Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania in Pop Sugar's Annual Ultimate Reading Challenge

Feb 29, 2016 Chris rated it really liked it

Shelves: audiobook, war, nonfiction, history, world-war-i

Nine out of ten stars.
While the Titanic continues to fascinate people, the sinking of the Lusitania gets far less attention. Erik Larson gives it the attention it deserves.
The basics are well known. In May 1915 a German U-boat sank the Cunard liner Lusitania, killing more than 1,100 people. It has been widely speculated that the boat was carrying munitions for the British military, and that's what caused the massive explosion that caused the boat to sink in less than 20 minutes.
Larson tells t Nine out of ten stars.
While the Titanic continues to fascinate people, the sinking of the Lusitania gets far less attention. Erik Larson gives it the attention it deserves.
The basics are well known. In May 1915 a German U-boat sank the Cunard liner Lusitania, killing more than 1,100 people. It has been widely speculated that the boat was carrying munitions for the British military, and that's what caused the massive explosion that caused the boat to sink in less than 20 minutes.
Larson tells the tale from the viewpoints of the crews of both the Lusitania and U-boat 30, as well as the Lusitania's passengers, various members of the British admiralty - including Winston Churchill - and U.S. President Woodrow Wilson. He brings every single person to life with descriptions of their professional and personal lives, their likes and dislikes. Some may find the minutiae unnecessary, such as how many suits a particular passenger had and what materials they were made from, but I found them fascinating and colorful.
He also does a masterful job of building suspense as the two boats move toward their meeting place, even though we all know what is going to happen. His descriptions of the chaos aboard ship and explanations of why the presence of an ample number of lifeboats (in the wake of the Titanic tragedy) and even safety drills turned out to be almost useless are brilliant.
There are many theories about what led to the Lusitania's sinking: the German's set out to destroy the fastest cruise ship then afloat; Churchill's admiralty used the American passengers aboard the ship as bait, allowing the boat to be sunk in order to draw the U.S. into the war; it was just a really lucky shot by the Germans. There is strong evidence to suggest the British knew far more about the Uboat's movements than they let on. And it is also interesting to see into the heads of the men who were running Britain's naval war effort.
The one thing in the book that struck me as not quite necessary is the side story of Woodrow Wilson's love life. The death of his wife in 1914 had left him prostrate with grief until he met Edith Bolling Galt, whom he would eventually marry. His introduction to and growing attraction for Edith is covered thoroughly in the book, right down to large sections of their love letters to one another. While it does somewhat humanize Wilson, it has little to do with the subject at hand.
Scott Brick narrates the audio version of the book, and as always, he is marvelous. ...more

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Apr 22, 2018 Amy rated it liked it

Shelves: non-fiction, audio-book, wwii, book-challenge-2018, audible-deal

This was a non-fiction story about the sinking of the passenger ship, Lusitania, which was torpedoed by a German submarine. The ship had many American tourists on it and ultimately was one of the reasons the USA entered into World War 1.

The Lusitania came after the Titanic, a better known passenger ship sinking. But the Lusitania is just as tragic. Just like the Titanic, it bragged about its prowess prior to its departure, and yet it too, lost more than half its passengers to the ship wreck. The ...more

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Dec 02, 2015 Elaine rated it it was amazing

Shelves: non-fiction

Heartbreaking, but so good! There were so many things I didn't know, and the audio read by Scott Brick was excellent. I had to go to Google images after to see all the people, places, and things discussed. ...more

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Jun 11, 2017 Wendy rated it it was ok

Normally like his books but again could not finish. Bored me to tears and I'm an engineer and normally enjoy a good technical read but good gravy. Snooze. ...more

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