"Soul of the Hurricane" is a remarkable debut from a singular storyteller.

David Isay, Peabody Award–winning creator of StoryCorps

Nelson Simon didn''t want to sign up as a last-minute crew member to transport a Norwegian schooner from Brooklyn to Bermuda. But one thing led to another, and there he was. He told himself that it would be a sort of pleasure cruise: a week in the Gulf Stream with a gourmet chef on board, some down time on a tropical island, then a quick flight home.

What did it matter that he had practically no sailing experience? The eight other crew members had plenty—they just needed an extra pair of hands. What could possibly go wrong?

It was October 1991, and the ship was Anne Kristine, the oldest continuously sailing vessel in the world. What awaited them was Hurricane Grace, the southern end of what came to be known as the "Perfect Storm."

Soul of the Hurricane tells an unlikely tale that begins with an unexpected invitation and ends in the dead of night somewhere far from home, with a Coast Guard helicopter above and a dark, angry sea below.