Quick Take
- Narration: Todd Curless delivers a clear, documentary-style performance that respects the factual gravity of the material without becoming dry.
- Themes: Maritime disaster, remembrance, the limits of investigation
- Mood: Tense and elegiac, like a long vigil at the water’s edge
- Verdict: A tightly focused hour with real radio transmissions and forensic detail, a strong gateway into Great Lakes maritime history, especially for readers who prefer nonfiction with narrative drive.
The Edmund Fitzgerald sank on November 10, 1975, in one of the most violent storms Lake Superior had ever produced. Twenty-nine crew members went down with her. Gordon Lightfoot’s song came out the following year and gave the disaster a kind of folk permanence that most maritime tragedies never achieve. But I had never actually sat with the documented timeline of that last voyage until I found this audiobook, just over an hour of Andrew Kantar’s careful reconstruction, read by Todd Curless on a gray November afternoon. That timing was accidental. It felt like the right kind of accident.
29 Missing is published by Michigan State University Press and categorized primarily as young adult nonfiction, though reviewers consistently note that it works for all ages. Kantar tells the story from the ship’s christening in 1958 through the 1995 expedition that recovered the ship’s bell, which served as a memorial to the lost crew. The audiobook’s core, though, is the hour-by-hour account of what happened on November 10, including dialogue reconstructed from actual radio transmissions between the Fitzgerald and the Arthur Anderson, the freighter following behind her.
Our Take on 29 Missing
The inclusion of real radio transmissions is what elevates this above a standard summary account. Captain Ernest McSorley’s reported words, including his famous observation about a sea he had never seen anything like in his life, arrive with a weight that no paraphrase could replicate. Kantar uses government investigative reports as his foundation, and that sourcing gives the narrative an evidentiary rigor that pairs well with the inherent drama of the subject. He also handles the unresolved nature of the disaster honestly: the leading theories about how and why the Fitzgerald sank remain debated by maritime experts, and the audiobook presents those competing explanations rather than forcing a single conclusion. That intellectual honesty is appropriate for a book designed to introduce young readers to historical inquiry, not just historical events.
Why Listen to 29 Missing
At one hour and fifteen minutes, this is one of the shortest audiobooks I regularly recommend, and I recommend it precisely because of that brevity. Kantar has done the work of distillation without sacrificing substance. Todd Curless narrates with a measured, documentary restraint that suits the material, this is not a sensationalized account, and the narration reflects that. The decision to anchor the story in the 1995 bell recovery adds an emotional frame that the raw disaster chronology alone could not provide. That bell retrieval transformed a wreck site into a monument, and Kantar understands its symbolic function. One reviewer described the experience as feeling as if they were there, which is the highest compliment available to documentary-style nonfiction narration.
What to Watch For in 29 Missing
This is a short, focused work, and listeners seeking extended biographical portraits of the crew members will not find them here. The format prioritizes events over personalities, which is appropriate to Kantar’s documentary approach but may leave listeners wanting more human texture. For those interested in the individual stories of the 29 men who died, the audiobook functions better as an entry point than a complete account, Kantar’s other Great Lakes books, including Deadly Voyage and Black November, offer comparable depth on other disasters and could follow naturally. The audio quality from University Press Audiobooks is clean and consistent throughout the short runtime.
Who Should Listen to 29 Missing
Essential for anyone with a connection to the Great Lakes region, anyone curious about the Edmund Fitzgerald beyond the Lightfoot song, and any young reader being introduced to narrative nonfiction. The one-hour format makes it viable as a classroom listen or as a family audiobook on a short drive. Adult listeners who appreciate tightly constructed maritime nonfiction, think Erik Larson’s approach, scaled down, will find this satisfying. Those looking for a longer, more immersive account of the disaster may want to supplement with Kantar’s other work or seek out documentary footage of the 1995 bell recovery expedition.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does 29 Missing include actual audio from the radio transmissions between the Edmund Fitzgerald and the Arthur Anderson?
The audiobook incorporates dialogue drawn from actual radio transmission records, but these are read by narrator Todd Curless as part of the reconstructed account rather than presented as archival audio recordings. The sourcing is from government investigative reports.
Is this audiobook long enough to be worth purchasing for a single listen?
At one hour and fifteen minutes, it is one of the shorter audiobooks available on this subject. Whether it justifies its price depends on your interest level, listeners deeply curious about the Edmund Fitzgerald may want it alongside longer works. It is currently available at no cost on Audible with membership.
Does 29 Missing take a position on what actually caused the Fitzgerald to sink?
No. Andrew Kantar presents the leading theories debated by maritime experts without declaring a definitive answer, which reflects the genuine unresolved nature of the investigation. This honest treatment of uncertainty is part of what makes it a good introduction to historical inquiry for young readers.
How does Andrew Kantar’s account compare to Gordon Lightfoot’s famous song about the Edmund Fitzgerald?
The song compresses and romanticizes events in the way folk music does. Kantar’s account is forensic and documentary, working from government reports and radio records. They serve different purposes and actually complement each other well, the song creates emotional entry; the book supplies factual grounding.
