Thirteen-year-old Albert Trask is going home to America--on the 'Titanic'! Albert's bossy grandmother is forcing his widowed mother to return from England, where she took her children after their father died. Neither Mother nor Virginia, Albert's spoiled little sister, is very happy about the voyage. But nobody can dampen Albert's enthusiasm about sailing on the biggest, most luxurious ocean liner ever built--not even Emily, a know-it-all girl who thinks the ship doesn't have enough lifeboats. Everyone knows the 'Titanic' is unsinkable!
Gr 5-8?In an entertaining blend of fact and fiction, Albert Trask, 13, relates his experience aboard the opulent, ill-fated Titanic. He, his widowed mother, and spoiled little sister, Virginia, are returning to the U.S. from England, accompanied by domineering Uncle Claybourne. Albert's wealthy paternal grandmother in McLean, VA, is determined to oversee the lives of her daughter-in-law and grandchildren. Knowing his mother's desire for independence, Albert attempts to meet a distinguished theatrical producer who is onboard to find employment for her. His shipboard efforts fail, however, with the scrape of an iceberg. With historical accuracy, the orchestra plays on, lights are kept burning, half-full lifeboats are lowered, and passengers debate the seriousness of their situation. Albert is privy to crewmen's conversation about too much speed through the ice fields. He witnesses the desperate pleas of the ship's designer and officers to mobilize the passengers. The boy shoves his sister into a boat but is shamed into staying on deck to prove his manhood. Ultimately flung into the icy North Atlantic, he is one of the few to be plucked from the sea and taken aboard the Carpathia. His mother and uncle are lost, but Albert, Virginia, and Albert's friend, Emily, survive. At story's end, the young man stands up to his grandmother's overbearing demands and begins to discover that her plans for her orphaned grandchildren take their happiness into account. Readers lured more readily by fiction than nonfiction will find suspense, character development, and pathos amid the dramatic events.?Gerry Larson, Neal Middle School, Durham, NC
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