Torpedoed: The True Story of the World War II Sinking of "The Children's Ship"

by Deborah Heiligman

A true account of the attack and sinking of the passenger ship SS City of Benares, which was evacuating children from England during WWII.

Amid the constant rain of German bombs and the escalating violence of World War II, British parents by the thousands chose to send their children out of the country: the wealthy, independently; the poor, through a government relocation program called CORB. In September 1940, passenger liner SS City of Benares set sail for Canada with one hundred children on board.

When the war ships escorting the City of Benares departed, a German submarine torpedoed what became known as the Children's Ship. Out of tragedy, ordinary people became heroes. This is their story.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Middle Grade, World War II, Historical, War, Childrens

292 pages, Hardcover

First published October 8, 2019

About the author

Deborah Heiligman has been writing for children since she worked at Scholastic News soon after college. Since then she has written more than thirty books for children and teens. Her books include picture books, both fiction and nonfiction, and young adult nonfiction and fiction. Some titles: Charles and Emma: The Darwins' Leap of Faith, a National Book Award finalist; The Boy Who Loved Math: The Improbable Life of Paul Erdos, a Cook Prize Winner and Orbis Pictus honor; Intentions, a Sydney Taylor Award winner, and a picture book series about Tinka the dog. Her latest book is Vincent and Theo: The van Gogh Brothers. For more information please visit www.DeborahHeiligman.com

Reviews

[Darla · Rating 5 out of 5]

The City of Benares set off from Liverpool to deliver CORB (Children's Overseas Reception Board) children, their escorts, and group of paying passengers to Canada to keep them safe during the bombing of Great Britain in September of 1940. Unfortunately a U-boat fired a torpedo that hit the ship right after their naval escort had left to take on another assignment. It was a great tragedy that most passengers did not survive. The ship was not only in the midst of a terrible storm that night, but also had difficulties with their lifeboats. Overall the ship lost 258 of its 406 passengers. The odds were not in their favor. For some parents the letters their children posted to them before leaving port arrived at the same time as the letter of condolences from CORB. I had previously read "Lifeboat 12" by Susan Hood which is a middle grade novel told in verse and based on the survivors in Lifeboat 12 and their extra days waiting for rescue. So I was familiar with the event, but this book gives a comprehensive and thoroughly researched account of the entire event. I would highly recommend both books as companion reads.

[Charlie · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author did a great job in her research and then putting it in a gripping true story that will want you to keep those pages turning. I really like the format that Deborah Heiligman uses to tell this story.
Thanks to Goodreads/author for sending me this book for an honest review in return.

[Sunday · Rating 5 out of 5]

EDGE-of-your-SEAT READ. Brilliantly written. Heiligman's research is thorough but the brilliance is in how she weaves it all together to tell this riveting story—a tragic and courageous adventure our grades 5-9 students will not forget.

Chapters 1-6 introduce the reader to the time period, the context and many of the children aboard the ship City of Benares. There were ninety traveling through a government relocation program (CORB) with adult escorts and then several others traveling with family or family-hired escorts. Their families made the hard decision to send them to the safety of Canada or the U.S., away from the German bombs falling on England. The ship is a fascinating experience for the children as they wait a few days to leave and then begin the journey. Heiligman shares plenty of enchanting details about the children's enjoyment of the ship - the games they played, the endless availability of ice cream eating and so forth. Amidst her introduction to the context of the story, Heiligman also introduces the debate over how to keep this ship with so many children safe - whether the ship should identify itself as carrying so many children or not, whether it should be escorted by war ships or not, whether it should try to move away from territory where German u-boats have sunk other ships as quickly as possible or stay with the convoy. While readers learn about the context for this voyage, they also begin to notice the danger of that period and the tension.

Chapter 7 introduces the German U-boat lurking nearby.

In Chapter 8+ narrates the ship being torpedoed and what follows. Heiligman's picks up speed and FULLY CAPTIVATES THE READER for the next 200 pages! (AND just a heads up, the drama of this story does not end with the rescue immediately after the City of Benares sinks because one lifeboat of survivors is overlooked.)

The DESIGN OF THIS BOOK is notable for the many aspects that will appeal to 5th-9th grade readers. The chapters are mostly brief and each is broken up into short sections. In the first seven chapters there are black and white photos that give the reader just enough information to help them visualize what's going on. Then chapters 8-19 have charcoal-looking illustrations of the tragedy, struggle, courage that occurred as the ship began to sink and the passengers attempted to escape and survive. Then for chapters 20-27 there's nothing--just printed text. These chapters describe what happened to Lifeboat 12 (I don't want to give away too much). The final chapters again include actual photos of the surviving children and so forth.

Heiligman’s THANK YOU notes and lists of SOURCES are worthy of reading through as well—they serve to reveal how thorough her research was and assure the reader of accuracy and authority. (Her “thank you” section has a journey at sea theme ;).

I’d BOOK TALK THIS with students in late 5th – 9th grade. How? I’d read aloud the first page of chapter 1 – Heiligman describes the U-boat with the ship of children in its sights. There’s immediate tension and suspense. Your students will want to know what happens next. A note of caution, though – a lot of children died in this tragedy. I’d take this into consideration when recommending to particular students.

[Yibbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of all the tragedies at sea during the second world war, this is one of the saddest and least known.
The opening paints a picture of the uncertainty of life in England under the threat of constant bombardment. Then she shows each family agonizingly weighing the dangers at home against the dangers at sea. Would they send their children through dangerous waters to the safety of Canada, all of them, just some of them? It is filled with minute details about the lives and emotions of the children and their parents.
The details of the sinking and rescue are heartbreaking and amazing. So many people sacrificed so selflessly for each other. It is a beautiful heroic story.
The only complaint I have to make is that the author inserts odd asides or hints into the narrative rather frequently. She likes to point out that some little act or event will have drastic consequences in a few days, hours, or minutes. Then she also likes to point out, directly, how heartbreaking this or that event is, was, or would be. It interrupts the natural flow of the story.
I would recommend it for even a fairly young audience as it is very delicate as it discusses the numerous deaths. The language is completely clean.

[Keturah Lamb · Rating 3 out of 5]

*listened to audio*

This sort of book is the kind of tragedy kin to the children's crusade. Inspirational, yes. But mostly heart wrenching.

One part I want to reflect further upon is the little girl who did not feel the experience to be traumatizing... because she knew she needn't be worried. And yet her siblings were traumized, as were every other survivor.

Is trauma merely how we perceive or handle experiences? Furthermore, can trauma be good if born of healthy, human emotions shattered?

[DaNae · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brutal, heroic, mesmerizing, devastating.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an impressive piece of writing. Not just of nonfiction writing - of writing. The pacing is jerky in places, particularly in the beginning, but the writing is understated in a way that’s beautiful - that makes this work about its content, not its prose or its author.

The waves kept coming. A few adults were able to grab some children and hold them above the waves, but Bess watched child after child drown right in front of her.

I’d never read about this particular boat before, or about Mary Cornish (I’d remember if I had, she’s impossible to forget). Their stories are shocking and immersive. There’s a grimness in the subject matter that gives the book heft, makes its importance obvious.

And yet the year is 1940 and this is one of many, many ships torpedoed, and a few dozen of millions of murdered children. I’m editorializing here: I think it’s interesting how, in the cover design, the words “World War II” are so much more prominent than the rest of the subtitle. World War II gives any work immediate gravitas. We carry so many impressions of it, and we bring that sense of enormity - of impact, of destruction - to every piece of media on the topic. I’m not saying that this work borrows on our preexisting knowledge - I think it acknowledges it, in telling this story. I think it says, by the simple fact of its being written, that behind every statistic is a child, and a grieving family, and a network of people who were affected.

That this is a work of nonfiction, that everything in it is true, and beautifully and respectfully presented, makes it so that that these people’s deaths are not absorbed in the vastness of the twenty million deaths of the war.

If the Newbery recognizes this, I will be thrilled.

[Deb (Readerbuzz) Nance · Rating 4 out of 5]

In 1940, Germany was bombing England every night, and many civilians were being killed. A group of people made the decision to send children overseas to safety for the duration of the war. One of the ships sent across the Atlantic was called City of Benares, and one hundred children were on board. A German U-boat captain, not realizing there were children on board, decided to torpedo the ship. Many people were killed at once. It was a stormy night and many of the lifeboats were precariously launched, some completely tipping over and spilling all the people into the cold waters. Some survived. These are their stories.

Torpedoed was a mesmerizing read. From the start, it isn't clear who will live and who will die. Author Deborah Heiligman carefully and thoroughly researches this story and takes us right into the lives of these people as they fight for survival.

[Shaye Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Why does death choose some and not others?”

Heavily researched and showcasing numerous individual stories, this nonfiction book details the experiences of many who were aboard the SS City of Benares, a ship carrying almost 100 children to safety (from England to Canada) during WWII. After the torpedo hit, only 13 of the 90 children survived, half the British crew died, and more than half the Indian crew died. But Heiligman shares many personal stories of the passengers, as well as personal letters and details from survivor interviews. One of the most shocking portions of the book was when a lifeboat was missed during the rescue attempt. Families were contacted and told their loved ones had perished, but for at least a week, this little cramped life boat floated along with diminishing supplies, it especially lacked water. But they were finally rescued and lived to tell their tale. Sonya Beck is the oldest still living survivor at 90 years old. And one interesting tidbit shared at the end was the fact that the captain of the U-boat who ordered the torpedoing of the SS City of Benares suffered a mental collapse when he was informed the ship was carrying nearly 100 children. There was simply no way for them to know this fact, at the time.

For more children's literature, middle grade literature, and YA literature reviews, feel free to visit my personal blog at The Miller Memo!

“Why does death choose some and not others?” I’ll share more once I have a day or two to let this digest. But WOW!

[Jordan Henrichs · Rating 5 out of 5]

This read like a suspenseful work of fiction. Heiligman's research is very thorough and her pacing is great. As a parent, this story was gut-wrenching. Thinking about how awful it had to be to come to the decision to send your most precious commodity away from you, overseas, to protect them in time of war, only for something as tragic as this to happen, was too much for me to process at times. There are a lot of characters to keep track of in the beginning, which was a bit challenging, but becomes clearer by the end. The stories of Colin, and Beth, and Bess were the ones I was particularly drawn to. The image of the two girls clinging to the upturned boat is something I will not be able to get out of my head for a while. This is one of the more powerful works of children's nonfiction I have read in a long time, maybe ever.

[Tom Malinowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm always up for learning something new that's factual. My limited knowledge of kids being shipped away to be safer when England was being bombed during WW2 was in Chronicles of Narnia when the kids were sent to the countryside.

I didn't know that kids were shipped to other countries as well such as South Africa, North America, and Canada. About 100 kids were put on the "SS City of Benares" headed to Canada in mid September, 1940. The ship was torpedoed by a German sub and sunk. Not everyone survived.

The author's research is clearly shown. She doesn't pull punches easy foreshadowing which kids do and don't make it.

Absolutely amazing and horrifying.

[Leonard Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Difficult reading for a parent but possibly sets a new standard in children’s non-fiction, at least in demonstrating its power in the kinds of stories that are frequently fictionalized.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well-written historical nonfiction can be just as riveting, if not more, as the latest novel. That is certainly the case here. Not only has Deborah Heiligman conducted abundant research about the sinking of the SS City of Benares in 1940, but she has included so many interesting details that these moments in history come alive, and readers race through the pages to see if anyone from that passenger ship survived. The ship was part of the Children's Overseas Reception Board (CORB), a plan to send British youngsters overseas so that they'd be safe from the bombs and conflict in their homeland. Ninety youngsters were on that ship, but only a handful of them survived the German torpedoes that sank the ship. Readers won't soon forget Mary Cornish, one of the chaperones for the trip or the survivors on Lifeboat 12, a custom-made child's life jacket, and a jewelry box. The careful description of how the once abundant but now limited food and water were doled out among survivors in one lifeboat heightens the tension in the book as does the friendship of two girls who help each other hang on until they're rescued. It's clear that there were many acts of heroism that emerged from this tragedy, and readers will surely finish the book while contemplating the wages of war and so-called "collateral damage" in the form of civilians. I was particularly struck by the shift in tone in the narrative as the young passengers frolic and enjoy their trip, complete with as much ice cream as they could possibly eat, during the first days of the voyage, and then how things turn frightening serious as the ship must be abandoned and they're fighting for their lives against all sorts of odds. I had never heard of this particular event or this ship, but I relished every single word in this account, partly because those individual stories make it so personal.

[Joan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heiligman is really good at writing YA nonfiction! This is shown by the numerous awards her books have won over the years. The secret seems to be that she really gets personally inside her research. For example, this book has a photo of the author with Sonia Beach Williams in the Church that Sonia, one of the few children survivors, got married in. She also credits Mrs. Williams with the philosophical comment that she kept cheerful because “I was torpedoed. I am resilient.” (p. 272). Heiligman made certain to show the people as three dimensional figures by noting that the captain of the U-boat had a mental collapse when he found out that he had torpedoed a boat filled with children.

This was a complicated recounting, with many moving parts and stories of individuals to trace. Sometimes it was a bit hard to keep track of the various people involved. However, I don’t see how anyone else could have done a better job. The story was a multifaceted one. For that reason, I appreciated the list of who was who in the front of the book. If only for the concern she expressed at least 3 different times for the lack of information about the Lascars, Indian (India) men who made up a large part of the crew, this book deserves 5 stars. I hope she gets her wish and can write a new edition with more information about the “invisible” lascars! While she didn’t make a big deal about it, many children who did survive were from the paying (likely if not well to do, certainly richer than the typical CORB (Children Overseas Reception Board) child. They often had warmer clothes on and were better nourished to begin with, both of which were vital elements among those who survived. Another item that jumped out to me as an adult, not the audience for this YA book, was that not one person threatened to sue the CORB group. Some of this was the times, who sued in the middle of war? Another part was the national character: parents wrote to the CORB, asking for little mementos of their loss, and the CORB people genuinely tried to fill their request. One child’s parents asked if a wreath could be placed on the spot and the answer was that it was impossible since no one would know a ship’s route till it left because of wartime secrecy and ended kindly with advising them to consider the entire ocean a marker for their child’s memory. We Americans would be so worried about lawsuits that the kindness and empathy would have been skipped. Maybe someday we can regain the kind part of our national character. Highly recommended for true adventure stories; history on a small, tragic part of WWII; boat stories; and true stories with children as the initiators of much of the action.

[Andreea Balanici · Rating 3 out of 5]

I cried while reading this book because I knew what had happened to the children on the SS City of Benares.
And I was frustrated for the exact same reason: because I knew literature could have done more.

The story itself is devastating. The problem, for me, is how the book often moves too quickly through the most important moments. Instead of staying inside the events and letting them unfold, the narration summarizes, explains or shifts away just when it should slow down. I was told that something was tragic instead of being allowed to fully feel it.

I kept wishing the author would trust the reader more with silence, with stillness, with unresolved horror. The tragedy felt filtered and softened by constant explanation when it should have been left raw.

This is a well-researched and important book, and the history alone is enough to break your heart. But I cried because I already knew the story and I felt frustrated because the writing never fully matched the weight of what it was describing.

[Jett · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was good but really slow at the end. It had no ending it felt like. I liked the characters. I also liked that the climax was there for a long time so it was really hard to get bored. Overall it was a decent book and I would recommend it to others.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informative, well written, and well researched.

[Robyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Torpedoed

As a lover of history, this was a great read. While it might be a middle school book, it was more than enough to hold my attention. As mentioned in the blurp, it is "A true account of the attack and sinking of the passenger ship SS City of Benares, which was evacuating children from England during WWII."

War is a terrible thing.

4 stars

Happy REading!

[Matthew B · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book on YALSA's Award for Excellence in Nonfiction, and I listened to the book as an audiobook on the Libby App. I thought the audio was fine, and unlike other texts, the historical and informational nature of this text didn't require the narrator to grapple with many different variations in voices. This book follows the recent trend of highlighting an event from a well-known period (WWII) which otherwise is not that well-known, namely the sinking of a vessel carrying children from the UK to Canada by the German navy. The author skillfully uses the characterization technique, which is common to fiction, to create an array of characters on both sides (UK and German) which become intriguing and interesting to the reader/listener as their back stories are woven in with the sinking of the vessel which is the main account of the narrative.

[Amy Hesterman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Torpedoed reads like historical fiction. Interesting characters. Cliff hangers at the end of each chapter. Then you are reminded that this really happened and you realize that many lives were forever changed by this event. This is an important part of WW2 history that I am grateful our kids can learn about from reading this book. Very well written and easy to follow for middle grade readers. Ideal for 5th grade on up.

[Barbara A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gripping story. Reminded me of the drama and pathos I encountered when I read A Night to Remember over 50 years ago. This is affecting and doesn’t spare the reader. Highly recommended.

[Danette · Rating 4 out of 5]

My 6 year old said, "This is going to be a sad book." It was but it was also an inspiring book of heroism and courage during a terrible disaster.

Read to my children at lunch.

[Sarai · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had read a book about the bombing of the City of Benares before, a fiction-based-on-historical events, so I had a bit of background on this story. The book kept me hooked. I wasn't sure at the beginning who had survived and who had not, so that brought a lot of tension to the story. I appreciated the photographs and would have preferred to see more of those rather than the illustrations (or just no illustrations even if photographs could not be found). This will be a good book for a school visit.

Book Description:
From award-winning author Deborah Heiligman comes Torpedoed, a true account of the attack and sinking of the passenger ship SS City of Benares, which was evacuating children from England during WWII.

Amid the constant rain of German bombs and the escalating violence of World War II, British parents by the thousands chose to send their children out of the country: the wealthy, independently; the poor, through a government relocation program called CORB. In September 1940, passenger liner SS City of Benares set sail for Canada with one hundred children on board.

When the war ships escorting the Benares departed, a German submarine torpedoed what became known as the Children's Ship. Out of tragedy, ordinary people became heroes. This is their story.

This title has Common Core connections.

[Pumkin pie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'll, admit, I didn't have very high expectations for this book. But, it pleasantly surprised me! I learned a lot of information, and it was a very captivating story that I could really get into.
It's World War II, and England is sending the children away to try and escape the German bombs. Everyone goes to somewhere different; some go to Canda, others the US, some Paris, still others to elsewhere! There is always the chance of them not making it, but it's a hard decision that the parents have to deal with. Unfortunately, that's what happened to the City of Barnes when it was hit with a German torpedo with thousands of children aboard. This is their story.
A good story, it is a nice read with many pictures and lots of detail. The whole family will enjoy this read. Happy Reading!

[Murray · Rating 3 out of 5]

This 2019 finalist for Excellent in YA Nonfiction award tells of the 1940 September voyage of the SS City of Benares from Liverpool, England to Canada and the aftermath of being torpedoed by a German U-Boat. There were 100 children on board the ship most of them were part of the British CORB program. The Children's Overseas Reception Board was designed to give English children a safe haven in British Territories during WWII away from the Nazi bombing campaign. The second half of the book is a survival story of those on rafts and lifeboats waiting to rescued in less than ideal circumstance and what they did to prevent themselves from dying from exposure. An excellent read for Tweens (10-14 years of age) who love history, especially WWII history.

[Thomas Bell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good book, very informative. Lots of great research went into this.

Also well-written, though at times very sad.

One thing I did not like about the book was the two pages near the end where the author tried to get all philosophical. At this point, let us come to our own decisions about what war and death means...

Nonetheless, great book!

[Deborah]

Riveting, as expected, by a masterful nonfiction storyteller.

[Theresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG, so well researched, easy to follow, suspenseful - but so devastating to read.

[Kourtney · Rating 1 out of 5]

Never received copy to review

[Josie Madden · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book! This true story is deftly cobbled together from dozens of eyewitness and survivor stories but reads like a historical fiction novel. I loved the photos of historical documents as well