Titanic Lives: Migrants and Millionaires, Conmen and Crew
Richard Davenport-Hines
Titanic Lives: Migrants and Millionaires, Conmen and Crew
On the night of 14 April 1912, midway through her maiden voyage, the seemingly unsinkable Titanic hit an iceberg, sustaining a 300-feet gash as six compartments were wrenched open to the Atlantic Ocean. In little over two hours, the palatial liner nose-dived to the bottom of the sea. More than 1,500 people perished in the freezing waters. But who were they? In Titanic Lives, Richard Davenport-Hines brings to life the stories of the men who built and owned the ship, the crew who serviced her and the passengers of all classes who sailed on her.
4.7 out of 5 based on 6 reviews
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Omniscore:
|
| Classification |
Non-fiction |
| Genre |
History |
| Format |
Hardback |
| Pages |
400 |
| RRP |
£20.00 |
| Date of Publication |
January 2012 |
| ISBN |
978-0007321643 |
| Publisher |
HarperPress |
| |
On the night of 14 April 1912, midway through her maiden voyage, the seemingly unsinkable Titanic hit an iceberg, sustaining a 300-feet gash as six compartments were wrenched open to the Atlantic Ocean. In little over two hours, the palatial liner nose-dived to the bottom of the sea. More than 1,500 people perished in the freezing waters. But who were they? In Titanic Lives, Richard Davenport-Hines brings to life the stories of the men who built and owned the ship, the crew who serviced her and the passengers of all classes who sailed on her.
Reviews
The Daily Express
Christopher Silvester
"Splendid … a thought-provoking blend of sharp observation and insight. The author’s intention is to strip away the layers of myth and cliché surrounding the notorious sinking and he does it admirably. Much of it consists of digressions. These include american plutocracy, English snobbism, the politics of Ulster (where the Titanic was built) and about emigration from Europe and its periphery. This is deliberate because Davenport-Hines wants us to understand who these people were so we can appreciate their tragedy."
13/01/2012
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The Independent
Piers Brendon
"Can there be anything more to say? The answer, as Richard Davenport-Hines shows in this rich, incisive and poignant study, is a resounding yes … a marvellous book."
20/01/2012
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The Spectator
David Crane
"This will not be the last book on the Titanic, but it is a safe bet that there will not be a better. It is a grim and harrowing story in its own right, but in Richard Davenport-Hines’s hands it becomes a compelling indictment of the callousness, indignities, greed and exploitation that on both sides of the Atlantic characterised the mass migration of a huge swathe of Europe’s population."
14/01/2012
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The Daily Telegraph
Frances Wilson
"Eloquent and absorbing … The story of the Titanic, he argues, as we reach the centenary of her maiden voyage, is one of class consciousness, class discrimination and class rivalry. Davenport-Hines has no interest in romanticising the journey or idealising the various acts of chivalry that took place during her final moments."
05/01/2012
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The Sunday Telegraph
Jonathan Sale
"As the title suggests, Titanic Lives concentrates on the men, women and children who travelled on and crewed what was then the world’s largest liner. Richard Davenport-Hines gives only a single, heart-wrenching chapter to the collision and sinking … engrossing"
18/01/2012
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The Sunday Times
John Carey
"... for authors lining up to greet the centenary, finding a new angle will be a challenge. Richard Davenport-Hines’s answer is to concentrate on the social and cultural background of the Titanic’s builders, owners, passengers and crew. This does not make for fast storytelling; two thirds of his book elapse before ship and iceberg actually collide. But the gain is in the intimacy that develops between the reader and those on board as we are taken through cabins, dining saloons and bars in the days prior to the wreck. Suspense develops, too ... Though it seems shameful to admit it, the one certain benefit we have derived from the tragedy is a shattering human story that is also, when told as well as Davenport-Hines tells it, utterly compelling."
08/01/2012
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