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Queen Mary 2: The Greatest Ocean Liner of Our Time
Celebrating the launch of the Cunard Line's latest flagship, this richly illustrated look at the Queen Mary 2 documents the construction of the vessel, from initial design to christening, and looks at the ship's lavish interiors, stunning array of amenities, passenger accommodations, and more. 20,000 first printing.
208 pages, Hardcover
First published April 1, 2004
23 people want to read
About the author
John Maxtone-Graham
33 books16 followersJohn Maxtone-Graham has written numerous works, including The Only Way to Cross—“the bible of the ship buffs"—Normandie, and France/Norway. He spends six months lecturing aboard ships. Ashore, he lives in New York City.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
August 28, 2025
This book will be of special interest to those who have sailed on this ship and perhaps useful to some extent for those considering a Queen Mary 2 voyage.
Much of the book seems like a public relations effort commisioned by Cunard and its parent company Carnival, but it's more than just a puff piece. It was published shortly after Queen Mary 2 was launched, so it served to introduce the voyaging public to the newest liner . . . and the last real ocean liner that has been launched. Will there ever be another? TBD.
The author had a long career as a writer about ocean liners and the companies that operated them. This book came toward the end of his life. I highly recommend his earlier The Only Way to Cross, a history of the great ocean liners written before Queen Mary 2 was designed and launched.
This book follows the several years of conception and creation of the ship. The process is fascinating and the photos are impressive. One needs not be a fan of ships to be intrigued by the industrial might required to do the job. Again the question arises . . . can it be done again? The current cruise ships require the same sort of manufacturing expertise -- but what you get is an ugly apartment building on a barge, not a thing of beauty.
I don't expect anyone not interested in ships and the ocean to seek out this book, but if you do, I will repeat what I said when reviewing Maxtone-Graham's The Only Way to Cross:
". . . In any event, if you enjoyed The Only Way to Cross, get yourself to Cunard and The Queen Mary 2 in New York or Southampton and take a VOYAGE (not a cruise) -- that means cross the Atlantic -- seven days. I'm not saying you can't go other places on The Queen Mary 2 -- nothing wrong with going on to Hamburg or Norway, or all around the British isles, or whatever -- but if you do anything at all, you MUST cross the Atlantic, because that's what ocean liners were designed to do . . . and there's only one left!
"There's PLENTY to do on that voyage, and since it can be cheaper than a plane ticket, why not? Food and lodging included! (I've done it four times, plus once on to Hamburg, and now I want to do it again!) . . ."
Much of the book seems like a public relations effort commisioned by Cunard and its parent company Carnival, but it's more than just a puff piece. It was published shortly after Queen Mary 2 was launched, so it served to introduce the voyaging public to the newest liner . . . and the last real ocean liner that has been launched. Will there ever be another? TBD.
The author had a long career as a writer about ocean liners and the companies that operated them. This book came toward the end of his life. I highly recommend his earlier The Only Way to Cross, a history of the great ocean liners written before Queen Mary 2 was designed and launched.
This book follows the several years of conception and creation of the ship. The process is fascinating and the photos are impressive. One needs not be a fan of ships to be intrigued by the industrial might required to do the job. Again the question arises . . . can it be done again? The current cruise ships require the same sort of manufacturing expertise -- but what you get is an ugly apartment building on a barge, not a thing of beauty.
I don't expect anyone not interested in ships and the ocean to seek out this book, but if you do, I will repeat what I said when reviewing Maxtone-Graham's The Only Way to Cross:
". . . In any event, if you enjoyed The Only Way to Cross, get yourself to Cunard and The Queen Mary 2 in New York or Southampton and take a VOYAGE (not a cruise) -- that means cross the Atlantic -- seven days. I'm not saying you can't go other places on The Queen Mary 2 -- nothing wrong with going on to Hamburg or Norway, or all around the British isles, or whatever -- but if you do anything at all, you MUST cross the Atlantic, because that's what ocean liners were designed to do . . . and there's only one left!
"There's PLENTY to do on that voyage, and since it can be cheaper than a plane ticket, why not? Food and lodging included! (I've done it four times, plus once on to Hamburg, and now I want to do it again!) . . ."
March 25, 2016
[Note: This book was provided free of charge by Carpe Diem Books in exchange for an honest review.]
Although it is highly unlikely that a plebian in a hurry such as I am would ever take passage in the elegant quarters of this ocean liner, this book fulfills every expectation for a wide variety of readers. Those who have taken the transatlantic cruise will appreciate this tome as a momento of their trip, those who appreciate elegant and sophisticated writing and photography will appreciate the glamorous and yet realistic portrayal of the whole process of the conception and construction of the Queen Mary 2 within the whole context of the history of the Cunard White Star lines. It is a book that shows the achievement that results when corporate largesse with the access granted to writer and photographer mix with an obvious savoire faire on the part of both to provide full credit to a large number of people involved with the design and construction and operation of the ship to produce a polished book that is to be enjoyed whether it is read in a library or picked up with pleasure from a collection of fine coffee table books. With its generous margins, gorgeous photography, and cultured text written with a style that includes sufficient bons mots in French and Latin, besides understated but frequent references to the jargon of the nautical language in which the author is a fluent writer, to demonstrate the author’s capabilities in lending this book an air of exquisite class.
The contents of this book are well-organized with a clear aim at presenting the whole picture of the design and construction and operation of the Queen Mary 2 in light of the many superlatives involving its size within the larger context of the company as a whole, and indeed within the larger whole of transatlantic oceanic travel. The author begins with a discussion of the challenges of designing a once-in-a-generation ocean liner like the QM2, and then discusses some corporate history about the acquisition of Cunard by Carnival Lines and the resulting goal of the parent company of burnishing the brand reputation of its once premier line. After this the author spends several chapters discussing the beginnings of Cunard in mid 19th century Canada, the contrast between early shipboard experience between the early days and the time of the Lusitania and its sister ships the early 1900’s, the challenge of the Germans to Cunard superiority by virtue of their own speed and splendor, and the first three Queen ships of the Cunard line and their honorable reputation. As an aside, I had been aware of this splendor since our retired pastor [1] had once taken a splendid journey from New York to Southampton on the Queen Mary when he traveled to the Bricket Wood campus of Ambassador College as an upperclassman and had recounted its opulence and his reflections on it as one of the most meaningful experiences of his life. After this the author discusses contemporary shipboard experience for travelers on a Cunard vessel before detailing the complicated construction of Hull #G32 on the coast of Brittany, the emergence of the Queen Mary 2 in drydock, its finale and debut, which included a tragic accident as well as an example of the Queen’s weather when the ship was formally christened, followed by a look at the luxurious ship life on the Queen Mary 2 for those fortunate enough to enjoy its pleasures.
In reading a well-crafted book such as this one [2], the reader is able to determine what separates a book that is a genuine work of art such as this one from more workmanlike books that can be read and tossed aside into a library without a second thought or a second read. For one, the book shows an admirable and consistent attention to detail, from the color scheme of the photographs to the precision of the language used, to the obvious and even flamboyant competence of everyone involved in the writing and production of this book, to the choice of paper and the generosity shown in the friendly margins, the obvious concern to give credit freely to people ranging from Carnival corporate executives to the ship master to even the stewards and dancers that work on the ship themselves. This book manages to be both accessible as well as immensely cultured, democratic in its wide praise of all involved in the newbuilding of the Queen Mary 2 as well as being a stellar representative of an aristocratic imperial culture, even as it provides multicultural praise to the Americans, French, Norwegians, and others involved in the design, construction, and operation of this vessel, its restaurants, its turbines, its bas-reliefs and planetariums, and everything else that is involved in the conception, construction, and operation of the Queen Mary 2. This is the sort of book that one picks up because of its elegant and attractive exterior, appreciates because of the excellence of its texts and photography, buys because of its obvious value, shares with plenty of appreciative guests, and reflects upon as an example of a book that serves many interests simultaneously as a naval history and corporate history that is also a memorable work in its own right and as being evidence of the attention to detail that allows either a ship or a book to become a masterpiece.
[1] See, for example:
https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
[2] See for example:
https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
Although it is highly unlikely that a plebian in a hurry such as I am would ever take passage in the elegant quarters of this ocean liner, this book fulfills every expectation for a wide variety of readers. Those who have taken the transatlantic cruise will appreciate this tome as a momento of their trip, those who appreciate elegant and sophisticated writing and photography will appreciate the glamorous and yet realistic portrayal of the whole process of the conception and construction of the Queen Mary 2 within the whole context of the history of the Cunard White Star lines. It is a book that shows the achievement that results when corporate largesse with the access granted to writer and photographer mix with an obvious savoire faire on the part of both to provide full credit to a large number of people involved with the design and construction and operation of the ship to produce a polished book that is to be enjoyed whether it is read in a library or picked up with pleasure from a collection of fine coffee table books. With its generous margins, gorgeous photography, and cultured text written with a style that includes sufficient bons mots in French and Latin, besides understated but frequent references to the jargon of the nautical language in which the author is a fluent writer, to demonstrate the author’s capabilities in lending this book an air of exquisite class.
The contents of this book are well-organized with a clear aim at presenting the whole picture of the design and construction and operation of the Queen Mary 2 in light of the many superlatives involving its size within the larger context of the company as a whole, and indeed within the larger whole of transatlantic oceanic travel. The author begins with a discussion of the challenges of designing a once-in-a-generation ocean liner like the QM2, and then discusses some corporate history about the acquisition of Cunard by Carnival Lines and the resulting goal of the parent company of burnishing the brand reputation of its once premier line. After this the author spends several chapters discussing the beginnings of Cunard in mid 19th century Canada, the contrast between early shipboard experience between the early days and the time of the Lusitania and its sister ships the early 1900’s, the challenge of the Germans to Cunard superiority by virtue of their own speed and splendor, and the first three Queen ships of the Cunard line and their honorable reputation. As an aside, I had been aware of this splendor since our retired pastor [1] had once taken a splendid journey from New York to Southampton on the Queen Mary when he traveled to the Bricket Wood campus of Ambassador College as an upperclassman and had recounted its opulence and his reflections on it as one of the most meaningful experiences of his life. After this the author discusses contemporary shipboard experience for travelers on a Cunard vessel before detailing the complicated construction of Hull #G32 on the coast of Brittany, the emergence of the Queen Mary 2 in drydock, its finale and debut, which included a tragic accident as well as an example of the Queen’s weather when the ship was formally christened, followed by a look at the luxurious ship life on the Queen Mary 2 for those fortunate enough to enjoy its pleasures.
In reading a well-crafted book such as this one [2], the reader is able to determine what separates a book that is a genuine work of art such as this one from more workmanlike books that can be read and tossed aside into a library without a second thought or a second read. For one, the book shows an admirable and consistent attention to detail, from the color scheme of the photographs to the precision of the language used, to the obvious and even flamboyant competence of everyone involved in the writing and production of this book, to the choice of paper and the generosity shown in the friendly margins, the obvious concern to give credit freely to people ranging from Carnival corporate executives to the ship master to even the stewards and dancers that work on the ship themselves. This book manages to be both accessible as well as immensely cultured, democratic in its wide praise of all involved in the newbuilding of the Queen Mary 2 as well as being a stellar representative of an aristocratic imperial culture, even as it provides multicultural praise to the Americans, French, Norwegians, and others involved in the design, construction, and operation of this vessel, its restaurants, its turbines, its bas-reliefs and planetariums, and everything else that is involved in the conception, construction, and operation of the Queen Mary 2. This is the sort of book that one picks up because of its elegant and attractive exterior, appreciates because of the excellence of its texts and photography, buys because of its obvious value, shares with plenty of appreciative guests, and reflects upon as an example of a book that serves many interests simultaneously as a naval history and corporate history that is also a memorable work in its own right and as being evidence of the attention to detail that allows either a ship or a book to become a masterpiece.
[1] See, for example:
https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
[2] See for example:
https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
August 12, 2023
The Queen Mary 2 was launched by Cunard in 2003 and is now the only remaining ocean liner in service. That history of Atlantic travel via ocean liner is a rich one, including names like Titanic, Normandie, Imperator, and the original Queen Mary. The Queen Mary 2 is a nod to all of that history, taking passengers on regular voyages across the North Atlantic.
Maxtone-Graham is a well-known author and lecturer, focusing on ocean liners. (e.g "The Only Way to Cross"). In this giant coffee table book, he does a deep dive into the details of the QM2, along with a deep dive into the history of Cunard. For QM2 wannabees, or lovers of the history of ocean liners, this is a must read volume.
Maxtone-Graham is a well-known author and lecturer, focusing on ocean liners. (e.g "The Only Way to Cross"). In this giant coffee table book, he does a deep dive into the details of the QM2, along with a deep dive into the history of Cunard. For QM2 wannabees, or lovers of the history of ocean liners, this is a must read volume.
May 2, 2025
interesting read
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews