Indianapolis Audiobook By Lynn Vincent, Sara Vladic cover art

Indianapolis

Preview
Try for $0.00
Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Indianapolis

By: Lynn Vincent, Sara Vladic
Narrated by: John Bedford Lloyd
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $22.49

Buy for $22.49

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use, License, and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

About this listen

New York Times Best Seller

“Gripping…this yarn has it all.” (USA Today)

“A wonderful book.” (Christian Science Monitor)

“Enthralling.” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review)

“A must-read.” (Booklist, starred review)

A human drama unlike any other - the riveting and definitive full story of the worst sea disaster in United States naval history.

Just after midnight on July 30, 1945, the USS Indianapolis is sailing alone in the Philippine Sea when she is sunk by two Japanese torpedoes. For the next five nights and four days, almost 300 miles from the nearest land, nearly 900 men battle injuries, sharks, dehydration, insanity, and eventually each other. Only 316 will survive.

For the first time Lynn Vincent and Sara Vladic tell the complete story of the ship, her crew, and their final mission to save one of their own in “a wonderful book…that features grievous mistakes, extraordinary courage, unimaginable horror, and a cover-up…as complete an account of this tragic tale as we are likely to have” (The Christian Science Monitor). It begins in 1932, when Indianapolis is christened and continues through World War II, when the ship embarks on her final world-changing mission: delivering the core of the atomic bomb to the Pacific for the strike on Hiroshima.

“Simply outstanding…Indianapolis is a must-read…a tour de force of true human drama” (Booklist, starred review) that goes beyond the men’s rescue to chronicle the survivors’ 50-year fight for justice on behalf of their skipper, Captain Charles McVay III, who is wrongly court-martialed for the sinking.

“Enthralling.... A gripping study of the greatest sea disaster in the history of the US Navy and its aftermath” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review), Indianapolis stands as both groundbreaking naval history and spellbinding narrative - and brings the ship and her heroic crew back to full, vivid, unforgettable life.

“Vincent and Vladic have delivered an account that stands out through its crisp writing and superb research…Indianapolis is sure to hold its own for a long time”. (USA Today)

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2018 Lynn Vincent, Sara Vladic (P)2018 Simon & Schuster
Armed Forces Maritime History & Piracy Military Naval Forces Wars & Conflicts World World War II War Heartfelt Emotionally Gripping Transportation United States
adbl_web_global_use_to_activate_T1_webcro805_stickypopup
Comprehensive Historical Account • Meticulous Research • Excellent Narration • Gripping Survival Story • Emotional Delivery
Highly rated for:
All stars
Most relevant  
I found this story fascinating and very honest. I was appalled at the Navy for trying to cover up the mistakes that occurred with this disaster. To lay the blame on one Captain seemed crazy to me and the higher ups were attempting to protect themselves from the errors that were committed under their watch. Shame on them!!
This was a great book to listen to and hear the stories of the survivors of such a tragedy. I hope that something was learned from this book that all men and women are accountable no matter what their rank.
To the authors - thanks for your research and persevering to the end. I hope this becomes a movie.

BCF

The Story of Finding Truth

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

This book may be of interest to listeners of the Inside Jaws podcast. It is a comprehensive yet very accessible history of the last voyage and sinking of the USS Indianapolis and the aftermath of that event.

Inside Indianapolis

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

I had read previous books about the Indianapolis tragedy but I learned a lot more from this. Even if you have read one of the earlier books, I highly recommend this.

Excellent addition to the previous books about the Indianapolis.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Sad details emerge from Navy brass incompetence. Words never will capture the real disaster storylines.

Now I know what the survivors endured great narrat

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Vincent and Vladic spent countless hours diving into the minutiae of the story to uncover the story behind the story. The heart and the passion in which it is told makes it life changing

Amazing detail

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Great long book. Several long listens. I enjoyed this like several other books that are historical fiction. Shaara books are great too.

Great book. Love history books.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

While the story of the Indianapolis is known, the depth of the tragedy was something I was ignorant to. My grandfather, a WWII vet, had mentioned it casually as he was in the Navy, but never anything else beyond. I picked this book to listen to for the month of May, when choosing books to match holidays- so it was an aloof choice.
I was pleasantly surprised.
I am not a history buff, and I do not generally read books on history beyond historical fiction. This book maintained my interest through most of the book. At first it was a little difficult getting into the book, going through all the key characters/victims stories, while not reading their names with my own eyes (and my ears don't remember as well as my eyes remember), but then all at once it clicked into place and I was able to follow along. I thought the book's division of introducing the people involved and the ship in the first part, the event for the second part, and the after events before Congress and a middle school boy trying to get the captain's charges dropped was a great organization of the story. The reading sounded like it was being told from a veteran's perspective, yet full of facts and descriptions rather than opinions. The writing was done so well, I could visualize the strange chaos well and not have to re-listen to figure out what was happening when the ship started to sink (sometimes when action scenes are being told, I have to listen again to see if I heard what I thought I visualized).
this book is great and it's my first 5star rating all the way around. It ticked all the boxes for me. I'm just sorry that the story is true. The authors did the story justice by telling it so well. My heart goes out to those poor kids lost at sea.

Unexpectedly Fascinating

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

This is an amazing story of an immensely tragic event in US history. I highly recommend it to everyone high school age and above.

An Incredible True Story

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

A moving, well written narrative about competence and bravery as well as incompetence at the highest level. Congratulations to the authors and the many involved in this memorable book.

Excellent factual account of an awful event.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

It's obvious a lot of research was done on this book. Great job by the narrator also.

Great book

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

See more reviews