The Hunt for Red October (Jack Ryan) by Tom Clancy
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Book Reviews of The Hunt for Red October (Jack Ryan)
Book Review: I did this for an English class so shoot me.
Summary: 5 Stars
The Hunt for Red October is Tom Clancy's first novel to gain major national attention. Its popularity has grown to such that it has even been used as the basis of a major motion picture starring Sean Connery and Alec Baldwin. In addition there has also been sequels to the novel, involving the main character of Jack Ryan. What is it about this setup that seems so odd? Not many readers are excited by the technical gibberish that is so common in novels such as The Hunt for Red October. The confusion that usually associates itself with major modern science fiction novels deters many readers, but Clancy is able to make the reader not only understand, but feel comfortable with complexities that are present in the everyday lives of the characters in his novels.
Clancy demonstrates his tactic of reader comprehension by giving the reader a detailed and yet sketchy version of events. For instance, when the caterpillar drive on the Red October is first engaged, Clancy starts at the stem of the vessel and describes the system by following the path of the water. This simple yet effective method allows for the reader to imagine him or self being sucked through the pipes and moved through the labyrinth that makes up the Red October. Then in the next chapter the Americans learn about the caterpillar from Captain Skip Tyler, although the reader already is aware of that fact in a sort of dramatic irony.
In addition to the use of descriptive writing, Clancy also has many different situations in the novel, when a main character has to explain the facts of a problem in order to come to a workable solution. Ryan's meeting with the Joint Chiefs of Staff is crucial in the novel in order to convince the American Government to go after the Red October, but it also serves as an opportunity to inform the reader on the history of Ramius Markus, the Russian commander. Further briefings of this sort allow Ryan access to the British carrier task force and the Los Angeles class submarine U.S.S. Dallas.
Finally there is the fact that Clancy did not use fanciful designs of his own making in the telling of his story. Clancy used what was available and technologically feasible to the navies and the world of the day. He did not write a James Bond type novel with little gadgets that look like postage stamps, but really act as liquid explosive or anything like that. Even the revolutionary design of the Red October was entirely feasible during that time period. The Red October is a member of the Typhoon class of Soviet submarine, which during the 1980s threatened to wipe out the American way of life. Reader of The Hunt for Red October should realize that Tom Clancy is not only a fiction writer; he has written many books on the real life nature of warfare, Submarine and Aircraft Carrier coming immediately to mind.
So while maybe not the most exciting of a subject, Tom Clancy does a very superb job of making the reader feel as if he is right in the conning tower of a nuclear submarine, or the cockpit of a Harrier VTOL aircraft. Clancy's attempt to make all of his readers feel at home with warfare is a quality that will keep not only military historians and enthusiasts but, those of the civilian world coming back for more.
Book Review: The First is Always the Best
Summary: 5 Stars
Review: Tom Clancy's The Hunt for Red OctoberIt is December 1986 and Captain First Rank Marko Ramius, son of a dominant Communist Party Secretary and the Soviet Union's most confident and acclaimed submarine commander, is setting out to sea with his country's newest and greatest military venture. She contains an advanced new quiet propulsion system that allows her to almost perfectly escape both radar and sonar detection, a terrifying first strike vehicle. She is also carrying one-hundred and eighty two nuclear warheads and twenty-six missile delivery systems. Her name is Krazny Oktyabr (Red October) .Once at sea, Ramius contravenes his orders and disappears into the North Atlantic after setting a course for the Eastern Seaboard of the United States. Both Soviet and American leaders are petrified, but they insist on snowballing each other with false information. Fears of either a surprise attack on the US or a possible defection abound. Both navies go on full alert, eventually resulting in a massive confrontation in the North Atlantic. And, just for kicks, Clancy tosses the British into the mix to really confuse things!
As Clancy's first, and quite possibly best, work, I feel that this is a very firmly woven story all together. The characters, even those like the C.I.A. Deputy Director (Operations), Robert Ritter who do not appear for very long are exceedingly well developed and presented. The details in the book are amazing, from the encrypted messages to the details and intricacies of the interior of the submarines and the extensive knowledge of military protocol and procedure presented. It definitely gives an "eye opening" experience to the reader.
I have heard many times that this book, like so many of Clancy's other novels, is too technical, and people who do not have previous knowledge of these topics have a hard time "following." Granted, Clancy has the peculiar flair for confusing readers with the technical military lingo that has become his benchmark. Though, the plot is easy enough to follow that even if one is stuck on a word or phrase or even an entire conversation (case in point: encrypted messages) the surrounding events of the story are actually easy to read through. There are even times when it is possible to infer a words meaning based upon who is speaking , where they are and at what point in the story you are.
All told I was very impressed with this novel. I did, however have a problem with the "denouement." With all of the unanswered questions that Clancy had developed through out the story, I was taken aback by the second climax that the author tossed in to the mix, and to be quite honest began to lose interest. I was almost to the point where I wanted to flip through to the end of the book just to see what happens to Ramius. I realize that he had to get the defected and crippled ship back to port somehow, but the reader is only interested in Ramius, they want to see what happens to defectors. I don't have any real suggestions for fixing it, so I guess I'm just complaining. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and was very impressed with it.
5 out of 5 Stars
Book Review: The best story is the under story
Summary: 5 Stars
I haven't been able to confirm all of the following, but this is what I have heard: Tom Clancy was an insurance salesman, and a frustrated US Navy sailor. He had attempted to enlist in the Navy and was turned down. However, his passion for the Navy never wained, and he continued to research US Navy topics on his own.
His main resource was the Naval Institute Press, which publishes technical articles and books about the US Navy. In any case, Tom Clancy wrote "Red Storm Rising" based on his research in US Navy periodicals and books, and on his experience playing the game 'Harpoon', a board game published by the Navy Institute Press for the purpose of training US submarine officers. He wrote the novel at his kitchen table.
After writing 'Red Storm Rising', and having no experience in publishing books, Clancy didn't know what to do with his manuscript, so he sent it to the editors at the Naval Institute Press. These people, naval officers, after reading Clancy's manuscript, knew two things: 1) the story was fantastic, and 2) it was filled with classified material that could only have been obtained by a spy.
The Naval Investigative Service (NIS) was dispatched to Clancy's house to interrogate him and find out his sources for the classified material in his book. As I have heard, he was able to point to an unclassified source for every single objection that the Navy had about his manuscript. After his clearance by the NIS, the Navy Institute Press did not know what to do with Clancy's manuscript. The Navy Institute Press does not publish fiction.
What I heard was that the Navy Institute Press decided to publish a 5000 book edition of his novel for their own members, the first fiction book in the Navy Institute Press history, and then they handed the manuscript off to a real fiction publisher who could market the novel correctly. I am a proud owner of one of those Naval Institute Press editions of 'Red Storm Rising', and I can confidently say that it is one of the best novels ever written in English. In one masterstroke, Clancy invented an entirely new genre of English literature--the technothriller. There are few if any English authors alive today who can be said to have invented an entirely new genre of literature, and there are virtually none who can be said to have written such a wonderful and significant work. This novel will live for hundreds of years in English literature as a classic. It is that good.
Book Review: Impossible to put down ! Intense cat and mouse game !
Summary: 5 Stars
When this book came out, the Kremlin ordered 500 copies! The idea of a Soviet sub commander deciding to defect to the United States with his submarine was their deepest, darkest fear! The U.S. Navy and FBI also were very unhappy - they wanted to know who had been talking to Clancy - they couldn't believe that someone could find out all this by doing research. They were convinced that several people with Top Secret clearances had been talking to Clancy.
The storyline is this: Marko Ramius is the Russian Navy's most experienced and highly decorated submarine commander, who has become disillusioned with the Communist Party. After seeing the plans for the newest Russian submarine - "The Red October". A sub that is almost completely silent - a submarine with one purpose - "to start a nuclear war". Ramius decides to steal the submarine with the help of the officers of his crew after he is assigned the command of The Red October. Before leaving port on it's madien run, Marius mails a letter to the Secretary of the Navy telling him of his intent to steal the sub. The letter arrives 2 days after the Red October sails from port. The Soviets in a panic, send their entire fleet in the region after it trying to find and sink the Red October. The Soviets approach the United States telling them that Marius sent a letter to the Secratary of the Navy explaining his intent to launch a nuclear attack against the United States, and ask for help in hunting the sub down and destroying it.
Jack Ryan, currently a CIA analyst, who has written several books on naval warfare strategy, and who has met Marius at a diplomatic party, is asked to consult the President of the United States and the Chiefs of Staff at an emergency meeting. Jack mentions the possibility that the sub may be trying to defect. No one at the meeting believes it, but the President gives Jack permission to join up with an American sub on patrol and to attemp to make contact with the Red October to find out what Marius intentions are.
This book really opened my eyes up to what our capabilities are with submarines - I had no idea how advanced they are. This story is very fast paced and intense. It really makes you wonder how the U.S. would respond under these circumstances.
Great read!
Book Review: Red October
Summary: 5 Stars
I believe that Tom Clancy's book, The Hunt for Red October, is a wonderful book about a defecting Soviet submarine. The book tells the tale of the Red Navy's desperate attempt to find and sink the Red October and the U.S. Navy's quest to see the Red October arrive safely in an American Naval base. The book is superbly written and well researched, occasionally there are times when Clancy goes into ten page long descriptions of military hardware that can get a little bearing but are essential to the detail of the book, which is one of its best qualities. One of The Hunt for Red October's most appealing aspects is its realism and believability, the descriptions of military hardware are accurate enough to have come from the Department of Defense, and the plot is convincing enough to make you wonder it the book really was fiction. One of the greatest things about The Hunt for Red October, and all other Tom Clancy books, is their attention to detail. The detail gives you such a picture perfect image of the surroundings that you could almost smell the smoke from one of the character's cigarettes. Another strength of this book is that the characters are very believable, the bad guys are not the evil super-villains that are in most books, they have reasons for doing what they do unlike most villains who are just totally irrational. Pretty much the only problem with this book is that it can get a little tedious with page after page of descriptions. While the accuracy of this detail is astounding it can still get a bit annoying after reading how some reactor or propulsion system works. While Clancy may go a bit overboard with some of these details, without them many events in this book would not make any sense.This book is by far one of the best books that I have ever read. It is a magnificent combination of detail, spycraft and action. I would recommend that anyone who is remotely interested in politics, the military or the navy read this book. I would not, however, recommend this book to a person who has to have some type of tremendous explosion or gunfight every five minutes, because they would get bogged down in all of the detail of this book. I believe though that the majority of people though would enjoy this book.