27:
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383:, and you'll have a good idea of what to expect: lots of humorous fumbling about as men and women of various nationalities mold themselves into an efficient team without stepping on each others' cultural toes; the glitz and polished shine of a seagoing luxury hotel (contrasted with the sometimes-disgusting living conditions of the crew); and plenty of shenanigans, including raucous parties and, of course, sexual escapades."
546:. He lived in Romania while on break from his cruise ship contracts. Bruns' relationship with Bianca lasted four years as she wanted to stay in Romania and he had no interest in moving there permanently. Fluent in Romanian, Bruns met another Romanian woman, Aurelia, who was employed in a cruise ship casino. After they worked together on ships for a year, Bruns and Aurelia got married on
290:. Far from being the result of hard work, he finds he is an unknowing pawn in a game of international politics on board. Several factions attempt to drive him out of his chosen career, feeling an American is disruptive to the foreign-run hierarchy. Others champion him but invariably only in regards to their own careers. His promotion is ultimately denied and he is sent to
261:' restaurants, he is unprepared for the realities of working in the cruise industry, with long hours and little pay. He worked seven days a week for 14 to 16 hours per day. He is also subjected to a range of challenges from his international colleagues, many of whom deride his decision to work at sea to be with his girlfriend, Bianca, who is a waitress on the ship
346:
s Rob Cline wrote, "The book is seldom laugh-out-loud funny, but it is humorous throughout." A common thread in the book is the Bruns' discussion of the numerous people on board who want to have sex. Bruns emphasizes repeatedly that he found the female passengers and crew to be physically attractive,
296:
as a waiter, embittered but not beaten. He was the first
American waiter in 30 years to complete a full contract lasting eight months without quitting. The climax of the book is his effort at finding a different path to remaining at sea when his restaurant career implodes. His experiences as an art
353:
that "this is a really entertaining true tale" that transparently depicts the operations of a typical cruise ship but found that the book would not appeal to all people. He said the book has "a fair amount of vividly described debauchery and rough language" and that "you stop feeling sorry for the
334:
librarian Jana Atkins, stated, "Some of the stories are cautionary tales of
American rudeness, some are heartwarming stories about community and international relations, and others are just R-rated – so beware. This book will change your view of the whole travel industry, even if you never want to
234:. The book received positive reviews for its humor and for its giving an insider look at the experience of working on cruise ships. It attracted criticism from reviewers for Bruns' focus on repeatedly describing the attractive women he met on the ship. Bruns wrote three sequels to the book:
489:, is a memoir about Bruns' time as an auctioneer on cruise ships and is filled with his funny experiences. Able Greenspan penned a positive review of the book for the Midwest Book Review, stating, "The people you see on these cruises and the attraction of high class luxury makes
275:. Bruns describes life in the crew's quarters, called I-95, after the paperwork non-Americans need for American employment. After collaborating to serve the passengers, the crew members who come from numerous countries carouse during the several hours they have left.
537:
software company which had to shut down owing to the weak economy. Bruns met Bianca, a
Romanian woman who was a cruise ship employee, through a former employee who connected them. He began working on cruise ships to be with her, starting his cruise ship career with
497:, Jessica Henkle stated "With a candid, no-muss style, Bruns shows just how smitten he and Bianca are with one another" and "Humorous and heartfelt, this book explores the depths one man will dive to for the woman he loves."
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guy—who signed on to follow his girlfriend—after the 500th time he describes some impossibly beautiful
Eastern European nymph and wonders what his chances are at scoring with her".
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s wrote, "Funny and appalling at the same time, this gives an insider's view of what it's like to work on a ship." Noelle Stokes praised the book, writing in the
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Cruise
Confidential: A Hit Below the Waterline: Where the Crew Lives, Eats, Wars, and Parties — One Crazy Year Working on Cruise Ships
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Cruise
Confidential: A Hit Below the Waterline: Where the Crew Lives, Eats, Wars, and Parties — One Crazy Year Working on Cruise Ships
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s David Pitt, who called the book "very funny, behind-the-scenes", penned a positive review. He wrote, "Imagine a combination of
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when he was 30 years old. Bruns spent four years working on cruise ships with about one year as a waiter and three years as an
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of Brian David Bruns and his wife
Aurelia Bruns posing for a selfie on August 17, 2020, at Furnace Creek Visitors Center in
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Bruns imparts his opinions about cruising. He requests that passengers give good tips and cruise companies give a
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470:"isn't as sharply written, but has a much better title". The book discusses what it is like to be a cruise ship
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304:. He tells passengers that their fare does not give them the right to be rude but they should receive quality
513:. Having dreamed of becoming a writer since he was 15 years old, as an adolescent he submitted a book in the
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a read that shouldn't be missed for those who love good stories about life and what passes for it." In
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666:"The 'Monitor' guide to holiday book-giving - Give them something to curl up with this holiday season"
257:
narrates the experiences of the author working in the cruise industry. As one of the few
Americans in
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478:'s John Burroughs praised the book, writing, "With a grand dose of humor and a good dose of memoir,
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as a restaurant trainee, then moves up through the ranks to lower level restaurant manager on
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in 2007 in Reno. Around 2009, the couple moved to Las Vegas and in 2015 they lived in
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genres to a writing competition for teenagers though did not win. Bruns attended the
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317:
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auctioneer and his continued quest for his girlfriend are narrated in the sequels.
268:
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degree. Prior to his travels, he had lived for 25 years in Iowa. Bruns started a
847:"Staff Book and Media Recommendations: Cruise Confidential by Brian David Bruns"
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308:. The book includes a glossary with ship terminology and amount of food needed.
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227:
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which Cline found "quite wearying fairly early on". Spud Hilton wrote in the
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171:
884:
358:
701:"A waiter reveals what it's really like to work on a luxury cruise ship"
514:
272:
939:"Cruise ship work led Summerlin author to discover ideas for books"
597:"Carnival employee pens new tell-all book about jobs onboard"
165:
744:"C.R. native navigates unruly seas in 'Cruise Confidential'"
888:. Vol. 105, no. 2. p. 15. Archived from
210:, published in 2008 by Travelers' Tales (a division of
330:, "Any cruise fanatic like me would love this book."
206:
is the first book in the eponymous series by author
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571:Book of the Year, Benjamin Franklin Awards (2009)
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880:"Cruise Confidential: A Hit below the Waterline"
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558:. In 2015, Bruns published a horror book titled
505:Brian David Bruns, the book's author, attended
278:Brian begins with his entry into ship life on
8:
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577:New England Book Festival, finalist (2008)
226:provoked a discussion about the merits of
25:
18:
574:Book of the Year, ForeWord Awards (2009)
587:
482:is a fine pick, not to be overlooked."
7:
629:"Revival of Orient Lines - Cruising"
783:"High-seas books for stay-at-homes"
1045:Greenspan, Able (September 2012).
971:"Cruising the Bahamas and buffets"
395:series is composed of four books:
14:
1004:Burroughs, John (October 2011).
1116:Interview of Brian David Bruns
1082:Henkle, Jessica (2012-08-07).
851:University of Central Oklahoma
485:The third book in the series,
332:University of Central Oklahoma
16:2008 book by Brian David Bruns
1:
699:Lakritz, Talia (2017-03-22).
664:Stokes, Noelle (2012-12-17).
525:, where he graduated with an
969:Krueger, Matt (2017-08-31).
815:"New non-fiction for adults"
781:Hilton, Spud (2008-11-30).
523:University of Northern Iowa
507:John F. Kennedy High School
1186:
878:Pitt, David (2008-09-15).
813:Ward, Kathy (2009-06-04).
627:Heard, Mike (2008-08-30).
1084:"Unsinkable Mister Brown"
937:Hogan, Jan (2015-06-18).
845:Atkins, Jana (May 2012).
742:Cline, Rob (2008-09-07).
634:The Sydney Morning Herald
560:In the House of Leviathan
24:
1135:Death Valley, California
944:Las Vegas Review-Journal
402:(2008, Traveler's Tales
1118:in January 2012 on the
1047:"Greenspan's Bookshelf"
788:San Francisco Chronicle
491:Unsinkable Mister Brown
487:Unsinkable Mister Brown
428:Unsinkable Mister Brown
350:San Francisco Chronicle
240:Unsinkable Mister Brown
232:exploitation of workers
1150:2008 non-fiction books
1006:"Burroughs' Bookshelf"
456:Matt Krueger wrote in
69:Cruise ships—Employees
67:Ocean travel—Anecdotes
1160:Carnival Cruise Lines
1155:American travel books
540:Carnival Cruise Lines
259:Carnival Cruise Lines
214:). Its full title is
194:Ship for Brains
1010:Reviewer's Bookwatch
595:Gray, Chris (2008).
444:(2014, World Waters
430:(2012, World Waters
416:(2011, World Waters
1055:Midwest Book Review
1014:Midwest Book Review
476:Midwest Book Review
468:Cruise Confidential
400:Cruise Confidential
393:Cruise Confidential
255:Cruise Confidential
224:Cruise Confidential
203:Cruise Confidential
32:Cruise Confidential
21:
442:High Seas Drifter
71:Cruise ships—Humor
552:Summerlin, Nevada
501:Brian David Bruns
450:978-0-9856635-6-8
436:978-0-9745217-6-3
422:978-0-9745217-7-0
408:978-1-932361-60-5
377:, with a dash of
287:Carnival Conquest
264:Carnival Conquest
244:High Seas Drifter
208:Brian David Bruns
199:
198:
158:978-1-932361-60-5
128:Publication place
123:September 1, 2008
97:Carnival Conquest
80:Travel literature
51:Brian David Bruns
48:Cover artist
43:Brian David Bruns
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1090:. Archived from
1088:Foreword Reviews
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556:Las Vegas Valley
495:Foreword Reviews
368:Innocents Abroad
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335:take a cruise."
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306:customer service
281:Carnival Fantasy
190:Followed by
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119:Publication date
113:Travelers' Tales
91:Carnival Fantasy
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548:Valentine's Day
535:medical records
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480:Ship for Brains
464:Ship for Brains
414:Ship for Brains
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327:Concord Monitor
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293:Carnival Legend
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236:Ship for Brains
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1165:Comedy books
1123:
1096:. Retrieved
1092:the original
1087:
1063:. Retrieved
1059:the original
1050:
1027:– via
1022:. Retrieved
1018:the original
1009:
985:. Retrieved
981:the original
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964:
953:. Retrieved
949:the original
942:
899:– via
894:. Retrieved
890:the original
883:
859:. Retrieved
855:the original
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829:. Retrieved
825:the original
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797:. Retrieved
793:the original
786:
763:– via
758:. Retrieved
754:the original
747:
715:. Retrieved
711:the original
704:
680:. Retrieved
676:the original
669:
643:. Retrieved
639:the original
632:
622:
611:. Retrieved
607:the original
600:
590:
559:
531:Reno, Nevada
511:Cedar Rapids
504:
494:
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486:
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467:
466:compared to
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380:Peyton Place
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269:Transylvania
267:and is from
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254:
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250:Plot summary
243:
242:(2012), and
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228:cruise lines
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101:
95:
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31:
1170:Travelogues
749:The Gazette
527:art history
340:The Gazette
302:living wage
212:Solas House
86:Set in
1144:Categories
1098:2021-08-15
1065:2021-08-15
1024:2021-08-15
987:2021-08-15
955:2021-08-15
896:2021-08-15
861:2021-08-15
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760:2021-08-15
717:2021-08-15
682:2021-08-15
645:2021-08-15
613:2021-08-15
582:References
602:USA Today
312:Reception
172:226984710
110:Publisher
1122:program
885:Booklist
519:sorcerer
359:Booklist
246:(2014).
238:(2011),
64:Subjects
56:Language
554:in the
533:-based
515:fantasy
387:Sequels
273:Romania
185:910.4/5
59:English
566:Awards
448:
434:
420:
406:
40:Author
1125:20/20
462:that
363:'
344:'
322:'
144:Pages
139:Print
76:Genre
34:cover
1029:Gale
901:Gale
517:and
446:ISBN
432:ISBN
418:ISBN
404:ISBN
391:The
371:and
166:OCLC
153:ISBN
1120:ABC
509:in
147:370
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
