Deep down dark : the untold stories of 33 men buried in a Chilean mine, and the miracle that set them free

Retail When the San José mine collapsed outside of Copiapó, Chile, in August 2010, it trapped thirty-three miners beneath thousands of feet of rock for a record-breaking sixty-nine days. The entire world watched what transpired above-ground during the grueling and protracted rescue, but the saga of the miners' experiences below the Earth's surface—and the lives that led them there—has never been heard until now. For Deep Down Dark , the Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Héctor Tobar received exclusive access to the miners and their tales. These thirty-three men came to think of the mine, a cavern inflicting constant and thundering aural torment, as a kind of coffin, and as a church where they sought redemption through prayer. Even while still buried, they all agreed that if by some miracle any of them escaped alive, they would share their story only collectively. Héctor Tobar was the person they chose to hear, and now to tell, that story. The result is a masterwork or narrative journalism—a riveting, at times shocking, emotionally textured account of a singular human event. Deep Down Dark brings to haunting, tactile life the experience of being imprisoned inside a mountain of stone, the horror of being slowly consumed by hunger, and the spiritual and mystical elements that surrounded working in such a dangerous place. In its stirring final chapters, it captures the profound way in which the lives of everyone involved in the disaster were forever changed. Review “Héctor Tobar takes us so far down into the story and lives of the Chilean miners that his reconstruction of a workplace disaster becomes a riveting meditation on universal human themes. Deep Down Dark is an extraordinary piece of work.” —George Packer* * “In this masterful dissection of the 2010’s dramatic sixty-nine day ordeal by thirty-three trapped Chilean miners, Héctor Tobar weaves a suspenseful narrative that moves back and forth between the waking nightmares of the buried men, and those of their families on the earth’s surface. In Deep Down Dark , Héctor Tobar takes us deftly to the very cliff-edge of human survival.” —Jon Lee Anderson “It’s almost hard to believe that Héctor Tobar wasn’t himself one of the trapped Chilean miners, so vivid, immediate, terrifying, emotional, and convincing is his Homeric narration of this extraordinary incident. Deep Down Dark is a literary masterpiece of narrative journalism, surgical in its reconstruction, novelistic in its explorations of human personality and nuance. In a manner that feels spiritual, Tobar puts himself at the service of his story, and his fidelity to and unquenchable curiosity about every fact and detail generates unforgettable wonderment and awe.” —Francisco Goldman “A gripping narrative, taut to the point of explosion.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review) Praise for The Barbarian Nurseries “A book of extraordinary scope and extraordinary power.” —*Los Angeles Times “Timely and timeless . . . Tobar continually creates moments of uncommon magic.” — Elle Praise for Translation Nation “ Translation Nation . . . makes the tremendous diversity, dynamism and geographical breadth of our blossoming Hispanic population come alive. That’s a valuable contribution to understanding where our country is going in this new century, and I am grateful to Tobar for providing it.” — Washington Post Book World “Tobar captures . . . the current state of Latinos in the United States . . . with equal measures of insight and élan, giving the book an infectious optimism, an undeniable sense that the nature and scope of latinidad are not only expanding but becoming more inclusive as well . . . Compelling.” — The Los Angeles Times* About the Author Héctor Tobar is a Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist and a novelist. He is the author of The Barbarian Nurseries , Translation Nation , and The Tattooed Soldier . The son of Guatemalan immigrants, he is a native of Los Angeles, where he lives with his wife and three children.

When the San José mine collapsed outside of Copiapó, Chile, in August 2010, it trapped thirty-three miners beneath thousands of feet of rock for a record-breaking sixty-nine days. The entire world watched what transpired above-ground during the grueling and protracted rescue, but the saga of the miners' experiences below the Earth's surface—and the lives that led them there—has never been heard until now.

For Deep Down Dark, the Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Héctor Tobar received exclusive access to the miners and their tales. These thirty-three men came to think of the mine, a cavern inflicting constant and thundering aural torment, as a kind of coffin, and as a church where they sought redemption through prayer. Even while still buried, they all agreed that if by some miracle any of them escaped alive, they would share their story only collectively. Héctor Tobar was the person they chose to hear, and now to tell, that story.

The result is a masterwork or narrative journalism—a riveting, at times shocking, emotionally textured account of a singular human event. A New York Times bestseller, Deep Down Dark brings to haunting, tactile life the experience of being imprisoned inside a mountain of stone, the horror of being slowly consumed by hunger, and the spiritual and mystical elements that surrounded working in such a dangerous place. In its stirring final chapters, it captures the profound way in which the lives of everyone involved in the disaster were forever changed.

When the San Jos? mine collapsed outside of Copiap?, Chile, in August 2010, it trapped thirty-three miners beneath thousands of feet of rock for a record-breaking sixty-nine days. The entire world watched what transpired above-ground during the grueling and protracted rescue, but the saga of the miners' experiences below the Earth's surface?and the lives that led them there?has never been heard until now. For Deep Down Dark , the Pulitzer Prize?winning journalist H?ctor Tobar received exclusive access to the miners and their tales. These thirty-three men came to think of the mine, a cavern inflicting constant and thundering aural torment, as a kind of coffin, and as a church where they sought redemption through prayer. Even while still buried, they all agreed that if by some miracle any of them escaped alive, they would share their story only collectively. H?ctor Tobar was the person they chose to hear, and now to tell, that story. The result is a masterwork or narrative journalism?a riveting, at times shocking, emotionally textured account of a singular human event. A New York Times bestseller, Deep Down Dark brings to haunting, tactile life the experience of being imprisoned inside a mountain of stone, the horror of being slowly consumed by hunger, and the spiritual and mystical elements that surrounded working in such a dangerous place. In its stirring final chapters, it captures the profound way in which the lives of everyone involved in the disaster were forever changed Deep Down Dark is the novel that inspired the film The 33 starring Lou Diamond Phillips, Cote de Pablo and Antonio Banderas. When the San José mine collapsed outside of Copiapó, Chile, in August 2010, it trapped thirty-three miners beneath thousands of feet of rock for a record-breaking sixty-nine days. After the disaster, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Héctor Tobar received exclusive access to the miners and their tales, and in Deep Down Dark, he brings them to haunting, visceral life. We learn what it was like to be imprisoned inside a mountain, understand the horror of being slowly consumed by hunger, and experience the awe of working in such a place-underground passages filled with danger and that often felt alive. A masterwork of narrative journalism and a stirring testament to the power of the human spirit, The 33: Deep Down Dark captures the profound ways in which the lives of everyone involved in the catastrophe were forever changed. A Finalist for a National Book Critics Circle Award A Finalist for a Los Angeles Times Book Prize A New York Times Book Review Notable Book Selected for NPR's Morning Edition Book Club When the San Jos mine collapsed outside of Copiap, Chile, in August 2010, it trapped thirty-three miners beneath thousands of feet of rock for a record-breaking sixty-nine days. Across the globe, we sat riveted to television and computer screens as journalists flocked to the Atacama desert. While we saw what transpired above ground during the grueling and protracted rescue, the story of the miners experiences below the earths surface and the lives that led them there hasn't been heard until now. In this master work of a Pulitzer Prizewinning journalist, Hctor Tobar gains exclusive access to the miners and their stories. The result is a miraculous and emotionally textured account of the thirty-three men who came to think of the San Jos mine as a kind of coffin, as a cave inflicting constant and thundering aural torment, and as a church where they sought redemption through prayer while the world watched from above. It offers an understanding of the families and personal histories that brought los 33 to the mine, and the mystical and spiritual elements that surrounded working in such a dangerous place. A Pulitzer Prize Winning Journalist Relates The Experiences Of The Thirty-three Men Who Endured Entrapment Beneath Thousands Of Feet Of Rock For A Record-breaking Sixty-nine Days During The San José Mine Collapse Outside Of Copiapó, Chile, In August 2010. Cities In The Desert -- Beneath The Mountain Of Thunder And Sorrow. A Company Man ; The End Of Everything ; The Dinner Hour ; I'm Always Hungry ; Red Alert! ; We Have Sinned ; Blessed Among Women ; A Flickering Flame ; Cavern Of Dreams -- Seeing The Devil. The Speed Of Sound ; Christmas ; Astronauts ; Absolute Leader ; Cowboys ; Saints, Statues, Satan ; Independence Day ; Rebirth -- The Southern Cross. In A Better Country ; The Tallest Tower ; Underground ; Under The Stars. Héctor Tobar. Héctor Tobar is a Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist & novelist. He is the author of the critically acclaimed New York Times bestseller Deep Down Dark, as well as The Barbarian Nurseries, Translation Nation & The Tattooed Soldier. Tobar is also a contributing writer for the New York Times opinion pages & an associate professor at the University of California, Irvine. He has written for the Los Angeles Times, The New Yorker & other publications. His short fiction has appeared in The Best American Short Stories, Los Angeles Noir, ZYZZYVA & Slate. The son of Guatemalan immigrants, he is a native of Los Angeles, where he lives with his family. Cities in the desert I. Beneath the mountain of thunder and sorrow A company man The end of everything The dinner hour "I'm always hungry" Red alert! "We have sinned" Blessed among women A flickering flame Cavern of dreams II. Seeing the devil The speed of sound Christmas Astronauts Absolute leader Cowboys Saints, statues, Satan Independence Day Rebirth III. The Southern Cross In a better country The tallest tower Underground Under the stars. Relates the experiences of the thirty-three men who endured entrapment beneath thousands of feet of rock for a record-breaking sixty-nine days during the San Jos e mine collapse outside of Copiap o, Chile, in August 2010