I Was There: On Board the Titanic - Hardcover

Tanaka, Shelley

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0786802839 ISBN 13: 9780786802838

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 1996

Synopsis

Seventeen-year-old Jack Thayer explores the Titanic and forms a brief friendship with another passenger before experiencing the wreck of the giant ocean liner

About this title

Reviews

Grade 3-5?This book covers the six days surrounding the sinking of the Titanic, as seen through the eyes of two survivors: 17-year-old Jack Thayer, a passenger, and Harold Bride, the 22-year-old assistant wireless operator. With fictionalized words and feelings attributed to these actual historical figures, the text has a slightly stilted feel to it. Facts and details about the ship are sometimes awkwardly inserted into Jack's experiences, especially during the first part of the book. But overall, the fictionalization works fairly well. Jack observes details that give immediacy to the disaster and the people involved. As the story progresses towards the catastrophe, it is hard not to get caught up in the tension. By the time of the actual shipwreck, readers know Jack pretty well, as well as a few other passengers, so the tragedy has a personal impact beyond the sheer numbers. Numerous full-color and black-and-white diagrams, historical photographs and drawings, and original paintings help bring the voyage to life. Technical flaws that contributed to the tragedy are woven neatly into the text and diagrams. Robert Ballard's Exploring the Titanic (Scholastic, 1988) is more fascinating, and Deborah Kent's The Titanic (Childrens, 1993) gives a drier, more straightforward account, while Daisy Spedden's Polar the Titanic Bear (Little, 1994) offers a more fanciful fictionalized version. Tanaka's book will serve as an attractive introduction to a popular topic.?Steven Engelfried, West Linn Public Library,
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

In this work subtitled ``What It Was Like When the Great Liner Sank,'' the powerful, detailed, and realistic paintings by Marschall will enthrall readers and draw them into the mystery of the famous ocean liner's fate. In this I Was There book, Tanaka (The Disaster of the Hindenburg, 1993, not reviewed, etc.) tells the story from the point of view of two young men aboard the Titanic: Jack Thayer, a wealthy 17-year-old, and Harold Bride, a junior wireless operator. The details are many and interesting: the historic photos; the accurate drawing of a cross-section of the ship; an explanation of Morse code; a discussion of the number of lifeboats aboard; a diagram of who died and who was saved (the greatest number of those who drowned were third-class passengers and crew members); the number of dogs that survived (2). The book will more than satisfy those for whom this voyage is an apparently unlimited source of fascination. (Nonfiction. 9-11) -- Copyright ©1996, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Gr. 5^-7. The doomed voyage of the Titanic holds a mysterious fascination for children and adults, whether the story is fact or fiction. In this solidly told tale, the maiden voyage of the "unsinkable" ship is re-created with stunning vividness. There are intimate glimpses of many of the passengers and crew, including 17-year-old Jack Thayer, who is sailing with his parents, and the much maligned Bruce Ismay, president of the company that owned the Titanic. The illustrations are splendid. Each painting is skillfully realized, capturing the breadth and opulence of the largest ship to grace the oceans at the time. Especially breathtaking are the scenes of the Titanic against midnight blue backdrops with otherworldly-looking icebergs that seem to glow with eerie menace. The tragic story of the ship that was supposed to be indestructible holds up well in this new telling and is enhanced by well-done diagrams and excellent photographs. Denia Hester

Edition details

• Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
• Publication date: 1996
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0786802839
• ISBN 13: 9780786802838
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 48