The Great Rescue: American Heroes, an Iconic Ship, and the Race to Save Europe in Wwi

Product Description
[Read by Stephen Hoye]

Published in commemoration of the centennial of America's entry into World War I, the story of the 
USS Leviathan, the legendary liner turned warship that ferried US soldiers to Europe -- a unique war history that offers a fresh, compelling look at this epic time

When war broke out in Europe in August 1914, the new German luxury ocean liner 
SS Vaterland was interned in New York Harbor, where it remained docked for nearly three years -- until the United States officially entered the fight to turn the tide of the war. Seized by authorities for the US Navy once war was declared in April 1917, the liner was renamed the USS Leviathan by President Woodrow Wilson and converted into an armed troop carrier that transported thousands of American Expeditionary Forces to the battlefields of France.

For German u-boats hunting Allied ships in the treacherous waters of the Atlantic, no target was as prized as the 
Leviathan, carrying more than 10,000 doughboys per crossing. But the Germans were not the only deadly force threatening the ship and its passengers. In 1918, a devastating influenza pandemic -- the Spanish flu -- spread throughout the globe, predominantly striking healthy young adults, including soldiers.

Peter Hernon tells the ship's story across multiple voyages and through the experiences of a diverse cast of participants, including the ship's captain, Henry Bryan; General John Pershing, commander of the American Expeditionary Force; Congressman Royal Johnson, who voted against the war but enlisted once the resolution passed; Freddie Stowers, a young black South Carolinian whose heroism was ignored because of his race; Irvin Cobb, a star war reporter for the 
Saturday Evening Post; and Elizabeth Weaver, an army nurse who saw the war's horrors firsthand; as well as a host of famous supporting characters, including a young Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

Thoroughly researched, dramatic, and fast-paced, 
The Great Rescue is a unique look at the Great War and the diverse lives it touched.


About the Author
Peter Hernon is the author of several books, including the
New York Times bestseller
Under the Influence: The Unauthorized Story of the Anheuser-Busch Dynasty (with Terry Ganey). He has been an editor at the
Chicago Tribune and before that was an investigative reporter for the
St. Louis Post-Dispatch.