Unsinkable

I am fascinated with all things Titanic, so i was excited when I discovered this book. Not bothering with the blurb, everyone knows how a story about the Titanic is going to end, I was surprised that "Unsinkable" was written for younger teens.

The book focuses on four teens aboard the luxury steamship. From different socio economic backgrounds and various parts of the world, Paddy, Alfie, Juliana and Sophie, become acquainted through unexpected circumstances. Each of them were very likeable but they had the own issues and because of their varying statuses, the reader is given a wonderful insight into life aboard the Titanic from the boiler rooms to the grand staircase and everything in between. While I enjoyed each of the teens' stories, show more Paddy's was definitely the one that had the most excitement and adventure as he tried to avoid being discovered as a stowaway.

It is obvious the series is just beginning because the four teens only know each other fleetingly at the moment, so I am expecting their friendship to grow and develop in the subsequent books.

I intended to read something totally different after I finished "Unsinkable", but because the novel ended when Jack Phillips, the senior wireless operator, handed Captain Smith the message about the ice ahead and he placed it unread in his pocket, I decided to set the book aside and continue with the drama and sense of doom surrounding the Titanic and its passengers and crew members. A great start to a new series. show less

The ship won't be going down by the end of the story, and you have to continue the series to find out the names of the four survivors who are introduced in the prologue. Still, there's a satisfying story within the familiar Titanic drama.

We meet the main characters - teens of varying social status each with his or her own "issues" - and see how they end up entwined as passengers on the ship. Since this is the bulk of the story, it feels light on plot, but IF one chooses to read volumes 2 and 3 the character development may be worth it.

Once they meet each other and begin to connect, a short conflict arises that concludes at the end of the volume. This gives a sense of an ending even though you feel you have to read the next book to get show more to the most interesting part: the sinking!

To refresh my memory in book talks:
Julia - daughter of an earl; snobby
Sophia - daughter of a suffragette and embarrassed by her mother's histrionics
Alfie - son of one of the fire stokers, stowed away on the ship to be near his father
Paddy - a stowaway who ended up on the ship by accident in a scuffle with some gangsters.
Danny - Paddy's friend, not on board show less

Definitely recommended!

Not all books hold their own through a reread, but this one did! Perhaps it was simply my adoration toward the audiobook (if you're going to try this one, I'd beg you to use the audiobook version!) and Paddy's endearing Irish accent, but I found Unsinkable to be just as fun and exciting as I remembered it to be from when I was younger.

Whether you're a historical fiction reader or not, this series is worth it. It's quick and easy to read (or listen to!), not to mention fun and exciting.

Content warnings: One main character lived a life as a street thief before boarding the Titanic. Another main character’s father has issues with alcohol and gambling, but the author makes it clear that this is a bad thing. The main show more characters find a scrapbook in the storage areas of the ship. It’s filled with accounts of the White Chapel murders, and the author mentions that pieces of clothing and jewelry from victims, as well as human teeth, are included in the scrapbook. It’s apparent that Jack the Ripper is on board the ship, which, of course, is made up. However, the actual killer doesn’t make an appearance in Book 1.

I would hesitate a little to recommend this series for children under 10 because of disturbing content. I did read this book myself when I was around 9 or 10 and ended up doing a Google search about the White Chapel murders. Long story short, it wasn't a good idea. However, my sister, in turn, also read this series when she was 10, and besides being a little afraid in one scene of Book 1, she was fine. With its twists and turns, Korman’s Titanic series is superb for reluctant readers, but parents should read the books themselves first to make sure that the series is something they are okay with their child(ren) reading. show less

Recommended Ages: Gr. 4-7

Plot Summary: Four different kids end up on the Titanic, although none of them expected to. Paddy, who lives on the streets, stole money from a rich gangster. Gilhooley kills his friend Daniel but Paddy escapes onto the ship. Unfortunately, Gilhooley is also on the Titanic.

Alfie's mother left him all alone and with no money. With no other hope, he tracks down his father, who he doesn't know very well because he's been at sea for much of Alfie's life. John will be working on the Titanic and out of desperation for somewhere to belong, Alfie lies about his age and gets a job on the Titanic as well.

Sophie is traveling with her mom as she protests for women's rights. In England, her mom gets arrested, which is no show more surprise. But Sophie also gets arrested. They are forced out of England and end up on the Titanic. Sophie knows her mom is crazy, but when she sees some woman waving like mad, she realizes another girl on the Titanic also has a crazy mother. Will they become friends?

Juliana's father loves adventure and surprises her with a trip on the Titanic. She's excited to be away from her mother, but her dad is a little crazy too. She knows a lot because her father is wealthy. Will she think she's too good to be friends with people who don't have as much money?

When Alfie and Paddy find out there is a murderer on board the Titanic, will they be able to solve the mystery before someone is killed?

Setting: Belfast, England, seas

Characters:
Paddy Burns - 14 y/o, AKA Patrick, "walked 67 miles to Belfast after the last whiskey-driven beating he intended to endure from his stepfather"
Kevin Gilhooley - gangster from Belfast, on the Titanic and knows Paddy stole from him, working with his gangster friends to kill Paddy as payback for stealing from him
Daniel Sullivan - 15 y/o, "orphan who had fled the life of a chimney sweep's climbing boy
Juliana Glamm - 15 y/o, is a little excited to be going away from her mother who embarrasses her by waving hysterically as the Titanic pulls away
Rodney Glamm - Earl of Glamford, Juliana's papa, likes to gamble and participate in extreme sports such as flying an airplane
Mr. Andrews - built the Titanic, talked to Daniel and gave him a challenge that he won't be able to find a way that the Titanic will sink
Alfie Huggins - 15 y/o, pretends to be 16 so he can work on the Titanic to be with his dad, his ma left him with no money and he found his dad
John Huggins - works as a fireman in the boiler room on the Titanic
Sophie Bronson - embarrassed by her mother but gets arrested with her in England
Ms. Amelia Bronson - being kicked out of England for her protesting for women's rights

Recurring Themes: Titanic, survival, friendship, family, child labor, murder, mystery, socioeconomic status

Controversial Issues: none (murder mystery)

Personal Thoughts: As soon as I realized this book was a murder mystery two-thirds of the way through I had to stop reading it at night before bed. This action packed book is clearly part of a trilogy so have all three parts readily available. The characters are fairly well developed but some are more memorable than others. Overall, great action/adventure.

Genre: mystery, action/adventure

Pacing: fast, but murder isn't introduced until 2/3 of the way through
Characters: well developed for having so many characters and storylines
Frame:
Storyline:

Activity: show less

My third graders are really enthusiastic about Gordon Korman’s books, so when I found this historical fiction novel at Savers, I was tempted to see just what it was all about. The author does a superb job of weaving factual information about the Titanic into the story and describing the majestic ship, the Titanic, as the backdrop for the intrigue that occurs. The story centers around four young passengers aboard the ocean liner, as Paddy, a stowaway, tries to elude a couple of mean gangsters that are hot on his trail. While on board, he meets Alfie, an underage steward, who seeks employment to be near his father working in the bowels of the ship. The boys encounter Sophie, whose mother is a women’s suffrage activist, as they are show more extradited to return to America by the after being arrested. And then they meet Julie, whose aristocratic life of privilege is so unlike their own.
Because this book is the first of a trilogy, I was disappointed to find that a complete resolution to the gangster problem is not achieved by the end of the novel, and one must read books two and three in order to learn about Paddy’s fate, as well as the rest of the passengers aboard this ‘unsinkable’ ship. show less

Really good. It shows a decent array of perspectives about the culture and climate of the time and a nice range of different classes of passengers. I could really do without the Jack the Ripper subplot, but whatever.

A well written book that allowed the reader to delve into various parts of social history around the time of the Titanic being built and preparing to set sail (1912). I liked the way Korman has written around the four main characters and built the plots to work along with the glory surrounding the launching of the Titanic. As a result of my enjoyment reading this book i have source book 2. I agree with Mom's review and her take on the book. Because I am a Mum as well and felt that my son would like this book, but he didn't get as much enjoyment from it, due to the fact that he has little understanding of social history around that time. We have focused on the concept of the Titanic being unsinkable and discussed the scratch on Daniel's show more arm in relation to the compartments in the hull and how these can be closed off in unison etc. We will then perhaps branch off into social history e.g suffragettes, social class etc. show less