Rescuing Titanic: A true story of quiet bravery in the North Atlantic by Flora Delargy

In this new picture book about the sinking of the Titanic, Flora Delargy focuses on the Carpathia, the ship that came to the rescue in the hours after the disaster.

The story begins with a pictorial of the key crew and passengers of the Carpathia and to a lesser extent, the Titanic. For the Carpathia, there is Captain Arthur Rostron and First Officer Horace Dean. For the Titanic, Captain Edward Smith, wireless operators Jack Phillips and Harold Bride.

The setting is that of the Hudson River Harbor, in New York in the  golden era of steam travel. Steamships offered a relatively fast way (under eight days) to cross the Atlantic. 

On April 10, 1912, the "grandest ship ever to take to the ocean, the RMS Titanic departed from Southhampton bound for New York."  Meanwhile, on April 11, 1912, the RMS Carpathia, captained by Arthur Rostron was preparing to depart from Pier 54 on the Hudson River. Her destination was the cities of Genoa, Naples, Trieste and Fiume. The Carpathia's journey would take eleven days. Her passengers were mostly American tourists or Europeans who lived in the United States.

At 11pm on Sunday, April 14, the Carpathia was making steady progress crossing the Atlantic Ocean. The last of the passengers were being settled into their cabins, the night was clear and cold. But on the Titanic, an iceberg had been sighted dead ahead. An attempt to avoid it failed and the ship struck the iceberg on her starboard side. Captain Smith was told but within the first ten minutes, five forward compartments had flooded. Thomas Andrew, the ship's designer informed the captain that the ship was doomed and would sink within ninety minutes.

From their Marconi Wireless Room, wireless operators Jack Phillips and Harold Bridge frantically sent out distress signals. In the Carpathia's wireless room, Harold Cottam was preparing to retire when he received the Titanic's SOS distress signal. He immediately told First Officer Dean and together they raced to Captain Rostron's cabin to inform him. Rostron immediately set into action, ordering the ship to turn around and head to Titanic's reported position.

Carpathia would arrive over two hours after the Titanic sank, but would save seven hundred and six passengers and crew, thanks to the efforts of Captain Rostron and the crew of his ship. 

Discussion

For those fascinated by the tragedy of the sinking of Titanic, Rescuing Titanic offers a retelling from a fresh perspective, that of those on the Carpathia.

In this account, Flora Delargy focuses on the details of the ship and the actions of the crew and passengers as the rescue of Titanic was undertaken. Delargy notes that as the Carpathia raced to the Titanic, Captain Rostron had his crew undertake a number of preparations both above and below deck. He is portrayed as competent and professional. His crews' preparations were focused on getting survivors out of the lifeboats quickly and safely, setting up makeshift hospitals and increasing the Carpathia's speed as much as possible. At the same time, Captain Rostron was not reckless: he worried about the safety of his crew and his ship as it navigated the iceberg infested waters. Many of these small but important details are not often told in the sinking of the Titanic. And once all of the survivors were on board, Rostron was careful to protect his traumatized passengers. The wireless operators were under his strict orders not to divulge the names of any survivors to news reporters. When Carpathia arrived in New York bay it was surrounded by the boats of news reporters desperate to interview Titanic's survivors. Captain Rostron did not allow any to board his ship. Delargy

To tell the Carpathia's story, Delargy has crafted many interesting illustrations, rendered in watercolor and ink. Some of the illustrations are very basic such as those portraying the key crew and passengers, the tools of navigation used by the crew of a ship and the different decks and areas of the Carpathia. Other illustrations, such as the pages that portray the Titanic frantically messaging nearby ships, the Titanic shooting flares as it lowers lifeboats, the Carpathia navigating the ice field, and the survivors seeing the shadow of the Carpathia as she arrives, capture the atmosphere of that night, brilliantly clear, and cold. One feels the vastness of the ocean and the danger too. Other illustrations portray the hurried preparations on the Carpathia in contrast to the almost ambivalent atmosphere on Titanic as her passengers struggled to believe the unsinkable ship was actually sinking.

Rescuing Titanic is sure to appeal to Titanic fans who might want a different perspective on the disaster that occurred almost one hundred and ten years ago. It is well written, with a lively attention to detail, and evocative illustrations. Delargy has included a Glossary, Sources and suggestions for Further Readings.

Book Details:

Rescuing Titanic: A true story of quiet bravery in the North Atlantic by Flora Delargy
Beverly, MA: Wide Eyed Editions      2021
75 pp.