The Dressmaker

 

On April 15, 1912, after only 4 days into it's maiden voyage, the Titanic sank.  2,223 were on board and
1,503 passengers and crew perished.

There were only 20 lifeboats, although the Titanic had the capability of carrying 64 lifeboats.

Originally, only 48 were planned, however this number was reduced for cosmetic purposes.  Someone decided the decks would look too cluttered, and so only 20 lifeboats were aboard this massive ship.


Technically, this was legal at the time, because lifeboats were only required on the gross register tonnage of a ship, not the number of passengers it could carry.  And so began the first of many mistakes, in the Titanic voyage.

I have read several books on the subject, both fiction and non-fiction, but none of them were quite like The Dressmaker. This book outlines what took place during the ship's sinking, but then takes readers into the aftermath, and focuses on the hearings conducted in New York.

I was fascinated by these hearings, and what came out. I was also fascinated at the attempted cover-ups.  The author did a good job mixing fictional characters who interacted with the actual passengers, "Unsinkable Molly Brown",  Lady Lucile Duff Gordon, and more.

With the anniversary of this disaster coming up this month, I wanted to share a book that might interest other readers who share a love of historical fiction.  I would recommend this one, if you are in the mood to step back in time, and read more about this tragedy.