Deep Down Dark

The Untold Stories of 33 Men Buried in a Chilean Mine, and the Miracle That Set Them Free

By: Héctor Tobar

Narrated by: Henry Leyva

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

A gripping story masterfully written and read.

Where does Deep Down Dark rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

It is one of the best I'e heard. The reader appears to be bilingual and lets us hear the story as told by each character.

Who was your favorite character and why?

It's impossible to have a favorite.

Which character – as performed by Henry Leyva – was your favorite?

It's impossible to have a favorite.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

The book is in three parts, and each part was compelling in its telling.

Any additional comments?

A mediocre writer could easily have turned this dramatic story into a melodrama, but Toobar wrote objectively, allow the men's story into a compelling one. Henry Leyva read the story as a professional.

Deep Down Dark

I was totally enthralled by this story with excellent narration. Mr. Tobar's portrayal of the events of the mining disaster was realistic and engaging. I was especially impressed with the author's ability to represent the human flaws of the people involved without diminishing their incredible strength of character. Highly recommended - my first rating after listening to hundreds if audio books.

Excellent book

An indepth telling of the lives of the 33, the accident, their experiences, the rescue, and post rescue lives. Riveting.

good listen

What did you love best about Deep Down Dark?

very very informative

What does Henry Leyva bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Command of language

Any additional comments?

a little too heavy on the religious aspects of the men but I guess he wants to fill in the entire experience

great story, beautifully told

This is a wonderful story, told and narrated movingly.. It's a gripping take, even though you know the miners get out safely