Voyage on the Great Titanic by Ellen Emerson White

For those who know me, it should be no surprise that I felt compelled to pick up a book that centers around the Titanic. I'm a complete ocean liner buff, and I know way too many little facts about these behemoth ships. Anyway, I heard about this book not long ago and decided it sounded interesting and worth a read.

First off, this is definitely more of a children's book, and maybe you could argue a case for a Young Adult. Regardless, the book is in diary format about a young orphan named Margaret who by an immense stroke of luck gets to accompany a first class woman on a trans-Atlantic voyage on the Titanic. I hate to spoil it for you, but I have to tell this to you because it's huge: the ship sinks.

Despite this being a fictional diary, the author really did a wonderful job of incorporating various facts, including but not limited to real-life people who were present for Titanic's maiden voyage, facts about the sinking, descriptions of the ship, and more. I really loved the way these real people and events were interwoven with the story. And it is a great story! It was really refreshing to see this familiar tale told through the eyes of a 13-year-old who was in first class and not necessarily supposed to be in first class. My heart broke right along with Margaret's as the events unfolded and she watched the great Titanic sink, taking with it so many lives.

As this book is geared more towards the younger crowd, I think it's an excellent fictional account of the tragedy and will help young audiences appreciate the full scale of this historical disaster. For me, it didn't give me any historical information that I didn't already know, but either way it was quick, entertaining, and worth the read.