University of Minnesota Press, $25.95
Great Lakes historian Michael Schumacher recreates the circumstances surrounding the terrible storm that broke the mighty Daniel J. Morrell freighter in half on Lake Huron. On November 29, 1966, 25 of the 29 man crew sank to their deaths. The surviving four clung to a freezing raft, where all but Dennis Hale perished. Torn in Two depicts the 38 hours Hale spent on the life raft in freezing waters, the fight to save Hale and find the others, the Coast Guard hearings into what happened, and the discovery of the wreckage.—Breana Roy