Review: Lifeboat No. 8
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 06 7, 2012
This is a short, but interesting, read about the sinking of the Titanic and the people who boarded Lifeboat No. 8. By taking one particular lifeboat, the author manages to tell the story of the ship through the eyes of a cross section of people who survived and those who helped board those particular passengers. It begins with the reactions of various people who were awake to feel the ship hit the iceberg - ranging from concern to excitement. What is surprising is how different people reacted. One young woman, Sarah Daniels, was looking after the two year old daughter of a Mr and Mrs Allison. She immediately went to her employers to tell them what had happened and they criticised her and went back to bed. Despite her desperate entreaties, they refused to listen to her and she was put into the lifeboat with the family still on board.There are countless interesting and sad stories here. The author suggests that Jack Phillips, the wireless operator, left his post to warn another young servant, a maid to the Countess of Rothes, about the sinking. The Countess did take her young maid seriously and was later applauded for her efforts in steering the lifeboat and comforting other passengers. Lifeboat no 8 had some very distinguished passengers, as well as the Countess of Rothes, there was young Madeline Astor, wife of John Jacob Astor. There were also others notable for who they were travelling with - the maid of Mrs Strauss, for example, who famously stayed with her husband until the end, but made sure her maid Ellen was safely on a lifeboat. There are stories of heroism, loss, bravery and regret. This is very well written and really encompasses the story of Titanic in a short read.