SHIP OF GOLD IN THE DEEP BLUE SEA

In 1857 the S.S. Central America, carrying gold, ex-prospectors and a couple of honeymooners, was lost in a storm off the coast of the Carolinas. Salvage operations seemed unthinkable so far out to sea until the 1980's, when two young men from the Midwest began inventing new tools for an old dream. Davidson's enthusiastic, boyish tone seems ill at ease with the opening narrative and even the descriptions of the disaster. His expostulatory style works better with the dramatic tensions that take place during the recovery efforts, and he delivers all the excitement of the operations as its participants run into more and more difficulties with competitors, the law, backers and weather conditions. S.B.S. ©AudioFile, Portland, Maine [Published: OCT/NOV 98]