Roger Brucker - Author, Cave Explorer

Trapped!
Readers Comments

Trapped ! The Story of Floyd Collins
Reviewer: A reader from Folsom, La.
As a former resident of Lexington Kentucky, I quickly became fascinated with caves soon after moving there. After visiting Mammoth Cave and several smaller caves in the area, I heard the story of Floyd Collins. Being naturally curious I had to read the book. I read it in one sitting! The reader is wedged in that narrow space, the suspense is unberable. But it was not until a year later when I actually visited the site that the full scope of the tragedy hit home. The site is at least a ten minute treck through the woods. It's very lonely. At the end of the path is an outcropping of rock, not at all what I expected, tremendously overgrown with only a small written testimonial to his life and tragic death. At the bottom of a steep slope is an opening.Apparently the state or local government was in such fear of anyone trying this fatal mistake again, the opening is covered with thick metal bars. My fascination faded, a hard shiver went down my back and I truly felt a sadness for this unfortunate explorer. This book is a MUST READ, the reader will not be disappointed.
Great story!
Reviewer: A reader from Colorado
Very interesting. I couldn't put it down
Exciting, factual telling of the 1st U.S. media circus.,
Reviewer: A reader from Melbourne, FL
I became fascinated with Floyd Collins (the caver whose entrapment in a Kentucky cave precipitated America's first true media circus) after hearing the soundtrack to the off-Broadway musical which opened in NY in 1996. "Trapped" fills in all the blanks and answers most all of the questions a listener to the CD may develop. The tone of the writing is authoritative, but certainly not overly technical. It is an exciting, page-turning read, and remarkably suspenseful considering we all know how it turns out. I look forward to reading other works by Brucker/Murray. Perhaps "Floyd Collins", the musical will inspire new interest in the book, and an updated new edition will be considered.
Very informative with surprising new facts about the tragedy, May 7, 1998
Reviewer: Jenny Gebauer from Oswego, Illinois
I found this book on the shelf at my aunt's house and asked her what it was about. It turns out that Floyd Collins was a cousin of my grandmother's. It was for that reason that I read the book, but I enjoyed it for it's content and structure. The first portion of the book builds the historical background and sets the scene for the expedition by the authors into the cave that Floyd Collins was trapped in. This was the first expedition into the actual chamber in which Floyd Collins died, and what they found shocked me. This is a very interesting book which outlines the media's involvement in the event and documents the involvement of several individuals in the rescue effort, including Skeets Miller and Johnnie Gerald. There is good photography and an impressive list of people from which first-hand accounts were recorded by the authors. This is a very informative book and a must-have for anyone interested in Mammoth Caves or Floyd Collins, and it is well worth your time.