{"schema_version":"bf_book_companion_v1","release_id":"20260414T161624Z","book":{"amazon_purchase_url":"https://www.amazon.com/dp/1324094648?tag=bookfrontier-20","asin":"1324094648","authors":["John U. Bacon"],"book_id":"9781324094647","canonical_url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9781324094647","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9781324094647.jpg?v=20260414T161624Z%3A2026-04-14T16%3A16%3A24Z","description":"NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER \"A work of spectral beauty destined to be a classic. Readers of Sebastian Junger’s The Perfect Storm , Erik Larsen’s Dead Wake , and Nathaniel Philbrick’s In the Heart of the Sea will love this deeply reported tale.\" —Hampton Sides, New York Times best-selling author of The Wide Wide Sea and In the Kingdom of Ice “The Untold Story of the Edmund Fitzgerald’ has been told and retold by authors and bards. But never has it been told better than by Mr. Bacon in this colorful and compelling book.... Dead men tell no tales, but their loved ones do. Mr. Bacon tracked them down and listened.” —John J. Miller, Wall Street Journal On the fiftieth anniversary of the Edmund Fitzgerald’s sinking, the bestselling author of The Great Halifax Explosion tells the definitive story of the “Mighty Fitz.” For three decades following World War II, the Great Lakes overtook Europe as the epicenter of global economic strength. The region was the beating heart of the world economy, possessing all the power and prestige Silicon Valley does today. And no ship represented the apex of the American Century better than the 729-foot-long Edmund Fitzgerald —the biggest, best, and most profitable ship on the Lakes. But on November 10, 1975, as the “storm of the century” threw 100 mile-per-hour winds and 50-foot waves on Lake Superior, the Mighty Fitz found itself at the worst possible place, at the worst possible time. When she sank, she took all 29 men onboard down with her, leaving the tragedy shrouded in mystery for a half century. In The Gales of November , award-winning journalist John U. Bacon presents the definitive account of the disaster, drawing on more than 100 interviews with the families, friends, and former crewmates of those lost. Bacon explores the vital role Great Lakes shipping played in America’s economic boom, the uncommon lives the sailors led, the sinking’s most likely causes, and the heartbreaking aftermath for those left behind—\"the wives, the sons, and the daughters,” as Gordon Lightfoot sang in his unforgettable ballad. Focused on those directly affected by the tragedy, The Gales of November is both an emotional tribute to the lives lost and a propulsive, page-turning narrative history of America’s most-mourned maritime disaster.","forthcoming":false,"isbn13":"9781324094647","publication_date":"20251007","publisher":"WW Norton","slug":"the-gales-of-november","subtitle":"The Untold Story of the Edmund Fitzgerald","title":"The Gales of November"},"discovery":{"categories":{"all":[{"bisac_code":"TRA006010","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Maritime History","score":0.7937,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"HIS036090","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Midwest History","score":0.7645,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"HIS027150","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Naval History","score":0.7639,"source":"bisac_hint_model"}],"hint":[{"bisac_code":"TRA006010","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Maritime History","score":0.7937,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"HIS036090","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Midwest History","score":0.7645,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"HIS027150","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Naval History","score":0.7639,"source":"bisac_hint_model"}],"publisher":[{"bisac_code":"HIS036060","confidence_band":"high","label":"20th-Century America","score":1,"source":"onix_publisher_code"},{"bisac_code":"HIS036090","confidence_band":"high","label":"Midwest History","score":1,"source":"onix_publisher_code"},{"bisac_code":"HIS057000","confidence_band":"high","label":"Maritime History & Piracy","score":1,"source":"onix_publisher_code"}]},"genres":[{"label":"Maritime History","score":0.7937,"slug":"maritime-history"},{"label":"Midwest History","score":0.7645,"slug":"midwest-history"},{"label":"Naval History","score":0.7639,"slug":"naval-history"}],"reader_fit":["Good for readers who enjoy Maritime History","Good for readers interested in american","Good for fans of History"],"related_lists":[{"intro":"","slug":"shelf-his027150-naval","title":"Naval Books","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/lists/shelf-his027150-naval"}],"series":null,"similar_books":[{"authors":["Lincoln Paine"],"book_id":"9781101970355","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9781101970355.jpg?v=20260414T161624Z%3A2026-04-14T16%3A16%3A24Z","score":17.1449,"title":"The Sea and Civilization","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9781101970355"},{"authors":["Eric Jay Dolin","Paul Brion","HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books"],"book_id":"9781631496226","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9781631496226.jpg?v=20260414T161624Z%3A2026-04-14T16%3A16%3A24Z","score":16.3798,"title":"Black Flags, Blue Waters","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9781631496226"},{"authors":["Ian W. Toll","P. J. Ochlan","Recorded Books"],"book_id":"9780393353204","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9780393353204.jpg?v=20260414T161624Z%3A2026-04-14T16%3A16%3A24Z","score":15.1802,"title":"The Conquering Tide","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9780393353204"},{"authors":["Max Hastings"],"book_id":"9781324117575","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9781324117575.jpg?v=20260414T161624Z%3A2026-04-14T16%3A16%3A24Z","score":15.1043,"title":"Sword Beach","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9781324117575"},{"authors":["Lynn Vincent","Sara Vladic"],"book_id":"9781501135941","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9781501135941.jpg?v=20260414T161624Z%3A2026-04-14T16%3A16%3A24Z","score":14.8126,"title":"Indianapolis","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9781501135941"},{"authors":["Rachel Slade"],"book_id":"9780062699879","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9780062699879.jpg?v=20260414T161624Z%3A2026-04-14T16%3A16%3A24Z","score":14.8097,"title":"Into the Raging Sea","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9780062699879"},{"authors":["Nathaniel Philbrick"],"book_id":"9780141001821","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9780141001821.jpg?v=20260414T161624Z%3A2026-04-14T16%3A16%3A24Z","score":14.7617,"title":"In the Heart of the Sea","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9780141001821"},{"authors":["David Gibbins"],"book_id":"9781250397195","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9781250397195.jpg?v=20260414T161624Z%3A2026-04-14T16%3A16%3A24Z","score":14.7411,"title":"A History of the World in Twelve Shipwrecks","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9781250397195"}],"topics":[{"evidence_refs":["keyword:american history"],"label":"History","score":0.9238,"slug":"history"},{"evidence_refs":["keyword:historical books"],"label":"Historical","score":0.3003,"slug":"historical"},{"evidence_refs":["keyword:world history"],"label":"World","score":0.2022,"slug":"world"}],"what_you_get":["Themes: History, Historical.","Reading lane: Maritime History and Midwest History.","Publisher: WW Norton."]},"llm_signals":null,"source_presence":{"amazon":true,"book_detail":true,"goodreads":true,"llm_signals":false,"similarity_seed":true},"stats":{"amazon_ratings_count":0,"goodreads_ratings_count":9057,"goodreads_reviews_count":1523,"quality_score":0.9548}}