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In Titanic Tragedy maritime historian John Maxtone-Graham documents
the vessel's design, construction, and departure from Southampton,
her passengers' lifeboat ordeal, their Carpathia rescue, the role
of new technologies, and memorials to her crew. He describes
poignantly the performance of her eight gallant bandsmen who played
on deck to the very end; none survived. Added historical bonuses
include seven letters, ostensibly from a Titanic passenger. In
fact, they were written by one of America's most eminent
historians, Walter Lord, author of the seminal A Night to Remember
of 1955. His devastating parodies about life aboard the doomed ship
appear here in print for the first time.
As a dedicated passenger during both the vessel's lives, John
Maxtone-Graham is in a perfect position to give us this rich,
profusely illustrated history of France/Norway. The French Line's
dazzling ocean liner S.S. France was alone in her class until the
arrival of the QE2 in 1967. She was fast, chic, lavishly manned,
and offered sumptuous catering. For a dozen years she was a star on
the North Atlantic. However, in the summer of 1974, with jet
airliners dominating transatlantic travel, France was withdrawn and
allowed to molder for five years. Then a miraculous reprieve: the
head of Norwegian Cruise Line decided to buy France; the vessel was
revamped for warm weather and rechristened Norway. One of the last
North Atlantic liners became the Caribbean's first megaship. The
singularity of this incredible hull that sailed in two contrasting
modes demands remembrance she was the pioneering big ship,
popularizing a scale of cruising then unknown."
Arguably the world s most articulate and authoritative maritime
historian, John Maxtone-Graham documents SS United States, her
design, construction, and seventeen years of impeccable service. He
introduces us to dozens of U.S. passengers, famous and infamous, as
well as captains and crew. The last great American ocean liner, SS
United States could be converted to a 14,000-man troop carrier and
was capable of attaining a speed of over 40 knots (although in her
luxury Atlantic crossings the ship was much slower). Sadly, jet
travel put an end to ocean crossings, and the all-aluminum ship
rests in Philadelphia while groups of fans continue to try to
repurpose it."
Violet Jessop's life is an inspiring story of survival. Born in
1887 in Argentina, the eldest child of Irish immigrants, at the age
of 21 she became the breadwinner for her widowed mother and five
siblings when she commenced a career as a stewardess and nurse on
some of the most famous ocean going vessels of the day. Throughout
her 40 year time at sea she survived an unbelievable series of
events including the sinking of the TITANIC. "One awful moment of
empty, misty blackness enveloped us in its loneliness, then an
unforgettable, agonizing cry went up from 1500 despairing throats,
a long wail and then silence and our tiny craft tossing about at
the mercy of the ice field." For most people one sinking would be
enough. But four years later Violet, now a nurse with the British
Red Cross, was on board the World War I hospital ship BRITANNIC
when it struck a mine and sank to the bottom of the Aegean. To her,
this disaster was even more horrifying-- "Just as life seeming
nothing but a whirling, choking ache, I rose to the light of day,
my nose barely above the little lapping waves. I opened my eyes on
an indescribable scene of slaughter, which made me shut them again
to keep it out." By the end of her story we have a met a woman who
could handle whatever life threw at her with determination and good
humor. She knew that only by her own strength of character would
she survive. But Titanic Survivor is much more. A unique
autobiography for those who want to know how it really felt, a
story that could be told only by a Titanic Survivor.
Violet Jessop's life is an inspiring story of survival. Born in
1887 in Argentina, the eldest child of Irish immigrants, at the age
of 21 she became the breadwinner for her widowed mother and five
siblings when she commenced a career as a stewardess and nurse on
some of the most famous ocean going vessels of the day. Throughout
her 40 year time at sea she survived an unbelievable series of
events including the sinking of the TITANIC. "One awful moment of
empty, misty blackness enveloped us in its loneliness, then an
unforgettable, agonizing cry went up from 1500 despairing throats,
a long wail and then silence and our tiny craft tossing about at
the mercy of the ice field." For most people one sinking would be
enough. But four years later Violet, now a nurse with the British
Red Cross, was on board the World War I hospital ship BRITANNIC
when it struck a mine and sank to the bottom of the Aegean. To her,
this disaster was even more horrifying-- "Just as life seeming
nothing but a whirling, choking ache, I rose to the light of day,
my nose barely above the little lapping waves. I opened my eyes on
an indescribable scene of slaughter, which made me shut them again
to keep it out." By the end of her story we have a met a woman who
could handle whatever life threw at her with determination and good
humor. She knew that only by her own strength of character would
she survive. But Titanic Survivor is much more. A unique
autobiography for those who want to know how it really felt, a
story that could be told only by a Titanic Survivor.
Maxtone-Graham, a maritime historian specializing in the history of
ocean liners and cruise ships, revels in the past glories of the
ocean liner and examines with affectionate detail today's best
ships. Reveals how ships, crews, and passengers have changed and
remained the same, looking at shipboard
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