Journal Entries #4

A Night to Remember by Walter Lord is getting to a very intense point in the book. Now a little over half way through, the scenes depicted at this point take place between 2-4 hours after the Titanic struck the iceberg. Previously, the crew's attempts to have the 1st class women and children get off the boats in lifeboats quickly and smoothly went down the tubes fast, and as the ship sank more rapidly into the ocean, it was declared by the captain to be "every man for himself"- passengers and crew.
Now, the ship is almost vertical in the water, and everyone is completely hysterical, doing anything they can to escape with their lives and beat the freezing water around them. Almost all of the lifeboats have been lowered and launched, many not even containing 1/3 of their potential number of passengers. Vivid recollections from survivors who were inside the lifeboats recall stories of crewmen rowing the boats having to "beat people off with oars," simply to prevent them from crawling in and capsizing the boats. Now, there is little in the book that is light-hearted or humorous, however it is still interesting despite the seriousness and sadness to see how people managed to survive the Titanic.

Journal Entry #3

In these recent chapters, the book A Night to Remember by Walter Lord, a novel describing in detail the sinking of the Titanic, has become much more dramatic and intense. In the first few chapters, the tone was relaxed and at some times even humorous. The author describes the beginning of the ship's  trip in the first few chapters; everyone was thrilled to be on the "unsinkable" and luxurious Titanic's maiden voyage, especially under the direction if its captain, Captain Smith, who J.P. Morgan himself called a "bearded patriarch," explaining how many of the world's most influential and wealthy business people and artists would alter travel plans to sail in a ship commanded by him.
After the crash however, the mood drastically changes. At first, passengers don't know what to expect. Many in the upper decks think it is a problem with the propeller, but once they realize the severity of the situation the book suddenly turns into a "cliffhanger," leaving the reader constantly wanting to know what happens next. In these parts as well, the stories and events recalled specifically become very sad and hard to comprehend; wives separated from husbands, children separated from parents when entering the lifeboats, and many other examples. Though difficult to read at times, I am looking forward to see where the book will go from here.

Journal Entries #1

My nonfiction book is A Night to Remember written by Walter Lord. The book is a novel written about the sinking of the Titanic, based off of first - hand accounts from people who were there and survived. In the past, I have liked all kinds of reading; if the book is interesting and well written, I would most likely read it. However, nonfiction books are particularly interesting because they help describe in more specific detail experiences in peoples' lives, history, etc. Although fictional stories are enjoyable also, nonfiction stories have always appealed to me for that reason.
I chose this book specifically because the sinking of the Titanic was a major event in history, and it seemed fascinating to learn more about how it happened especially since it was so long ago and most of the survivors are not around. After a very successful movie by James Cameron, people might have misconceptions about what actually happened that night, but reading this story provides a realistic glimpse into the actual things that took place in a very significant event in world history.

Journal Entries #2

So far, A Night to Remember by Walter Lord is a very interesting book. It is fascinating to learn about how the sinking of the Titanic actually happened based off of Lord's interviews with the passengers that were on board and survived. Surprisingly, there are actually many similarities between the story and other sources such as the movie by James Cameron that tries to recreate the event. I was surprised, more than anything, to hear about how casually the majority of the passengers and crew took the crash when it first happened. Passengers with rooms higher up in the ship felt nothing but a light vibration, and were told it was simply a problem with one of the propellers, refusing to even leave their rooms or put on a life jacket. The pieces of iceberg on the decks drew many passengers out from the cabins as they played soccer with the fragments and wondering what happened, expecting it to be nothing serious. However, interviews with crewmen who worked in steerage and in the boiler rooms in the bottom of the ship tell stories about unimaginable amounts of freezing seawater rushing into the ship and narrowly escaping under crowded doors and flooded hallways. The book so far is very intriguing, and I look forward to reading and finding out more.