The Terrible Hours, by Peter Maas, gets rave reviews from diverse sources, and the subject matter – the rescue of 33 crewmen from the sunken submarine USS Squalus in 1939 – is certainly riveting enough; unfortunately I couldn’t work up the degree of enthusiasm shown by other reviewers. The main problem is this is formula journalistic history; we get the life stories of the submarine crew, with vultures of doom circling over some of them; villains get identified (faceless USN bureaucrats who thwarted development of submarine rescue equipment); and heroes get a panegyric (here the hero is Charles “Swede” Momsen, who proposed the rescue chamber used to extract submarine crewmen from 240 feet down).

The human interest stories are compelling, if predictable (it’s a given that the seaman scheduled to be married won’t make it, for example). The drawback to The Terrible Hours is the complete lack of technical graphics. The book has no illustrations – no map showing the location of the sinking, no diagram of the Squalus or the diving bell, no plan of how the crucial main induction valve worked, not even casual photographs of the rescue and salvage operation – even though all these are in the public domain. It’s pretty obvious what caused the Squalus to sink – the main induction valve, 31 inches in diameter, either was open at submergence or was opened after the submarine reached dive depth. All indications were that the valve was closed when Squalus dived – numerous witnesses in the control room testified that the “Christmas tree” of red and green lights showing the status of hull openings was all green, and the backup test – releasing compressed air into the boat to verify that it would hold pressure – also passed successfully. The “Christmas tree” remained green until power went out – obviously it was the first thing everybody in the control room looked at when the engine room reported flooding. The Navy never did decide what had happened, although the unspoken suggestion was that the valve operator had opened the main induction after the boat was submerged (this was Momsen’s conclusion); however, that would have required a simultaneous failure of the “Christmas tree” warning light system. In any event, the Navy put a shield between the main induction valve handle and other valves in the vicinity, and added a distinctive surface texture to the main induction valve handle on the salvaged Squalus and other boats in her class.

Don’t’ get me wrong; not a bad book for character studies and the life of “Swede” Momsen; just not for technical details of submarines. Ironically, in my pre-teen years I was fascinated by submarines and dimly recall a children’s book about submarine rescues; that book included a diagram of the rescue chamber and drawings of the Squalus. ( )

One of those books you read and wonder how the story isn't better known around the world. An incredible rescue. Writing was okay. ( )

Not only a heroic rescue story, but one that pays tribute to an extraordinary man, Charles Bowers 'Swede' Momsen, through which his knowledge and experience, along with his determination and extreme perseverance was instrumental in pioneering submarine rescue for the US Navy. The significance of this rescue attempt was history in the making and would forever change the forward momentum of research and development into submarine rescue. ( )

interesting, but not gripping, description of submarine rescue and the background of the development of deep-sea diving apparati, but lacked technical detail

The Terrible Hours by Peter Maas (1999)
This book gives the true accounts of the first submarine rescue. When the USS Squalus accidentally plunges to 270 ft. in the North Atlantic, carrying 33 trapped souls with it, the Navy must either make every effort to free the sailors from a watery grave, or turn a cold cheek on the fallen. There may never have been any Squalus survivors if it weren’t for the Navy’s secret trump card, inventor Charles “Swede” Momsen.
This book was so gripping, I cut through it in only three days. With all the accuracy, heroism, and irony that only true history can dictate, Peter Maas recounts the frustrated career of Navy diver Charles Momsen, the tragic track record of prior submarine losses, the fateful events of the Squalus, and the latter’s challenging salvage. After reading this book, I now regard Momsen in the ranks of naval innovators such as Robert Fulton, John Erickson, John Holland, and Jacques Cousteau.
VERDICT: 8 (of 10)

(written February 2002) ( )