Title: The Sinking Of The Titanic - Eye Witness Accounts From Survivors
Author: Jay Henry Mowbray, Bruce Beveridge & Dr Stephen Haddelsey
Publisher: Pen & Sword, Greenhill Books
Release Date: 31st March 2023
BLURB from Goodreads
“I ran out on the deck and then I could see ice. It was a veritable sea of ice and the boat was rocking over it. I should say that parts of the iceberg were eighty feet high, but it had been broken into sections, probably by our ship.”
“There fell on the ear the most appalling noise that ever human ear listened to — the cries of hundreds of our fellow-beings struggling in the icy-cold water, crying for help with a cry that we knew could not be answered.”
First published in 1912, Jay Henry Mowbray’s Sinking of the Titanic was hugely influential in the aftermath of the maritime disaster, recording the harrowing, first-hand accounts of the survivors - from sailors, to stewards, to passengers – throughout the ordeal, from when the iceberg first hit to when the Carpathia eventually arrived, and honouring those who were lost on that fateful night in 1912. Mowbray’s text even follows the survivors when they make it back to land - a lesser-known, riveting aspect of the tragic saga that deals with the investigation and the hearings that took place in the US and UK in the months that followed.
The swiftness of the publication of Mowbray’s text, the sheer number of first-hand witness accounts therein and the intensity of the chaos and fear that their accounts convey makes for a unique compilation which, together with new notes, maps, images and expert introductory material in this new, updated edition, will fascinate, educate and deeply move contemporary readers as much today as the original publication would have back in 1912.
REVIEW
I found it really interesting reading the different survivor accounts of the incidents that occurred as the Titanic hit the infamous iceberg, to the lifeboat situation, the whole 'women & children first' ethic. Though it is the same incident the survivors all have their own personal opinion on how & what happened. It was surprising there were so many instances of contradictory claims especially around Ismay and how/why he was saved when others perished. It was also intriguing how some survivors backed the theory of had the Captain not being so interested in breaking records, they either wouldn't have hit the iceberg at all or if they had hit it at a slower speed the damage wouldn't have been so great.
I know this is non fiction so expected lots of heavy facts but I did find the way it was presented to be a little boring. It had such potential. I wanted more about the survivors lives before the incident, why were they on the ship of dreams? Also perhaps more of what happened afterwards from individual survivors and how they were treat, dealt with by the famous White Star Line.
Summing up, I ended up putting a "DNF" on this book, which I feel disappointed about. I read a good two thirds of the book before giving up as it had started to feel so repetitive.
No comments:
Post a Comment