Lost Subs

Submarines are sexy. Books such as Blind Man's Bluff and The Hunt for Red October and films such as Harrison Ford's K-19: The Widow-Maker have snagged our imaginations with their vivid portrayals of sub crews in peril. In Lost Subs, Spencer Dunmore takes that sense of peril one step further as he explores the stories of submarines that never came back. Chronicling the tragic history of submersibles from the Confederate Hunley to the Russian nuclear sub Kursk, Dunmore shows how advancing technologies have both protected and endangered underwater sailors. He tracks the afterlife of these vessels into the deepest blue, offering us disarming photographs of their algae-covered hulks. Contemporary and archival photographs, and illustrations by Titanic artist Ken Marschall give this coffee-table-size book the impressiveness and dignity that the subject deserves.