REVIEW: A Night to Remember

 A Night to Remember
Author: Walter Lord

Today's cruise ships are basically floating cities. Able to carry more than 6000 people, the Oasis of the Seas (Royal Caribbean Line) is 5 times the size of the Titanic. But back in its day, more than 100 years ago, the Titanic was a wonder. It took thousands of men more than 2 years to build her. Titanic was 4 city blocks long and could carry more than 2,400 people. She was new....she was massive....and she was doomed. 2 years to build.....and the largest ship afloat in April 1912 took just under 3 hours to sink. 

Walter Lord tells the story of one of the most famous ocean disasters from before the ship struck an iceberg to the aftermath of the sinking. Walter Lord interviewed more than 60 survivors of the disaster to write the book. A Night to Remember was an instant bestseller in 1955. A film version was released in 1958. Lord even consulted on the filming of the 1997 movie Titanic. 

 I'm not sure why the fate of the Titanic is such a compelling story. It might be the huge loss of lives, the loss of such a grand ship on its first voyage, passengers with such disparate lives all doomed to the same fate....or a combination of all of it. First Class passenger John Jacob Astor, one of the wealthiest men in the world in 1912, drowned in the Atlantic alongside poor immigrants from steerage. It hits home when you compare ticket prices in today's money....those who paid the equivalent of $50,000 for a first class passage died alongside those who struggled to raise the $460 for a steerage ticket. Lord hits home with the difference in treatment of the classes on board when he points out that only one first class child died....but 52 children from steerage perished. Some passengers in steerage never even made it up to the boat deck for a chance of a seat in a lifeboat.  

I'm sure it's his interviews with so many survivors that makes this book so realistic. His descriptions are vivid and made me feel like I was almost there. I listened to the audio version of this book. A combination of Lord's story-telling and Fred Williams excellent narration kept me engrossed in the story from start to finish. I have read many many books on the Titanic, watched movies, listened to podcasts....for me, it's a story I just seem obsessed with. It's horrific...and mesmerizing at the same time. Lord makes the story about the people....not just the event. He tells the story of an Italian woman crying for her children on board the Carpathia, only to be reunited with them both; the first class passenger who  refused to leave  her Great Dane on board the ship so perished with her dog; and the stunned silence of the women in the lifeboats as they realized they had just witnessed more than 1000 people drown. It's about more than a luxurious boat that didn't survive its first Atlantic crossing.....it's about the loss of more than 1,500 people and the story of the last 3 hours of their lives. 

Great book! The audio (Blackstone) is just shy of 5 1/2 hours long. Fred Williams does a great job of narrating. He reads at a steady pace and has a nice voice. Very entertaining listening experience. 

Walter Lord also wrote books about Dunkirk and the attack on Pearl Harbor. I've got both on my TBR list now!