Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania

By Erik Larson

Book Overview

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - From the bestselling author and master of narrative nonfiction comes the enthralling story of the sinking of the Lusitania

"Both terrifying and enthralling."--Entertainment Weekly
"Thrilling, dramatic and powerful."--NPR
"Thoroughly engrossing."--George R.R. Martin

On May 1, 1915, with WWI entering its tenth month, a luxury ocean liner as richly appointed as an English country house sailed out of New York, bound for Liverpool, carrying a record number of children and infants. The passengers were surprisingly at ease, even though Germany had declared the seas around Britain to be a war zone. For months, German U-boats had brought terror to the North Atlantic. But the Lusitania was one of the era's great transatlantic "Greyhounds"--the fastest liner then in service--and her captain, William Thomas Turner, placed tremendous faith in the gentlemanly strictures of warfare that for a century had kept civilian ships safe from attack.

Germany, however, was determined to change the rules of the game, and Walther Schwieger, the captain of Unterseeboot-20, was happy to oblige. Meanwhile, an ultra-secret British intelligence unit tracked Schwieger's U-boat, but told no one. As U-20 and the Lusitania made their way toward Liverpool, an array of forces both grand and achingly small--hubris, a chance fog, a closely guarded secret, and more--all converged to produce one of the great disasters of history.

It is a story that many of us think we know but don't, and Erik Larson tells it thrillingly, switching between hunter and hunted while painting a larger portrait of America at the height of the Progressive Era. Full of glamour and suspense, Dead Wake brings to life a cast of evocative characters, from famed Boston bookseller Charles Lauriat to pioneering female architect Theodate Pope to President Woodrow Wilson, a man lost to grief, dreading the widening war but also captivated by the prospect of new love.

Gripping and important, Dead Wake captures the sheer drama and emotional power of a disaster whose intimate details and true meaning have long been obscured by history.

Finalist for the Washington State Book Award - One of the Best Books of the Year: The Washington Post, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Miami Herald, Library Journal, Kirkus Reviews, LibraryReads, Indigo

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0307408876
• ISBN13: 9780307408877
• Release Date: March 2016
• Publisher: Crown Publishing Group (NY)
• Length: 480 Pages
• Weight: 0.85 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 5.3" x 8.0"
• Grade Range: Grades 9 to 12

Customer Reviews

Great Narrative History of the Louisiana sinking by U-20 during early WWI

I enjoyed this book. It took off very slow with much detail on passengers, and life at sea on a luxury cruiser. The author gives tedious details of the passengers, what they wore, what they ate, and a detailed description of the ship. The book chronicles the Lusitania and U-20 simultaneously. Gives details of President Wilson’s life during this time period. Lots of research on the sinking, and aftermath of the crew and passengers, and the crew of U-20 especially the cold blooded captain, who despite the claims of a love interest of his that he was deeply moved and regretted the sinking sank another ship soon after. Lots of details on the workings of both ship and boat (submarines are called boats by the navies). Like the author, I remember the sinking of the Lusitania from history, but I too forgot it was two years into WWI before the US entered the war. I somehow thought it came shortly after the sinking of the pride of British passenger ships. If you enjoy narrative history books you may enjoy this book too. Some reviewers found the book boring. I guess if you read only best seller novels it might be for you. If on the other hand you enjoy history and enjoy reading about past times in American history you’ll likely want to read this book. I have read one other book by this author. The Demon of Unrest, I gave it 5 stars, but I am a Civil War buff.

Very detailed account

Larson gives you an excellent detail account of the passengers and their backgrounds who sailed on the last pasage on the Lusitania. A riveting book, very difficult to put it down. Any WW1 history buffs would love this book since Erik does not just talk about the sinking but also some possible reasons why this ship was not escorted on their Atlantic trip. Also tells about after the sinking and what occurred, excellent book.

History told in a fiction like way

So much history told in a fiction like way. Mr. Larson has a wonderful way of weaving the horrible happenings of WWI in with the intimate details during the ship’s voyage to create this amazing story.

Fascinating

Detailed page-turner of the tragic voyage of the Lusitania . Step by step description will invoke the feeling that you were on board during the German submarine attack and the factors that led to it .Eric Larson is masterful .

Erik Larson can take any event in history and bring readers into the heart of it.

Erik Larson can take any event in history and bring readers into the heart of it. He managed to teach me a lot about submarine warfare, WWI, military tactics, president Wilson, Churchill, and still make me cry at the personal tragedy of the Lusitania. MUST read.

Larson does it again!

With this in-depth look into the Lusitania's last voyage, Erik Larson has once again taken the reader back in time to get a glimpse of life on board this great steamer's last trip. We also see what goes on in the infamous German u-boats. I was surprised to learn of some political "strategys" of the British that appear to have come into play on that fateful day. I read Larson's books cover-to-cover and enjoy his end notes almost as much as I do the books.