about the book
It was the largest, most luxurious ship in the world. Built using the very latest technology, the Titanic was said to be the safest. When it sailed on April 10, 1912, on its maiden voyage from Southampton in England to New York City, 2,200 souls were on board.
Just five days later, it sank! The RMS Titanic was the jewel of the White Star Cruise Line and even a hundred years later, the loss of the ship and 1052 lives is one of the most horrific disasters ever.
The facts about the ship are well known. But the story of the Titanic is not only about metal and machinery—it is really about the people. This book weaves together their memories.
Who are these people? Where did they come from? Why were they sailing on the Titanic? What do they remember about that horrific night?
How did the survivors get on with their life after the disaster?
There are so many questions. Using photographs, diagrams, maps, letters, telegrams, official documents, and personal narratives, many of the questions are answered by the survivors and the determined men aboard the Carpathia who rescued them.
You’ll hear the first-hand accounts from a rambunctious nine-year-old boy, an American teenager, a science teacher, an Argentine-born stewardess, and many more. Packed with heart-stopping action and fascinating historical details, these devastating personal dramas will leave you breathless!
about the author
Deborah Hopkinson is the author of more than forty books. Her favorite books are based on the ordinary people in history and how they changed the world.
Deborah, the oldest of three girls, was born and raised in Lowell, Massachusetts. She loved to read so much that she’d hide a novel behind her big history textbooks and read in class. She always knew she would be a writer. Deborah was the first person in her family to go to college. She earned a bachelor’s degree in English at the University of Massachusetts and a master’s in Asian studies from the University of Hawaii.
Deborah met her husband, Andy (a winemaker) in Hawaii, where they lived for 19 years. They raised two children, Rebekah and Dimitru. Deborah started writing when Rebekah was three.
Andy and Deborah now live near Portland, Oregon, with their two dogs, two cats, and a canary. Deborah previously worked as the vice president in charge of fund raising for the Pacific Northwest College of Art.
Sources :
Author website
Author interview : YALSA The Hub
Author interview : Powell’s Kids Q&A
Also by Deborah Hopkinson:
The Great Trouble : A Mystery of London, the Blue Death, and a Boy Called Eel. Knopf Books for Young Readers. 2013.
Hear My Sorrow (Dear America). Scholastic. 2011.
Into the Firestorm : A Novel of San Francisco, 1906. Alfred A. Knopf. 2006.
Up Before Daybreak : Cotton and People in America. Scholastic Nonfiction. 2006.
Shutting Out the Sky : Life in the Tenements of New York, 1880-1924. Orchard Books. 2003.
read more!
Iceberg, Right Ahead! : The Tragedy of the Titanic by Stephanie McPherson
This collection of personal accounts of the sinking of the Titanic in 1912 explores the events leading up to and after the tragedy. It sheds light on the politics and intrigue still surrounding the wreck and reveals how modern science can explain what really happened to the ship and who was at fault.
Into the Firestorm : A Novel of San Francisco, 1906 by Deborah Hopkinson
After his granny dies, Nicholas Dray runs away from an orphanage in Texas and makes his way to San Francisco. There he meets a friendly fellow who gives him a job guarding a grand store. But at 5:12 a.m. on the morning of April 18, 1906, Nicholas wakes to the earth shaking. As the city crumbles and burns, Nick tries to save his new friend’s dog and the people next door.
No Moon by Irene N. Watts
Louisa Gardener, a nursemaid to a wealthy London family, loves both her work and her young charges. When the family decides to take a voyage to New York aboard the Titanic, however, Louisa must overcome her fear of the water in order to accompany the family and help them in their time of greatest need.