PT-109
JFK's Night of Destiny
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Narrated by:
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David Drummond
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By:
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William Doyle
About this listen
A thrilling, moment-by-moment account of one of the most famous events of World War II - the sinking of PT-109 and John F. Kennedy's heroic actions that saved his crew - and a fascinating examination of how that extraordinary episode shaped the future president's life.
At 2:00 a.m. on the moonless night of August 2, 1943, US Patrol Torpedo boat PT-109, captained by Lieutenant John F. Kennedy, was struck by the Japanese destroyer Amagiri near the Solomon Islands. The American ship was cleaved in two and rocked by an explosion; two crew members died instantly; the remaining 11 survivors clung to the sinking wreckage, adrift in enemy waters. Despite injuring his back, Lt. Kennedy - towing a severely burned sailor by the strap of a life jacket - led his battered and exhausted men on a harrowing three-and-a-half mile swim to a tiny, uninhabited island. Desperate for food and water, Kennedy set off on a solo reconnaissance mission, scouting two larger islands two and a half miles away. Discovering water and coconuts, he returned for his men. For six days they lived off coconuts and kept out of sight of passing Japanese patrols until they were rescued.
Drawing on new information from the American rescuers and recently released archives in both Japan and the US, PT-109 recounts this event in breathtaking detail and explores the incident's remarkable aftermath on JFK's life and legend. William Doyle reveals that while the incident transformed JFK into a war hero and helped propel him to the US Senate and the White House, the wounds he suffered during that harrowing week continued to haunt him, physically and psychologically.
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The dramatic account of one of America's most celebrated - and controversial - military campaigns: the Doolittle Raid. In December 1941, as American forces tallied the dead at Pearl Harbor, President Franklin Roosevelt gathered with his senior military counselors to plan an ambitious counterstrike against the heart of the Japanese Empire: Tokyo.
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Vengence is Mine, Thus Sayeth Doolittle
- By Jonathan Love on 06-13-16
By: James M. Scott
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Neptune's Inferno
- The U.S. Navy at Guadalcanal
- By: James D. Hornfischer
- Narrated by: Robertson Dean
- Length: 18 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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With The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors and Ship of Ghosts, James D. Hornfischer created essential and enduring narratives about America’s World War II Navy, works of unique immediacy distinguished by rich portraits of ordinary men in extremis and exclusive new information. Now he does the same for the deadliest, most pivotal naval campaign of the Pacific war: Guadalcanal. Neptune’s Inferno is at once the most epic and the most intimate account ever written of the contest for control of the seaways of the Solomon Islands.
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The WWII Pacific Theater Explodes In My Lazy Chair
- By Rum Runner on 03-01-11
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Ship of Ghosts
- The Story of the USS Houston, FDR's Legendary Lost Cruiser, and the Epic Saga of of Her Survivors
- By: James D. Hornfischer
- Narrated by: Mark Cashman
- Length: 17 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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Renowned as FDR's favorite warship, the cruiser USS Houston was a prize target trapped in the far Pacific after Pearl Harbor. Without hope of reinforcement, her crew faced a superior Japanese force ruthlessly committed to total conquest. But the men of the Houston fought back with dignity, ingenuity, sabotage, willpower, and the undying faith that their country would prevail.
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interesting read
- By Laurie on 05-11-07
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The First Heroes
- The Extraordinary Story of the Doolittle Raid
- By: Craig Nelson
- Narrated by: Raymond Todd
- Length: 17 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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Immediately after Japan's December 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor, President Roosevelt sought to restore the honor of the United States with a dramatic act of vengeance: a retaliatory bombing raid on Tokyo itself. In those early days of World War II, America was ill-prepared for any sort of warfare. But FDR was not to be dissuaded, and at his bidding a squadron of scarcely trained army fliers, led by the famous daredevil Jimmy Doolittle, set forth on what everyone regarded as a suicide mission.
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Heroic Attempt
- By William on 07-20-04
By: Craig Nelson
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Killing Jesus
- A History
- By: Bill O'Reilly, Martin Dugard
- Narrated by: Bill O'Reilly
- Length: 6 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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Millions of people have thrilled to best-selling authors Bill O'Reilly and historian Martin Dugard's Killing Kennedy and Killing Lincoln, works of nonfiction that have changed the way we view history. Now the anchor of The O'Reilly Factor details the events leading up to the murder of the most influential man in history: Jesus of Nazareth. Nearly 2,000 years after this beloved and controversial young revolutionary was brutally killed by Roman soldiers, more than 2.2 billion human beings attempt to follow his teachings and believe he is God.
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The Jesus story in context
- By Kimberly on 10-01-13
By: Bill O'Reilly, and others
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Fatal Voyage
- The Sinking of the USS Indianapolis
- By: Dan Kurzman
- Narrated by: Mark Bramhall
- Length: 11 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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Shortly after midnight on July 30, 1945, the navy cruiser USS Indianapolis was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine in the Philippine Sea. The ship had just left the island of Tinian, delivering components of the atomic bomb destined for Hiroshima. As the torpedoes hit, the Indianapolis erupted into a fiery coffin, sinking in less than 15 minutes and leaving 900 crewmen fighting for life in shark-infested waters.
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garbage
- By james ruzich on 06-14-19
By: Dan Kurzman
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So Close to Home
- A True Story of an American Family’s Fight for Survival During World War II
- By: Michael J. Tougias, Alison O’Leary
- Narrated by: Elijah Alexander
- Length: 7 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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On May 19, 1942, a U-boat in the Gulf of Mexico stalked its prey 50 miles away from New Orleans. Captained by 29-year-old Iron Cross recipient Erich Würdemann, the submarine set its sights on the freighter Heredia with 59 souls onboard. Most of the crew were merchant seamen, but there were also a handful of civilians, including the Downs family, consisting of the parents, Ray Sr. and Ina; along with their two children, eight-year-old Ray Jr., nicknamed "Sonny", and 11-year-old Lucille.
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Couldn't Stop Listening
- By Reader7347 on 03-08-18
By: Michael J. Tougias, and others
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Pacific Crucible: War at Sea in the Pacific, 1941-1942
- By: Ian W. Toll
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 22 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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On the first Sunday in December 1941, an armada of Japanese warplanes appeared suddenly over Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, and devastated the U.S. Pacific Fleet. Six months later, in a sea fight north of the tiny atoll of Midway, four Japanese aircraft carriers were sent into the abyss. Pacific Crucible tells the epic tale of these first searing months of the Pacific war, when the U.S. Navy shook off the worst defeat in American military history and seized the strategic initiative.
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Astonishingly good.
- By Mike From Mesa on 09-01-12
By: Ian W. Toll
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At All Costs
- By: Sam Moses
- Narrated by: Michael Prichard
- Length: 11 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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In 1942, the island of Malta was the most heavily bombed place on earth. Its submarine and air attacks on Axis supply convoys were all that kept Rommel from marching across North Africa. But Malta was out of fuel. Operation Pedestal was Malta's last hope, a giant convoy with more that 50 warships escorting 13 freighters and one life-or-death oil tanker, the SS Ohio. It was bombed, torpedoed, and abandoned, but two American Merchant Mariners boarded the ship and repaired the guns.
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A spellbinding story
- By James F. Geary on 04-08-07
By: Sam Moses
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In Harm's Way
- The Sinking of the U.S.S. Indianapolis and the Extraordinary Story of Its Survivors
- By: Doug Stanton
- Narrated by: Mark Boyett
- Length: 8 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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On July 30, 1945, the USS Indianapolis was torpedoed in the South Pacific by a Japanese submarine. An estimated 300 men were killed upon impact; close to 900 sailors were cast into the Pacific Ocean, where they remained undetected by the navy for nearly four days and nights. Battered by a savage sea, they struggled to stay alive, fighting off sharks, hypothermia, and dementia. By the time rescue arrived, all but 317 men had died. The captain's subsequent court-martial left many questions unanswered
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Captivating
- By Clarence Sparks on 10-22-16
By: Doug Stanton
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The Rising Sun
- The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire, 1936-1945
- By: John Toland
- Narrated by: Tom Weiner
- Length: 41 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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This Pulitzer Prize-winning history of World War II chronicles the dramatic rise and fall of the Japanese empire, from the invasion of Manchuria and China to the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Told from the Japanese perspective, The Rising Sun is, in the author’s words, "a factual saga of people caught up in the flood of the most overwhelming war of mankind, told as it happened - muddled, ennobling, disgraceful, frustrating, full of paradox."
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A political as well as military history
- By Mike From Mesa on 07-30-15
By: John Toland
What listeners say about PT-109
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- M. Kearn
- 11-07-22
highly recommend
loved it, from the moment I started the book I couldn't put it down!
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- preferredshares
- 07-08-18
I had known the basics but this is even a bette story than I thought
An excellent history and performance — well researched. I recommend this book for its portrayal of the conditions in ww2 South Pacific, of the Kennedy family in general and JFK in particular and the interwoven story and impact on us history ... a good companion read is PT-105.
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- Roy Taylor
- 06-20-21
Great.
Loved it. Great book about Kennedy. and the PT 109 Must read for those who like war History.
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- Tyler
- 12-31-20
Brings the story full circle
Takes the story of the PT 109 and shows from beginning to end the impact it had on her commanding officer. A must own for any JFW or WW2 history reader.
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- Glen the 1n only Glen Stinnett
- 12-26-20
JFK’s GREAT ADVENTURE
If you haven’t gotten PT-109 do so soon. It’s a great chapter in his very intriguing life. Thanks, Mr Wm Doyle. Bye for now Glen ;-) : -)
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- Blake
- 09-07-16
Superb Told Story
Superbly told story of John F. Kennedy in WWII and the loss of his PT boat in the Blackett Strait in 1943 in the story that became the foundation of his future political career. This is one of those books that you can’t wait to get back to at the end of each day.
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- Jeremy Rapp
- 06-02-22
Awesome Story
Great story and experiences of the time period. John F. Kennedy was kind of one of the original Navy Seals.
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- Carol lee
- 03-02-23
So enlightening, great overviews
The detail of PT boats, the difficulties endured by lack of training, the long term relationships between foes were beneficial in understanding the war in the Solomon Islands.
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- GMJ
- 12-04-19
Historic diplomatic details included.
I appreciate the historical slant this book took in the later chapters mainly concerning Robert Francis Kennedy's anf John F. Kennedy's dealings with post war Japan. The personal relationships and later meetings were both telling and very touching. Life is short, appreciate your circle.
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- Wayne Cline
- 10-05-19
Iinspired history
I enjoyed the book very much. The original story of the PT 109 & JFK inspired me to join the Navy in 1965.
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