The Seasonal Reading Challenge discussion

This is the discussion thread for the Spring 2018 Group Read Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania. Please post your comments here. This thread is not restricted to those choosing this book for task 20.10, feel free to join in the discussion. Warning- spoilers ahead!

The requirement for task 20.10: You must participate in the book's discussion thread below with at least one post about the contents of the book or your reaction to the book after you have read the book.

I finished reading Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania last night. I rated it 4 stars. The story gave a very good narrative account of the passengers going aboard, the submarines in the vicinity, and the general atmosphere of the time. I usually don't like non-fictional history accounts but the author did a good job of bringing this lesser known marine fatality to life.

What an excellent book! I like a good story, and so often non-fiction falls short for me, but this one read like a novel, a real page-turner at that. The passengers, their experience aboard this beautiful ship, the captain, politics of the wartime era, and much more that went into the entire Lusitania story, all brought to life, right up to the tragic sinking, the survivors’ experiences, and the entry of the US into the war. This book was a great choice in this category!

This book was already on my To-Read shelf so I was happy to read it. I've read lots of books about WWII but very little about the first World War so this was very interesting. As in the two other Erik Larson books I've read, he gives you so much more than just a timeline depiction of the event, you get to know the people involved and the climate of the times.

I have seen this book on shelves at B&N since it first came out and it never really grabbed me as something I would be interested in reading, mostly because I read more fiction than non-fiction, especially when it comes to history. So I decided to embrace the challenge of reading a book I might not necessarily have picked on my own. And I'm really glad I did. Like others, I have read alot more WWII books but virtually nothing about WWI. I found the book engrossing and educational and it has motivated to me to give more historical non-fiction a chance.

This was a re-read for me.

I read it when it first came out, and I remember not really liking it, but I could not remember why. So, I gave it another shot-unfortunately I still stand on my first reaction of not really feeling it.

I will give it 3 stars, because I didn't hate it, it's just not one of my favorites by him. I have read all his other books, and really enjoyed them all. There is just something about the writing and story progression that made me constantly put it down and reach for one of my other books. I am a self-proclaimed "history geek", so I actually enjoyed that sense of it.

I seem to be the only one, who has posted so far, that feels this way. I am curious to see some more responses on this feed,and maybe I can understand what is that I don't like, that I just can't put my finger on!

Well. If this book is a good example of narrative nonfiction then perhaps it is just not the genre for me. I thought the idea of this genre was to bring a story to life, but I actually found this an extremely dull read, far less exciting than many conventional nonfiction books I’ve read.

It was so, so slow to begin. I don’t care what possessions half the passengers on the ship brought with them, particularly when it has no relevance to the events described in the book. The people he describes actually seemed less real to me than characters in many works of fiction I’ve read.

A disappointing read for me, though I’m interested in the subject matter of Larson’s other books so it’s possible I’ll give this genre and author one more try.

Book wrote: "Well. If this book is a good example of narrative nonfiction then perhaps it is just not the genre for me. I thought the idea of this genre was to bring a story to life, but I actually found this a..."

Do try his other books, The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America was my favorite. Comparing the two books, it seems like they were written by different people. I hope you will give him another try!

I agree w Book that the stuff on board & some of the passenger backstories were monotonous, but I really liked this overall. Not as much as Devil in the White City, more than Garden of Beasts or whatever it's called.

I wasn't expecting to be so intrigued by the U-boat stuff! I found the culture aboard the submarines, and the way boat 20 moved through its missions pretty interesting. All of that was the strongest part to me, which I never would have predicted going into this.

@Joanne, it’s great to hear his other books are better as I had high hopes for this. I’ll be sure to check out the one you recommend.

I finished Dead Wake last night and for the most part found it to be an interesting read. As a Canadian, we have had many reminders of our participation in the "Great War" during the past few years. My grandfather was a veteran of WW1 and my dad was in the military as well.
I knew the Americans stayed out of WW1 until 2017 and I also knew that the Luisitania disaster was a bit of a turning point for them. What I didn't understand was the length of time in between. I also found it disturbing to hear the hypothesis that the British admiralty did not protect the Luisitania because they were hoping to draw the Americans into the war. I was also dismayed with the way the Captain was treated. Politics in action!
So I liked the book in the long run - glad I read it.

Just finished it and agree with Laura above over the politics. Captain Turner was dealing with enough without being used as a scapegoat.

And as much as I know that everyone deals with grief, loss, and tragedy differently, I found myself indignant on his behalf in how some of the passengers approached him afterwards.

All in all I found this to be a mixed reading of dull and engrossing.

I gave Dead Wake three stars. While I enjoyed it, I agree with some of the other reviewers that there was too much detail on what passengers brought on board which kept me from becoming emotionally involved in the narrative. I also felt that the side story of the American President's courtship detracted from the story of the Lusitania.

Erik Larson, a leader in popular narrative fiction, seems to create an experience for the reader immersing them in the past instead of trying to concentrate on scholarship. I enjoyed the historical "story" of the book but found Larson's lack of curiosity frustrating. Why did the British allow the Lusitania to enter dangerous waters unescorted and without clear warnings although the Admiralty's Room 40 was following the location of Captain Schwinger's U-boat through encrypted messages? What was the second explosion after the Lusitania was torpedoed? While I enjoyed the book, I think Larson missed an opportunity to expand the published information about the Lusitania.

I did know that the sinking of the Lusitania was the turning point for the US entering WWI; however, I did not realize how much time passed after the sinking before the US entered the war.

I did like the alternating points of view. Captain Schwinger's viewpoint was especially interesting.

I finished this on audio yesterday. I thought that the narration was good but like others have stated, I've enjoyed other Erik Larson books more. Particularly the Devil in White City. But still, I did Dead Wake and gave it four stars. I remarked in my review that at times it was almost unbearably sad and at others it was infuriating. I also never realized how long it was in between the Lusitania and the US entry into WWI. I always thought it was a quicker progression. The details kept my attention during my listen and I thought the narrative moved along well, even though we knew where it was going to end.

i think this book is a better than good example of narrative non-fiction. I have also read The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America. For me this is a re read because i am still waiting for a library copy of the only group read I haven't read. Larson is a great storyteller - yes some of the passenger narrative is less than engaging but overall i think he gives a well rounded view of the incident and the decisions surrounding it

Just finished Dead Wake this afternoon on audio. I have mixed feelings about it. Glad to learn so much about what, as the author said, was for him previously only "tucked somewhere between the Civil War and Pearl Harbor [in the dusty timeline of world events installed in his brain back in high school]." On the other hand, there were several laundry lists of passenger luggage and events that bored the heck out of me. Still, time focused on the submarine commander and the Cunard Line captain added a nice touch to the drama playing out.

This was a re-read for me and i enjoyed it as much as I did the first time through. It's hard getting to know the passengers through Larson's sketches, knowing what is coming for them as we do. What struck me this time through was a sub-theme of how many random circumstances had to conspire to bring the Lucy and U-20 together at that spot at that moment - delays and coincidences and oddities.

I enjoyed the writing style, however the topic didn’t captivate my attention. I listened to the audiobook, it has great narration. I just found myself paying more attention to my surroundings than the book.

I actually loved this book, including all the backstories of the passengers that Larson included. No, they weren't necessary, but without them, and colorful details of the sort, you might as well read a textbook.

I thought it was fascinating reading about some people's "luck" - specifically the few people that backed out of the Lusitania at the last minute, like the former Titanic survivor, or the person who would go on to board the Hindenburg later on.

Turner certainly got a raw deal in this. I fully believe the British intentionally left the Lucy out to dry in order to get the US in the war and then blamed it on Turner to cover their tracks. It also seems such a waste to me that Room 40 had all this info, but did nothing with it.

FANTASTIC BOOK! I knew very little about the Lusitania as the "big" ship sinking story seems to has always been the Titanic. It is the one that makes people write romance stories about it and has blockbuster movies made about it. The only thing I remember about it. was that "the sinking of the Lusitania is what got America into WWI.". In fa act, it was a couple years before after its sinking that President Wilson finally made the declaration of war after more American boats/lives had been lost. . I appreciate Larson's book for educating me on that point because I sure didn't learn that in history class. I don;t agree with most here that the writing was slow or uninteresting. I have a particular interest in the early 20th century for some reason and I am drawn to books about that period in history. My interest goes well beyond politics and war. I love reading about the social and cultural history and learning what life was like for people in a certain time period. I enjoy the details of what the passengers possessions were, what they were reading and eating and the clothes they wore. I have to admit I love reading about disaster stories or seeing disaster movies! For me, it is a study in behavior and how people will handle themselves in a disaster. A "What if it were me?' kind of thing too. It was interesting to learn about some of the passengers and their individual histories because I think it makes the event more "real" for me. I also found the details about the U boats interesting. I have to admit I had to put the book down after the section of the sinking, rescue and recovery and Larson's description of the morgue photos. I am an empath and auditory medium so I felt the emotions from them too strongly to continue for a few days. I can't imagine looking at even a few he described, much less all of those bodies that were recovered. Some people might say that was for sensationalism but I think it made it even more tragic, thinking about the lives had been cut short in such a horrible way and for what? So Germany could reign supreme in the ocean waters? I have to admit, even though I didn't like it, i appreciated Larson writing about the German side of the conflict.
Dead Wake had been on my Want To Read list for a long time and I really am glad the SRC chose it for one of the Group Reads Spring Challenge. I learned a lot from the book and if people are saying this is his worst book, I can't wait to see what he wrote that is supposed to be better!

Nonfiction is one of my least favorite genres, but I liked this book. The writing style of Erik Larson is great and it was interesting to learn about the submarines and the whole naval warfare of WWI.

While I really enjoyed reading about ships, submarines and politics, I didn't like some other parts: the story about President Wilson and his second wife or the stories about the passengers (I understand that passenger stories are crucial to the story, but they seemed too detailed to me).

I rated this book 4 stars; I liked it and I am happy that I have read it, but I don't think I'll reread it someday.

I really liked this, but then I do enjoy reading history. I do agree that it was slower in the beginning, but I still found all the detail fascinating. I couldn't help but think of the film and TV show about the Titanic when it got to the chapters about the actual sinking.

As others have remarked, I also hadn't realised there was a two year gap between the sinking of the Lusitania and the entry of the USA into the war.

I didn't know much about the Lusitania. Though I enjoy history, I really don't know much about this time. I hadn't known that President Wilson had been a widower, and dating. I thought Room 40 was interesting.

An amazing book, I couldn’t put it down! I felt like I was a part of the voyage and being an historian I knew the end result but it’s like watching a train wreck I couldn’t look away. Even knowing the end result my heart broke for all involved especially after feeling like I spent a week on the voyage with them. Though I knew Wilson dated during his presidency, thanks to the movie American President, I didn’t realize it was pre US entering the war. I’m glad he mentioned the Zimmerman letter being the final nail in the coffin that caused the US to enter the war. Also I was shocked Churchill went to his grave putting the blame on Turner instead of admitting the truth. I could go on and on, just an excellent book.

I had read Thunderstruck previously, similar to this book in it's "Disaster at sea" theme. But Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania was a better reading experience for me. The criss-crossing of German submarine life with the British/American passengers, and the brief forays into Wilson and Churchill, was mostly exciting. (Too much listing of what the passengers wore, I thought. I suppose such description adds to the "reality" aspect of their lives, a glimpse into their souls -- but, then, when it's all the reader has of them, something is still missing.)

German submarine life had to be horrible. (I am told American submarine life in WWII was awful, so I assume the Germans of WWI had much the same angst.) The men, and especially the captain as Larsen describes him, had to put any sense of ethics on hold just to get through each hour underwater -- had to keep their sense of mission ahead of anything else. No thought of innocent lives they were extinguishing -- how else could they endure the horrific circumstances they found themselves in? Still, I find it very hard to sympathize with them.

The unanswered question of the second explosion still perplexes me. Larsen's matter-of-fact statement that it had to be the steam inside the ship answers that mystery too off-handedly.

Still, I did not feel a let-down on how the various, intricate themes came together. (I have to say, I was sceptical due to hwo such a letdown was a large part of my dissatisfaction with "Thunderstruck.") Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania is a Larsen success, despite a few annoyances.

READ 60

It is amazing to me that being a little late, not running quite as fast, pride and so many other things lead to such a disaster. The amount of research that went into writing this accounting of all the aspects of the Last Crossing of the Lusitania was exceptional. I do wish that there had been a map of the inside of the ship included as he mentions several locations where events took place.

I had to stop reading several times when the actual sinking to the ship was described ,it was so difficult to read about the ending of so many lives and of which could have and should have been prevented.

I just finished listening to the audiobook this afternoon. I found this an interesting book, but not necessarily an enjoyable book to listen to. I gave it 3 stars.

Reading the comments above, I'm glad to learn that I'm not the only one who didn't realize that it took two years for the US to enter the war after the sinking of the Lusitania. I remember reading in history class that this was one of the events that drew the US into the war but I had no idea that it took so long to draw the US in.

I enjoyed learning about the various passengers. I didn't know that Alfred Vanderbilt was lost on the Lusitania, for instance. I found myself looking up more information about the passengers that were described in the book. It we hard to hear that so many children were lost. My heart broke for the mother whose children were in two different places and she had to decide who to go to first when the torpedo struck. I found myself imagining the terror that the passengers must have felt. I think Larson did a good job of capturing the moments after the torpedo struck and making it real to the reader.

I found the U-20 sections interesting because history books don't give names to history's villains except high level ones, it seems, and we don't often view history from their perspective. In history class, you learn that the Lusitania was sunk by a German U-boat, but you never learn anything about the captain of that ship or his crew. Larson gives us a glimpse at Captain Schwieger and what life aboard a U-boat must have been like. I never will understand how they could justify targeting a passenger ship, but I realize there is a lot about war that I don't understand.

I found the sections about Wilson somewhat disruptive and disconnected from the rest of the narrative, but I realize that this might be a tool Larson employed to show how disconnected the US was from the European conflict until pulled in by the Lusitania. Admittedly, I often found myself tuned out during these sections.

An interesting read, but not my favorite of this genre. I thought I would enjoy it more than I did, but I'm glad I read it.