based on interviews with the survivors. Here is a potential trial problem. The men themselves say that after days in the shark-infested waters there were widespread hallucinations. One could argue that their memories of the actual sinking were no longer intact. Furthermore, many of them had such severe post traumatic stress they, like their Captain, committed suicide. But, after reading this book, how anyone can ever again wonder about McVay’s innocence? You will cheer that “50-Year Fight to Exonerate an Innocent Man” is finally over. Still, it is a bittersweet vindication. This is a gut wrenchingly hard story to read. Expect to feel a strong personal connection to the men from the re-telling of the tragedy. Once finished, it might be hard to process your own rollercoaster emotions. Still, this is book that should and must be read.

I've read other books about the Indianapolis, but those other books focused merely on its sinking. This book is the complete package, including the lives of the captain and his men who fought on his behalf afterwards, to clear him of blame for the sinking. It is a compelling true story that I highly recommend to anyone interested in history.

This dark event from World War II deserves it's trip into the light of day. I started and stopped this book many times, as the detail is at times upsetting and emotional. I can't say I enjoyed the read, but I do appreciate the research that went into this book. Many first hand accounts make this book come alive. I would think this reference belongs on Naval history shelves. 3.5

Indianapolis is a comprehensively researched, well-written and fascinating account of the worst disaster in American Naval history, the sinking of the warship “Indianapolis” on the eve of the end of WWII.

It has been a very long time since I have had such a deep emotional reaction to a book, in the way that I did to this one.

Clearly, the authors have done an incredible job with their research, and this shows in the telling of this story, one I was completely unaware of (in my defence, I am Australian).

I thought it would be one heck of a story, reading about the survival of these men after the torpedoing of their ship, but what I didn't expect was the affect on me of the details about the court-martial of the Captain of the Indianapolis, Captain McVay, and the efforts of Hunter Scott and the survivors to clear his name. I also found the details of the Japanese side of things fascinating, it has to be said, and after reading this book I did some more research of my own.

This book had it all: heroism, cowardice, great pain and jubilation. It was a rollercoaster of emotion in so many ways, and it was all real. The thought that so many men lost their lives during this tragedy was a sobering one, especially the ones that lost their lives when rescue was so close.

The story of the Indy and her crew will stay with me for a long time, I think.

This was a very long book but worth the read, trust me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster.

The author did an excellent job doing research for this book. What a fascinating read- the learn all about the sinking of the US ship. How did I not hear about this in school....including when I majored in history! Thank you for the advanced copy.

Thoroughly enjoyed Indianapolis. As a naval officer, I was impressed with how well the authors captured the language and lifestyle of the Navy. The story of the USS Indianapolis is one many people know, but this book is truly the definitive telling of the events that happened to the ship and its crew. If you are a military history buff, you will absolutely want to read this book. It is definitely worth your time.

Indianapolis was well-researched with so much detail. The book was full of facts new to me, and I was especially interested in the court-martial. What a story!

One of the most amazing and compelling true stories in existence. This truly is the worst sea disaster in our history. Totally captivating and sorrowful. Incredible read and thought provoking

How do you review a book like this? Where do you even begin? I originally received a free copy of this book from NetGalley, but knew within just a few pages of this beautifully written non-fiction account of the USS Indianapolis's history that I HAD to own a finished copy. I was unable to finish my ARC before the publication date, but the week it was published, I bought my hard copy. Let me say that the physical book itself is just as gorgeous as the prose within.

Lynn Vincent and Sara Vladic have put together a well-written, unputdownable account of the USS Indianapolis, her last voyage, the sinking of ship, the incredible, harrowing experiences of the survivors and the unthinkable moments of those who lost their lives, as well as the court-martial of Indy's captain, and his eventual exoneration. This is a book that will make you sob hysterically, copious amounts of tears that will come so hard and fast you won't be able to see the page in front of you. It will make you gasp in horror, shake with rage and indignation, and give you immense joy and comfort.

Embarrassingly, I knew NOTHING of the USS Indianapolis before I picked up this book on NetGalley. I am heartily ashamed of the gap in my education. I am beyond grateful to NetGalley and to the authors and publisher of this book for providing such a complete, compelling account. Whether you know a lot about US Naval History or you know nothing, please, I beg you...get your hands on a copy of this book. The saga of the USS Indianapolis and her crew is one that deserves to be told, honored, and remembered.

I was incredibly impressed with the attention to detail and the wonderful narrative that just drew me in immediately from the first page. It is rather intensive, and there are several points of view that made it a little hard to follow at first, however after a few chapters it was easier. This is true history, not fiction, but written in novel-type prose. Excellent job authors! Thanks for the opportunity to learn about the Indianapolis!

In 1945, the USS Indianapolis was on a covert mission to carry nuclear materials to the Pacific where they would be used against the Japanese. On July 30, the Japanese torpedoed and sank the ship. Hundreds escaped the fiery death trap, only to be stranded for days in the shark infested ocean. Only 316 members …

For over fifty years, the surviving crew members worked to exonerate their captain who was court marshalled for the disaster. Many questions were raised about the mission of the trip – which took years to have de-classified – and why the captain did not take evasive action to avoid the attack.
Despite having a US History degree and spending years studying the end of WWII, it was not until I moved to Indianapolis that I heard about this nightmare, again, the worst maritime disaster in US History. No high school or college text even alluded to the attack and subsequent sinking of the Indianapolis. It is at that point that anyone should start asking themselves “why?”

Lynn Vincent, an award winning author, and Sara Vladic, a historian for National Geographic, set out to discover the answers to that very question. What they found were lies, cover-ups, the destruction of the captain’s reputation and, ultimately, the crew – as well as the Japanese captain who sank the ship – who worked tirelessly to exonerate the US Captain of any wrong-doing.
The research found within this book is astounding. These authors overcame challenging circumstances to discover the truth about the USS Indianapolis, the captain and its crew. The result is an engaging, well-written account of the crew and their work in finally restoring the captain’s good name.

While the book is non-fiction, it truly doesn’t read that way. It is so fascinating that it comes across as a spy novel or thriller. Even if you are not fond of reading non-fiction, this is a book that is well worth your time. It finally answers the question of what happened on that fateful night and why this story took so long to see the light! It is long past time for this story to be told and for Americans to learn of the USS Indianapolis.

Thank you to #Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to learn about these men and their story!

This book was hard for me to read at times. Not because it was boring but because the author was able to make the reader feel like they were there. The hardest part to read was how the Navy treated Captain Charles B. McVay III was unbelievably cruel. I don't understand why the Navy did that. He was a remarkably strong man but he was beaten by the anger he encountered not just from the Navy but from the families of the victims.

The four days from the sinking of the Indianapolis till the time they were rescued must have been help to the survivors. I was aware of the shark attacks but the worst had to have been the thirst and the excruciating death from drinking salt water.

The survivors that came to the decommissioning of the Indianapolis were real heroes for the way they worked to help exonerate Captain McVay. It's sad that Captain McVay was not exonerated during his lifetime but at least his military record was corrected.

I highly recommend this book. This is one of the few books I would read again.

Thank you Lynn Vincent and Netgally for this wonderful ebook ARC copy in exchange for this honest review.

The incredible amount of research on this latest book to come out about the loss of USS Indianapolis (CA-35), builds on and eclipses those previous. Navy veteran Lynn Vincent and filmmaker Sara Vladic do an amazing job re-telling the by now well-known tragic story in Indianapolis: The True Story of the Worst Sea Disaster in U.S. Naval History and the Fifty-Year Fight to Exonerate an Innocent Man. 

Having conducted interviews with over 100 of Indy's survivors going back nearly 20 years, the authors mine some new, gruesome revelations, told by men now in their nineties. These stories only add to the horror most of us can only imagine. The details do not titillate, but rather add to the unfortunate fate these men found themselves in. The reader is able to share in the anger at the huge loss of life, especially after learning word of a distress call was sent out, but those who received it did nothing to expedite a rescue. The potential to save even more lives was therefore wasted.

Delving into the history of the storied cruisers exploits before and after the sinking, the story then shifts to the aftermath of the loss, focusing on the Navy's court-martial and trial of Indy's commanding officer, Captain Charles B. McVay III. The reader then learns about the decades-long efforts of her survivors to see their captain exonerated. By the 1990s, they enlisted the help of U.S. Navy Captain William Toti, skipper of the submarine USS Indianapolis (SSN-697). A young school kid researching a project on Indianapolis' sinking, then helps lead the charge to have McVay's named cleared. The results of all of their hard work and success on taking on Big Navy makes for an exhilarating read. The Navy should have known that the survivors of a tragedy on the scale of Indianapolis would never give up.

Having personally conducted research into USS Indianapolis for work, concerning the attempts by a non-governmental group to have a military medal awarded to Father Thomas Conway for his actions in the water before he passed on the third day, I have read several accounts from men serving aboard the rescue ships. These ships searched a wide area to pick up any survivors still possibly in the ocean. I thought the authors may pass over these first-hand eyewitness accounts, as the sailors discovering these bodies related nightmarish stories of dead men being eaten by sharks, or bodies falling apart while being brought onboard. Again, I feel the authors did a great job in not being exploitative or unnecessarily ghoulish, while also not sparing the reader the awful truths associated with the reality of the men's situation.

As disheartening as it is to read the tragic tale of the crew of Indianapolis and their exploits in the sea after her sinking, it is almost as equally appalling to learn of the Navy's brass towing the same party line for five decades. Indianapolis is a touching and lasting tribute to all the men, living and dead, who suffered so much in the service of their country during the Second World War.