Breathe
A Master Diver's Survival Tales
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Narrated by:
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Daniel Grimes
About this listen
Rick Bettua should be dead. Many times over. The retired US Navy master diver suffered a devastating attack by a 12-foot bull shark that shredded his thigh from his knee to his hip. By the time he reached the shore 90 minutes later, he’d bled out, he had no pulse, and wasn’t breathing. Yet, emergency medical workers didn’t give up. His miraculous recovery in late 2020 was just the most recent of his numerous underwater life-and-death experiences.
Breathe is Rick Bettua’s survival/adventure story. It’s also a story about perseverance against great odds, and his impressive skills to solve problems—and even save lives—under extreme conditions. It begins and ends with the shark attack and his recovery that defied the odds.
In between are 15 other stories in which Bettua narrowly escaped death during his remarkable 32-year Navy career. In one instance, in a search for a lost piece of a ship’s propeller, he was buried alive 70 feet below the surface and under 20 feet of mud when a tunnel collapsed. When he finally worked his way free after two hours, he then completed the task, so no other divers would be endangered.
The first-person narration takes the listener through Rick Bettua’s evolution as a diver from a kid spear-fishing to one of the elite Navy master divers. He never wasted time to achieve a goal. He started spearfishing when he was just 10 years old, then entered the Navy when he was 17.
Because he loved diving and it was also his hobby, he moved ahead rapidly in his career. He became a master diver only one year after becoming a chief petty officer. He achieved the highest rank possible for an enlisted sailor, master chief, at age 33, one of the youngest ever to attain that rank.
But Bettua’s promotions never kept him out of the water—or out of perilous circumstances. His skills, his fearlessness, and his perseverance helped him survive time and time again throughout his career and beyond it.
©2022 Rick Bettua (P)2023 David N. WilsonListeners also enjoyed...
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- Unabridged
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Marsh Vincent, Mick McCarty, and Tommy Lewis were inseparable friends during their naval academy years, each man in love with the beautiful, unattainable Glory Hawthorne. Only Tommy wins her heart and marries Glory after graduation. Different skills set the three men on separate paths in the Navy, but they are all forever changed by the Pearl Harbor attack on December 7, 1941.
Glory, now Tommy’s widow, is a tough Navy nurse still grieving her loss while trying to save lives at the Pearl Harbor naval hospital.
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Best of PT Deutermann
- By MM on 11-27-11
By: P. T. Deutermann
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Where Divers Dare
- The Hunt for the Last U-Boat
- By: Randall Peffer
- Narrated by: James Patrick Cronin
- Length: 9 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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In the tradition of Shadow Divers, the story of the courageous men who dived on the last sunken U-Boat off the Eastern Seaboard. On April 16, 1944, the tanker SS Pan Pennsylvania was torpedoed and sunk by the U-550. In return the sub was sent to the bottom by three destroyer escorts that were guarding the convoy. For more than 60 years the location of the U-boat's wreck eluded divers. In 2012 a team found it.
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great story but at times a little too much...
- By Anthony Karis on 02-28-18
By: Randall Peffer
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Into the Raging Sea
- Thirty-Three Mariners, One Megastorm, and the Sinking of the El Faro
- By: Rachel Slade
- Narrated by: Erin Bennett
- Length: 11 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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On October 1, 2015, Hurricane Joaquin barreled into the Bermuda Triangle and swallowed the container ship El Faro whole, resulting in the worst American shipping disaster in 35 years. No one could fathom how a vessel equipped with satellite communications and a sophisticated navigation system could suddenly vanish - until now. Relying on hundreds of exclusive interviews with family members and maritime experts, as well as the words of the crew members themselves - whose conversations were captured by the ship’s data recorder - journalist Rachel Slade unravels the mystery.
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This Book is Tragic for More Than Just its Story
- By John A. Tucker on 10-23-19
By: Rachel Slade
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Destroyer Captain
- Lessons of a First Command
- By: James Stavridis
- Narrated by: Chaz Allen
- Length: 6 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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This memoir of James Stavridis' two years in command of the destroyer USS Barry (DDG-52) reveals the human side of what it is like to be in charge of a warship for the first time and in the midst of international crisis. From Haiti to the Balkans to the Arabian Gulf, the Barry was involved in operations throughout the world during his 1993-1995 tour. Drawing on daily journals he kept for the entire period, the author reveals the complex nature of those deployments in a 'real time' context and describes life on board the Barry and liberty ashore for sailors and officers alike.
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Great Navy book
- By Richard Giddeon on 03-04-15
By: James Stavridis
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Deep Descent
- Adventure and Death Diving the Andrea Doria
- By: Kevin F. McMurray
- Narrated by: P. J. Ochlan
- Length: 9 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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On a foggy July evening in 1956, the Italian cruise liner Andrea Doria, bound for New York, was struck broadside by another vessel. In eleven hours, she would sink nearly 250 feet to the murky Atlantic Ocean floor. Thanks to a daring rescue operation, only 51 of more than 1,700 people died in the tragedy. But the Andrea Doria is still taking lives. Considered the Mt. Everest of diving, the Andrea Doria is the ultimate deepwater wreck challenge.
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A must read for every deep diver
- By DocYinYang on 10-20-19
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The Warrior Elite
- The Forging of SEAL Class 228
- By: Dick Couch
- Narrated by: Arthur Morey
- Length: 12 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
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With a postscript describing SEAL efforts in Afghanistan, The Warrior Elite takes you into the toughest, longest, and most relentless military training in the world. What does it take to become a Navy SEAL? What makes talented, intelligent young men volunteer for physical punishment, cold water, and days without sleep?
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Riveting and Relevant
- By Steven on 03-01-12
By: Dick Couch
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Into the Deep
- A Memoir from the Man Who Found Titanic
- By: Robert D. Ballard, Christopher Drew
- Narrated by: Scott Brick
- Length: 9 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
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The legendary explorer of the Titanic shares inside stories of danger, suspense, and discovery - plus previously untold stories about his own dyslexia and how it has shaped his life.
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A Study of the Ego
- By Thomas on 06-08-21
By: Robert D. Ballard, and others
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Rescue Pilot
- Cheating the Sea
- By: Jerry Grayson
- Narrated by: David Thorpe
- Length: 7 hrs and 45 mins
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Jerry Grayson is an ordinary man who chose an extraordinary career. At age 17 he became the youngest helicopter pilot ever to serve in the Royal Navy. By age 25 he was the most decorated peacetime naval pilot in history.
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Great tales of adventure with fascinating facts about helicopters
- By david y muramatsu on 07-17-23
By: Jerry Grayson
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Swift Boats at War in Vietnam
- By: Guy Gugliotta, John Yeoman, Neva Sullaway
- Narrated by: David Colacci, Susan Ericksen
- Length: 11 hrs and 20 mins
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Developed specifically for the Vietnam War, Swift Boats were versatile craft "big enough to outrun anything they couldn't outfight" but too small to handle even a moderate ocean chop, too loud to sneak up on anyone, and too flimsy to withstand the mildest of rocket attacks. This made more difficult an already tough mission: navigating coastal waters for ships and sampans smuggling contraband to the Viet Cong, disrupting enemy supply lines on the rivers and canals of the Mekong Delta, and inserting SEALs behind enemy lines.
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Ride with the Swift Boats
- By Robert Lion on 05-01-18
By: Guy Gugliotta, and others
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Descent into Darkness
- Pearl Harbor, 1941, A Navy Diver's Memoir
- By: Edward C. Raymer
- Narrated by: Peter Johnson
- Length: 7 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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On December 7, 1941, as the great battleships Arizona, Oklahoma, and Utah lie paralyzed and burning in the aftermath of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. A crack team of U.S. Navy salvage divers headed by Edward C. Raymer are hurriedly flown to Oahu from the mainland. Their two-part orders are direct and straightforward: (1) rescue as many trapped sailors and Marines as possible, and (2) resurrect what remains of America's once mighty pacific fleet. Descent Into Darkness tells their story.
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A Massive Disappointment
- By Matthew on 10-14-15
By: Edward C. Raymer
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Shadow Divers
- The True Adventure of Two Americans Who Risked Everything to Solve One of the Last Mysteries of World War II
- By: Robert Kurson
- Narrated by: Michael Prichard
- Length: 15 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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In 1991, acting on a tip from a local fisherman, two scuba divers discovered a sunken German U-boat, complete with its crew of 60 men, not too far off the New Jersey coast. The divers, realizing the momentousness of their discovery, began probing the mystery. Over the next six years, they became expert and well-traveled researchers, taught themselves German, hunted for clues in Germany, and constructed theories corrective of the history books, all in an effort to identify this sunken U-boat and its crew.
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GRIPPING!
- By Douglas on 07-03-04
By: Robert Kurson
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Red November
- Inside the Secret U.S.-Soviet Submarine War
- By: W. Craig Reed
- Narrated by: Tom Weiner
- Length: 12 hrs and 38 mins
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Red November is filled with hair-raising, behind-the-scenes stories that take you deep beneath the surface and into the action of the Cold War. Few know how close the world has come to annihilation better than the warriors who served America during the tense, 45-year struggle known as the Cold War. Yet for decades, their work has remained shrouded in secrecy.
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Blind Man's Bluff meets Cuban Missile Crisis
- By SeaDuck on 08-10-10
By: W. Craig Reed
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The Finest Hours (Young Readers Edition)
- The True Story of a Heroic Sea Rescue (The True Rescue Series, Book 1)
- By: Michael J. Tougias, Casey Sherman
- Narrated by: Alex Boyles
- Length: 3 hrs and 42 mins
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On the night of February 18, 1952, during one of the worst winter storms that New England has ever seen, two oil tankers just off the shore of Cape Cod were torn in half by the force of the storm. This middle-grade adaptation of an adult nonfiction book tells the story of the shipwreck and a harrowing Coast Guard rescue when four men in a tiny lifeboat overcame insurmountable odds and saved more than thirty stranded sailors.
By: Michael J. Tougias, and others
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What listeners say about Breathe
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Otter
- 06-13-23
Go Navy
I served in the U.S. Navy, so I am familiar with shipboard life. The stories rendered here are excellent. The narration was very good, with a few mispronunciations - bosun, Commandant.
Really enjoyed this audio version. Well done!
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1 person found this helpful
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- Christine Hicks
- 10-01-24
Awesome first person narrative
Great story, great storytelling. My only criticism is that someone should have caught the mispronunciation of Commandant of the Marine Corps.
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- Michelle
- 03-18-24
Fantastic adventures and very well written!
Excellent read or listen and highly recommended for any avid non-fiction adventure reader. Full of knowledge and information as well.
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- Christopher McCarty
- 08-25-24
Awesome stories!
This is better than any fictional work about diving. You will laugh, cringe and cry. Probably one of the bios I have ever read.
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- Cocotron
- 09-07-23
Wish I could give BREATHE a 10-star review
I read (and/or) listen to 5 books a month and BREATHE, Master Chief Bettua’s memoir is now in my all-time top 10 books ever. I would put it up there with titles such as: A Perfect Storm, Into Thin Air and Shadow Divers.
USN Master Diver Rick Bettua’s story is one of courage, determination, perseverance and the Navy’s Can-Do spirit. He epitomizes the concept of servant leadership, leading his Sailors and Marines from the front and (while never compromising the mission) looking out for their welfare.
Any Naval career spanning 30 years will have a plethora of “Sea Stories” However, Master Chief/Master Diver Bettua’s adventures have spanned the gamut of military diving and seafaring: From the job of ship’s husbandry, towing nuclear subs to combat diving with Force Marine Recon. And when the Master Chief goes on liberty or leave, he takes his speargun, mask and fins and free dives in search of huge pelagics. Rick Bettua’s love of the sea is inspiring.
Master Chief/ Master Diver Rick Bettua is an example of a “Life Well Lived”
Now for the reason why I gave the performance a one-star rating……
The audio mix/recording quality was good and narrator Daniel Grimes voice was OK. However the multitude of mispronounced words and military terms clearly shows that the producer of this audio book did NOT do his/her job. The mispronunciations were so bad and numerous that while listening in my car, that every time the narrator said; BOSS-SON I would scream BOW-SUN
I work in television and audio production. When approaching a project like this, in the pre-production, and pre-reading of the script, you go over any words, phrase or concepts that are not common knowledge and clarify them before you go into the studio. During the actual audio recording, the producer should have gone over correct pronunciation and in post-production have an SME (subject matter expert) take a listen for both production and content
While I counted over dozen mispronunciations, the most glaring where for: Bosun (Boatswain), Coxwain, Commandant and Forecastle. The narrator even mispronounced archipelago and Muay Thai.
This clearly shows an audio producer who was lazy and just pushing this project out the door. If I was the publisher, I would send this back to whomever produced the audio version of this book for a re-edit.
ALL THIS SAID. In spite of the audio production errors (which really bother me because that is my field). I highly recommend this book. In fact, I just ordered the print version for my Library.
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- Bodhi
- 07-24-24
Incredible experiences!!
This was a very enjoyable listen. What an incredible life and amazing person. I learned a lot from this book. Thank you for your amazing service to the United States and the world.
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- Alan M
- 08-23-23
Great career adventure
Great Navy career full of adventure.
The only problem I had was that the narrator could not pronounce "Commandant" and it jars you out of the narrative every time.
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- Ryan
- 06-22-24
A great story
Great story....the narrator is good, he just need to learn how to pronounce military ranks and positions properly.
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- Notfullysatisfied
- 01-18-24
The story was amazing! Narration needed work
I loved this story start to finish. From the perspective as a new diver it was informative. From a former service member perspective it was extremely relatable and I loved that. I only wish the narrator had done his homework with pronunciation. It was like nails on a chalkboard to hear him mispronounce Commandant (cah- men- dant) numerous times. Regardless, if you love adventure and military stories you'll love this book.
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- Anonymous User
- 08-10-23
Great book!
Fascinating to hear about the training and missions of a Master Diver as well as the sidebar fun of Freediving and enjoying the water.
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