The Poseidon Adventure by Paul Gallico

(1) Nine people explore a cruise ship at sea in a manner that turns their whole lives upside down.

(2) A passenger ship, on her way to the scrap yard is pushed to her limits by the new owners to save on the dismantling fees. A tidal wave hits her, flipping her over so that all the internal rooms are upside down. A priest takes a mixed band of survivors on a journey through the bowels of the ship in an attempt to survive.

(3) At midnight on New Year's Eve, the SS Poseidon is struck by a 90-foot tidal wave and is capsized. Reverend Frank Scott leads nine survivors; an elderly couple, Manny and Belle Rosen headed to Israel to see their grandson; A New York detective and his ex-prostitute wife, Mike and Linda Rogo on their second honeymoon to Italy; A young brother and sister, Robin and Susan Shelby going to meet their parents in Greece; A haberdasher James Martin; a pop singer Nonnie Parry, and a waiter from the ship Acres. They travel from the grand ballroom struggling through, steam, fire and rising water in the upside-down ship to reach the bottom (the propeller shaft), now the top.

Aint No Way In Hell A Book-Accurate Movie Of This Tale Is Ever Made. There's just too much that would cause people of most any era - even 1969 when this book was written - to walk out of the theater on. A few certain words beginning in "N". A couple of uses of what was at least at one time British slang for a cigarette but which has largely meant something else entirely in the US. Repeated uses as a pejorative of a certain "Q" word that many now actively adopt as an identity. A rape where the victim then holds her rapist fondly *and wishes she is pregnant by him as the book closes*. (Literally, the last words of the book are this particular passage.) Possible statutory rape between a man in his 30s and a "girl", as she is repeatedly described, who is clearly in the upper half of the teen years but whose age is never clearly established. Several racial stereotypes of varying ethnicities of varying shades of melanin, most all of which are now (in 2024) decried as racist. Even the smoking and drinking is frowned upon and/ or outright ostracized (in at least some circles) in 2024.

And yet... even the action is different than any of the movies, to a degree. For example, Gene Hackman's character from the original 1972 movie? Yes, he falls into the water near the end, as he does in the movie (seriously, if you haven't seen a 52 yr old movie by this point, that's on you ;) ) but unlike the movie, there are no flames involved in the book. Revealing other differences does involve true spoilers, so I won't go there.

But if you're a fan of the movies and can withstand all that I noted above (and more, really), absolutely read the book. The differences between book and movie add a *lot* more nuance to everything and everybody, even as they often take away from the action - and yet add in even more explicit horror/ gore than I've ever seen in any incarnation of the movies. (Even the rape scene starts as a seeming horror/ gore scene that is later, after the rape, explained away.)

So yeah, this book has a LOT of problems by 2024 standards and really even by 1969 standards. Read it anyway, if you can withstand those issues. If not, you're not going to enjoy this, so truly, don't bother.

Recommended. Particularly for fans of the movies.