Washington Post Book Reviews
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Saturday March 26, 2011
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33 MEN: Inside the Miraculous Survival and Dramatic Rescue of the Chilean Miners
Jonathan Franklin
Putnam
ISBN 978-0399157776
307 pages
$25.95
Reviewed by James M. Tabor
On Thursday, August 5, 2010, Chile's San Jose copper mine collapsed, trapping 33 men underground for 69 days. Given that CNN's Anderson Cooper and more than 2,000 other journalists reported from the disaster scene for weeks, can anything new be said?
Yes, thanks to journalist Jonathan Franklin, who settled with his family in Chile 17 years ago "because nothing ever happens there" and wound up covering Latin American trouble spots for several newspapers. Arriving at San Jose on August 24, two days after contact was established with the miners, he finagled a coveted "Rescue Team" credential by convincing the mine's insurance company that their salutary rescue effort deserved worldwide recognition. Thus while police lines held the rest of the media at bay, Franklin rubbed shoulders with the rescue's key players, including Chilean president Sebastian Pinera, mining minister Laurence Golborne, master driller Jeff Hart and lead psychologist Alberto Iturra.
The miners faced Poe-quality horror during their first 17 days underground: possible premature burial followed by slow, agonizing starvation. Death seemed first likely and then inevitable; as de facto leader Mario Sepulveda said: "I waited for death and was tranquil. I knew that any moment the lights would go out and it would be a dignified death. I prepared my helmet, my things, rolled up my belt and arranged my boots. I wanted to die a miner."
Franklin, who covered the disaster for The Washington Post as a special correspondent, understood the importance of those early days.
Moreover, unlike other journalists, he had unlimited telephone and video access to the miners so he could interview them while they were still underground. He recreates the stink and squalor and despair as news accounts could not. Their diet, he reports, consisted of one teaspoonful of tuna fish and one-half cup of milk or juice every three days. At least one man preferred to drink his own urine rather than the available polluted water. Others ate moldy orange peels and drank rotten milk.
Alternative sources of food existed, of course. The men were acutely aware that, in 1972, Uruguayan rugby players earned lasting infamy by eating their dead teammates after a plane crash stranded them high in the Andes. Some miners admitted to Franklin that they had sized up their fellows, including young Claudio Yanez, even before anyone died. "For days, his companions had been hinting that it was time ... to eat the skinny newcomer. At times, Yanez felt they were joking, but never enough to scrape away the meaty slab of truth."
Starvation wasn't the only threat. Franklin discloses that the collapse was not a single event but continued week after week, culminating in a dangerous cave-in on the first day of evacuation. The government tried to squelch reports of these recurring collapses, but no one could hide them from the miners, who constantly cringed at "the crack of rocks crashing down, the blast of falling rock and the creaking of an entire mountain." While the outside world remained ignorant, the trapped men knew exactly what was happening, and their awareness made an unimaginable situation worse.
Once rescuers made contact on August 22, the miners' situation improved dramatically. Starving before, now they had catered meals, television, ice cream, video games, beer and wine, even girlie mags and, reportedly, both prescription and recreational drugs. They even had their own therapists. But Franklin's revelations about Alberto Iturra, the local psychologist appointed team leader, are shocking. Charged with overseeing the miners' mental health, Iturra nearly drove them to destruction instead, according to Franklin. "If the men hate me, it will keep them out of trouble," he said, and he gave them plenty of reason to do so. Iturra censored their mail, limited family phone calls to 60 seconds, dictated what news and movies they could watch.
Formal protests filed by other psychologists did nothing. Finally the miners threatened a hunger strike and demanded Iturra's arrest.
Authorities replaced the controversial doctor, and not a minute too soon. Some miners were seriously depressed, and one was diagnosed schizophrenic. More than a few were hallucinating, telling Franklin that they "saw shadows, figures, and beings that would later melt away. They called these apparitions mineros chicos, or 'little miners.'" None were completely stable, and Iturra's actions could easily have cost lives by inciting conflict or suicide. The miners fell victim to neither, a tribute to their extraordinary fortitude and faith.
The men's ordeal did not end with their escape. Upon reaching the surface, each of them was whisked off to the hospital in nearby Copiapo. Three days later, it was as if they had exchanged one prison for another. "Inside the hospital, the miners were confused. They had never considered themselves physically ill or mentally weak, and freedom had replaced depression with jubilation. With the exception of a few specific dental problems, damaged eardrums and sprained muscles, they were ready to leave. The doctors refused."
Those doctors relented only after the men and their families made veiled threats. Even then, claiming concern about his mental health, the doctors would not discharge Sepulveda, whose stellar leadership underground for all 69 days did much to ensure the men's unity and survival. Their concerns were misplaced; continuing confinement was the real problem. Only when a local physician warned, "Get him out of there or it will be a major (expletive) because I will knock out a couple of cops and get sent to jail," was Sepulveda finally allowed to leave.
A disaster book's success depends on multiple factors. Speedy publication and new information are two musts. "33 Men" is both first out of the gate on this event and rich with revelations. Serendipity is important, too -- being in the right place at the right time -- but even that is not enough. Twenty-nine people survived the 1996 disaster on Mt. Everest, but it took a Jon Krakauer to write "Into Thin Air." A couple of thousand journalists were in the right place at the right time in Chile in the summer of 2010. "33 Men" is proof that Franklin was the right man among them to write the book.
James M. Tabor's most recent book is "Blind Descent: The Quest to Discover the Deepest Place on Earth." His novel "The Deep Zone" will be published next year.
Copyright 2011 Washington Post Writers Group
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PICTURE BOOKS
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Reviewed by Kristi Jemtegaard
"THE SECRET RIVER"
By Marjorie Kinnan. Rawlings. Illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon Atheneum. $19.99, ages 4-8
The Dillons' lush illustrations burnish this new edition of a 1956 Newbery Honor title with an elegant rustic glow. Add to that a generous trim size, handsome page design and thick, creamy paper, and you've gone a long way toward revitalizing a text that seems a bit long and leisurely for the format. Determined young Calpurnia, worried when her father declares, "Hard times have come to the forest," sets out on a quest with her faithful dog, Buggy-horse, to find a secret river where the fish are plentiful. In true fairy-tale fashion, she seeks advice from a wise woman, catches almost more fish than she can carry home, gives some away to those she meets on the return journey, and succeeds in turning hard times back into "soft times."
Full-page images surrounded by expansive borders evoke the old-fashioned plates found in classics from an earlier era, a formal style that is relieved by the tiny, scattered vignettes and snapshot-sized scenes decorating almost every page. Careful eyes will delight in spotting mysterious details embedded in this dreamy tale of danger and reward.
"WHERE'S WALRUS?"
By Stephen Savage. Scholastic. $16.99, ages 3-5
This sophisticated send-up of another well-known seek-and-find series is for kids who want their books -- even wordless ones - to include a soupcon of story. Walrus is a sly creature, and when we first meet him, he's winking at the audience. The camera rolls back to reveal him incarcerated in a torpid zoo -- but not for long. Escaping easily, he leads the lackadaisical zookeeper on a merry chase, donning a chic red hat to mug with the mannequins in a store window; holding up a hose in a line of firemen; even easing behind an easel alongside the artists in the park to paint a portrait of -- who else? -- the zookeeper himself.
But when he wins a medal in a diving competition, the keeper realizes that it's acclaim as much as freedom that our finny friend seeks, and the final scene is identical to the opening one with the addition of a diving board -- and a host of admiring onlookers. Clean lines, blocks of color and carefully patterned layouts mean that Walrus -- though apparently invisible to the clueless keeper -- is always hiding in plain sight, a perfect gambit that allows young readers to feel one-up on the adult who's supposedly in charge. What more could any child want?
"RED WAGON"
By Renata Liwska. Philomel. $16.99, ages 3-5
Rendered in the softest possible pencil strokes and the palest pastel tints, this tender story of a feisty little fox and her animal friends -- a hedgehog, rabbit, bear, raccoon and mouse -- will surely satisfy the diminutive demographic that longs to leave home, but only if there's a nap at the end of the adventure. Lucy's new red wagon bespeaks independence, but Mama thinks it means a shopping list and a trip to the market. Never mind. Lucy and her sidekicks manage to work in a pirate trip on the high seas, an overland trek in a Conestoga wagon, a whirl through a circus ring, a chug up the hill in an old-fashioned train and a rocket ship ride into space. Good cozy fun for one and all that ends where it began in that most versatile of vehicles, with Lucy sound asleep.
"LOST & FOUND"
By Shaun Tan. Arthur A. Levine. $21.99, ages 10-adult
Shaun Tan's recent Oscar win for the short animated film "The Lost Thing" will surely pique interest in this omnibus edition, which includes that story and two earlier ones by the master of all things curious. In "The Red Tree," an unnamed young girl drags herself through a life filled with darkness. Unsettling images abound: A giant fish shares the street with oblivious pedestrians; a sealed bottle imprisoning a tiny aquanaut washes up on an empty beach. But all is not lost, for "suddenly there it is right in front of you/ bright and vivid/ quietly waiting." The "it" is a fiery tree, blooming at bedside as unexplained and mysterious as all that went before it. In "The Lost Thing" a large, red, prickly headed, bulbous creature walks through town on pointy gray tentacles. Enter the Federal Department of Odds and Ends (motto: "sweepus underum carpetae"), which turns out to be exactly the wrong solution. The final story, "The Rabbits," may be a parable about the loss of indigenous cultures or just a tale about wildlife run amok. As the narrator of "The Lost Thing" remarks, "Don't ask me what the moral is." In Tan's oblique world, the story takes place in that interactive space between the reader and the page.
"WON TON: A Cat Tale Told in Haiku"
By Lee Wardlaw. Illustrated by Eugene Yelchin. Henry Holt. $16.99, ages 4-8
The fur-whorled endpapers of this loving but unsentimental ode to adoption almost invite petting. Won Ton, a smoke-gray cat with vivid blue eyes, is a resident of "The Shelter: Nice place they got here. Bed. Bowl. Blankie. Just like home! Or so I've been told." Throughout each successive chapter readers are treated to a cat's eye view of humans and their foibles: "The Choosing,"
"The Car Ride" ("Letmeoutletme/ outletmeoutletmeout./ Wait -- let me back in!"), "The Naming," "The New Place ("Deep, dark bed cave. Me?/ Hiding? I'm no scaredy-cat!/ I like dust bunnies!"), all the way through to "Home" ("Your tummy, soft as/ warm dough. I knead and knead, then/ bake it with a nap."). Eugene Yelchin's sinuous draftsmanship, playful perspectives and sunny palette provide just the right counterpoint to this tale of a cat with attitude to spare.
Kristi Jemtegaard is a library manager for Arlington County, Va.
Copyright 2011 Washington Post Writers Group
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POETRY
Karen Macpherson
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ISBN NA
NA pages
$NA
Reviewed by Karen MacPherson
Poetry comes naturally to kids, who revel in rhyme and rhythm, but too many adults are wary of poetry, worried about not catching all the nuances. That's too bad because verse can add literary zest to family reading time. To help parents feel more comfortable with poetry, here's a look at some great collections for various age groups:
BABIES, TODDLERS AND PRESCHOOLERS
Mother Goose is the bedrock for this age group. To adults, the rhymes may seem nonsensical, old-fashioned or even violent -- think what happens in "Rock-a-Bye Baby." But nursery rhymes provide an important way for the youngest readers to develop pre-reading skills, especially phonological awareness, as they learn to play with the sounds of words.
Iona Opie is a leading international expert on nursery rhymes, so parents will want to check out "My Very First Mother Goose"  (Candlewick, $22.99). Featuring colorful, humorous illustrations by Rosemary Wells, it's the perfect size for sharing, and it showcases more than 60 nursery rhymes collected by Opie over decades of work with her late husband, Peter Opie. The book, which presents the rhymes in four chapters, includes favorites like "Hey Diddle, Diddle" and "Humpty Dumpty," along with such unfamiliar verses as "If I had a Donkey." An index of first lines helps adults quickly locate their favorites. Opie and Wells have also collaborated on a second collection, "Here Comes Mother Goose" (Candlewick, $22.99).
For a different spin on the traditional rhymes, try "The Neighborhood Mother Goose" (Greenwillow, $17.99). Photographer Nina Crews uses children and scenes from her Brooklyn neighborhood to create an urban update on several dozen favorite nursery rhymes. And in May look for a companion volume, "The Neighborhood Sing-Along"  (Greenwillow, $17.99), in which Crews matches her photographs to the lyrics of beloved songs like "The Wheels on the Bus" and "London Bridge."
Two final suggestions for this age group: First, the classic "Read-Aloud Rhymes for the Very Young" (Knopf, $19.95), a collection of more than 200 poems chosen by Jack Prelutsky, with illustrations by "Arthur" creator Marc Brown. And, second, a newer volume, "Here's a Little Poem: A Very First Book of Poetry"  (Candlewick, $21.99), which contains more than 60 poems collected by Jane Yolen and Andrew Fusek Peters. The text is nicely complemented by Polly Dunbar's sprightly illustrations.
CHILDREN
As they grow older, kids enjoy exploring poetry in more depth, and "A Kick in the Head: An Everyday Guide to Poetic Forms"  (Candlewick; paperback $9.99) provides a perfect launching pad. Edited by Paul B. Janeczko and featuring illustrations by Caldecott medalist Chris Raschka, this slender volume explores and explains all kinds of poetry, from limericks to haiku to riddle poems. The duo also published an entertaining earlier volume titled "A Poke in the I: A Collection of Concrete Poems" (Candlewick; paperback, $7.99).
Joyce Sidman expertly melds poetry and science in her prize-winning books, such as "Dark Emperor & Other Poems of the Night"  (Houghton Mifflin, $16.99). This volume, with illustrations by Rick Allen, won a 2011 Newbery Honor. In her work, Sidman pairs pithy poems about creatures and natural wonders with clearly written informational sidebars. Her books also feature beautiful artwork; artist Beckie Prange won a Caldecott Honor for her illustrations in Sidman's "Song of the Water Boatman & Other Pond Poems" (Houghton Mifflin, $16).
For kids edging toward their teenage years, try "Hip Hop Speaks to Children" (Sourcebooks Jabberwocky, $19.99), which highlights poetry written by a wide variety of people, from Langston Hughes to Queen Latifah. Edited by poet Nikki Giovanni, this book and CD set celebrates what Giovanni succinctly describes as "poetry with a beat."
TEENS
For most teens, poetry is personal. Instead of reading poetry, they prefer to write it, and poems by other teens, like the ones collected in "Falling Hard"  (Candlewick; paperback, $6.99), can serve as inspiration. Edited by poet Betsy Franco, this book consists of 100 poems about love, all written by teens. In "Punch-drunk Love," for example, Ellie Moore writes: "With you I'm always speeding,/ zig-zagging 'cross double yellow lines,/ eyes closed in ecstasy." For teen readers, the emotions reflected in these poems will be instantly -- and intensely -- recognizable.
Karen MacPherson, who writes a weekly children's book review column for Scripps Howard News Service, is the children's & teen librarian at the Takoma Park Maryland Library.
Copyright 2011 Washington Post Writers Group
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