Luck of the Titanic

Immediately from the start, I loved the voice of the narrator Valora Luck. I loved her intelligence, street smarts, quick thinking, athletic abilities, and spunk. This book is one I had a difficult time putting down as the built in historical tension of this tragic event added an increased urgency for me to keep reading.

I felt as if I were aboard the Titanic--this author created a setting that popped to life. I could feel the ship pushing through the ocean, the occasional rolling with the waves, and felt as if I could touch the details of the ocean liner's finery down to the basics of the third class quarters.

The issues of racism played a huge part in Valora's life, especially with the Chinese Exclusion Act preventing her from entering show more the United States to follow her dreams of performing. The way the Chinese were treated on board by the crew and other passengers brought out anger and frustration in me, especially when life boats were sailed half-full and left Valora and her brother and others behind.

I loved the family aspect of this novel and the unexpected friendships that quickly formed. I enjoyed the message of not forcing your own dreams on others just because you think it's best for them. Valora realizes she never truly knew the people that she felt closest too, either because she didn't want to face the truth, or it was hidden from her. show less

Valora Luck is determined to get aboard the Titanic by hook or by crook: she knows her twin brother, Jamie, is on board, and her goal is to convince him to show off their circus skills to a Ringling man, Albert Ankeny Stewart) on board so that he will get them into America, despite the Chinese Exclusion Act. Val has an upward battle, however, and not just because (as readers know) the ship is doomed. Jamie has found his own band of brothers and now prefers coal-shoveling to tightrope acts; Jamie also blames their Chinese father for his harebrained schemes and his drinking, and blames himself for their English mother's death. Luckily, Val is endlessly inventive, and quickly makes an ally in American April Hart, a clothing designer. show more Jamie, too, has an ally in first class, Charlotte Fine. The twins' scrappiness and determination are crucial once the Titanic hits the iceberg and begins to sink, and they face blatant racism when they attempt to get onto the lifeboats.

There have been any number of Titanic books, but by featuring a Chinese-English acrobat, Stacey Lee's book provides a fresh angle on the tragedy.

Quotes

Luxury is like good news, hard to enjoy without someone to share it with. (64)

Don't spend too long looking behind you, or you'll miss out on what's ahead. (Mum's advice, 65)

Isn't that like life? Two people look at the same object but see two different things. (81-82)

Being in the same boat does not make us the same [equal]. (97)

"I know it's not fair, but you've got to lower your standards to be happy." (Jamie to Val, 162)

"There is a saying: If you always give, you will always have." (Tao, 195)

Why are we always called upon to show greater generosity of spirit? (206)

Mum always said God gave us two hands, one for helping ourselves and one for helping others...Drummer is the rare sort born with a pair for helping others. (220)

Maybe I have been acting like Ba. I thought what was best for me was best for [Jamie]. I didn't listen to what he wanted. (278)

I'm not a leaver. People can leave me, but I'll never leave them when I'm still needed. (327) show less

Such a great and well-executed idea to focus on the Chinese passengers on board the Titanic. Not only do the racial inequities expand on the classism that we know from other books and movies, this also succeeds in re-writing some of the horrible wrongs that the author mentions at the end of the book regarding how the Chinese passengers were perceived.

It seems a little unlikely that a teenager could pass for an older woman for an extended time period (her face is covered but I’m pretty sure there were occasions where other parts of her skin showed and I don’t care how wealthy you are and how many pricey moisturizers you slather on, an older person’s skin is going to have a tough time passing for a teen). But that said I was mostly show more happy to suspend disbelief as I enjoyed seeing Valora pull the wool over people’s eyes and I very much liked her friendship with April.

I love a heroine with career goals and aspirations, particularly those as exciting as joining the circus and I wouldn’t want less of that in this novel, however, I do wish equal time had been given to the romance since the chemistry felt genuine, I liked them together, there just weren’t quite enough scenes for their relationship to have as big of an emotional impact as it might have.

The other relationships did go a long way to filling that gap for me though, with siblings reunited, with Wink and Olly, April and Charlotte, there was a lovely found family quality that had me very much caring about what happened to everyone in Valora’s group. Admittedly I came to this book for the edge of your seat hitting the iceberg tension and suspense (which this delivered in the final third), but those scenes wouldn’t have mattered nearly as much without characters that I very much wanted to see survive. show less

*spoilers*

Valora misses her brother, and she needs to get him back. She sneaks on to the Titanic, where Jamie is riding, to reconnect with him after two years being apart. I loved Valora’s spicy nature and her refusal to bow down to what everyone—or anyone, really—wanted. Her ability to play both the role of Mrs. Sloan and a member of Jamie’s crew was admirable. I loved her developing friendships with April and Charlotte.

Jamie and Valora made a very realistic pair of twins that often annoyed each other. I loved the familial bonds between all of the Johnnies.

I was so nervous to figure out which two of the crew we’d be losing (from the front of the book). And I honestly didn’t see that coming. I was so excited to see where show more Valora and Bo would go, where she would make her life in America. And my heart just got ripped out instead. At least Jamie found Charlotte. I’m still emotionally raw from this and need time to recover. That’s the sign of a good book. show less

What a beautifully-written, diverse Titanic story!

Going into Luck of the Titanic, being a YA Historical Fiction novel, you at least have an idea what's going to happen...I mean, Titanic, yaknow. BUT Stacey Lee throws a few curveballs at you along the way making for a very intriguing story. The pacing is quick, the descriptive elements are great (I felt like I was walking the ship as Val was), and the twin's story is told in such a way that their backstory blends seamlessly with the present.

The Luck twins, Valora and Jamie, find themselves aboard the maiden voyage of the Titanic. Val is a dreamer and quite snarky at times...which I love! Jamie is more level-headed and just wants to move on from his childhood, he's grown up in the time show more he's been working away from his twin. We meet a few other fantastic side characters along the way and I couldn't help but fall in love with all of them!

This does follow the story of the Titanic as accurately as possible, so it's heartbreaking at times, but the journey to the end is so worth reading. I highly recommend this book!

Huge thank you to G.P. Putnam's Sons Books via NetGalley for the e-arc to read and honestly review! show less

Stacey Lee was inspired to write this story by learning about six (out of an original eight) Chinese survivors, presumably serving as seamen, of the Titanic disaster. Not much is known about them, so she had relatively free reign to use her imagination to flesh out details set within the well-researched aspects of the tragedy.

The heroine of the story is Valora (“Val”) Luck, 17, whose twin brother Jamie was working as a coal fireman on the Titanic. Their parents had died, and Jamie was all Val had left; she wanted them to be together again.

On April 10, 1912 Val attempted to board the Titanic in Southampton, England as a passenger, but was prevented from doing so because the Chinese Exclusion Act forbad her to enter the US, which was show more the ship’s destination. Not one to be deterred, she used her skills as an acrobat to board the ship as a stowaway.

[The Chinese Exclusion Act was a US federal law signed by President Chester A. Arthur on May 6, 1882, prohibiting all immigration of Chinese laborers for 10 years. The law excluded merchants, teachers, students, travelers, and diplomats. Passage of the law was preceded by growing anti-Chinese sentiment and anti-Chinese violence, as well as various policies targeting Chinese migrants. While the act was initially intended to last for 10 years, it was renewed and strengthened in 1892 and made permanent in 1902.

The law remained in force until the passage of the Magnuson Act in 1943, which repealed the exclusion and allowed 105 Chinese immigrants to enter the United States each year. Later laws abolished direct racial barriers.]

In the short time Val was on the ship from its departure until it hit an iceberg late in the night on April 14, she made some good female friends and formed a romantic attachment, but the main thrust of the plot was her filial love for her brother and their ties to each other as twins. Other plot threads included the racial and class prejudices of the era, as well as the inadequate safety preparations of the ship, which was, after all, supposed to be “unsinkable.” The available lifeboats on the ship could carry only half the passengers at best. [When the ship sank, many of the lifeboats that had been lowered were only filled up to an average of 60%. ]

The main story ends with the ship’s sinking, although there is an Epilogue that takes place two weeks later.

Evaluation: There are so many good aspects to this story. Val is a wonderful character. She has been brought up to understand the world through Chinese folk sayings and astrological precepts, but lets experience and compassion guide her actions rather than superstition. She is strong, resourceful, bright, brave, and spunky. In her short time on the ship she matures into someone who knows she cannot dictate the dreams of someone else, no matter how important it seems to her. It is a lovely story that will stay in readers’ hearts. show less

I enjoyed this book. It wasn't all about escaping the sinking of the Titanic but escaping the shadow of the family and moving forward on one's own. The ending reminded me of the movie Titanic but didn't truly take away from the story itself. The "luck" isn't just the name but the luck of the family, the twin sibling being able to be reunited and move on, with or without each other.