A Time To Die: The Untold Story of the Kursk Tragedy [Hardcover]

If pressed the only complaint I would have is that the author did not also cover the salvage operation. He does a great job with the events leading up to the sinking, the actual event and the rescue operation. He then skips the salvage to go to the results of the dry dock investigation of the salvaged boat. Maybe he is going to put out a second book on the salvage operation. Overall this was a great book that read very fast. If you are interested in this event then you will just tear through this book in no time.

The elements that led to the tragedy are compelling. The Russian navy was (and is) in utter disrepair after the breakup of the USSR, and rescue submersibles were among the first budget cuts made. Only several days after the 'Kursk' sank was help from England and Norway solicited, due largely to national pride (and fear of espionage). The entire debacle happened only a few months into the Putin administration and proved to be a watershed in Russian politics.

Moore tells the story from the viewpoint of the survivors, the would-be rescuers and the victim's families, with special emphasis on deteriorating Russian capabilities (and the preventable nature of the disaster) and the political forces that doomed the survivors to a sure death. Overall it is a superb telling of the salient points of the tragedy, its investigation, and aftermath. The photographs alone are worth the price of the book, particularly the pictures of 'Kursk' in drydock after the accident. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a general treatment of the technical side of the disaster and an in-depth covering of the political machinations involved.

Moore has done a tremendous job of getting to the facts considering the obstacles he must have faced. He describes the bleak life of those assigned to Russia subartic, super secret naval bases and the deterioration of the Russian Navy since the cold war in vivid and unflinching terms. He also humanizes his narrative by telling the vicitims personal stories. Moore then shows how Russian military paranoia contributed to the disaster, first by preventing its detection for twelve crucial hours, then by refusing to acknowledge that anything unusual had occurred and lastly by initially refusing help from British and Norwegian diving experts even when it became apparent that the breakdown in their own infastructure was hampering their rescue attempts.

The overall picture that emerges is that of a preventable tragedy compounded by multiple human errors. The only silver lining is that because Russia is now ostensibly a democracy, the military couldn't cover up its mistakes like it had in the past. The families of the victims were able to pressure the Russian leadership for answers, and ultimately receive monetary compensation for their loss. Also, for the first time, Russiaan military commanders were held accountable for loss of lives under their command. Moore might not be quite as deft a storyteller as he could be, but his unflinching account is complete and compelling.

Overall, an excellent work of book length journalism.