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3.74 AVERAGE
3.74 AVERAGE
DNF at 30%, sorry to say.
I had looked forward to this book since I'm on a historical fiction kick, particularly this era. Something about this book just didn't encourage me to keep reading. The perspective moves between a reporter charged with reporting on the disaster to various people on other ships who witnessed certain things about that night. I simply wasn't compelled to read further; I'd put the book down and forget about it.
I'm not saying it's badly written, you may really enjoy this. I may also revisit in the future.
I had looked forward to this book since I'm on a historical fiction kick, particularly this era. Something about this book just didn't encourage me to keep reading. The perspective moves between a reporter charged with reporting on the disaster to various people on other ships who witnessed certain things about that night. I simply wasn't compelled to read further; I'd put the book down and forget about it.
I'm not saying it's badly written, you may really enjoy this. I may also revisit in the future.
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
A good read, the parts of The Midnight Watch that were written from the perspective of being on the ship, The Californian, made you imagine you were sitting aboard, watching the ebb and flow of the sea throughout the fateful night. Then follows the journey of how the stories were covered by the journalists of the age, opened a light to how important honest and truthful journalism is, and how impactful it can be to those that are written about. Throughout the book, there were also precisely made points that made you as a reader think of political and social points, such as The Woman's Rights Movement and how two countries both wanted the truth of a story for different reasons.
This book takes you through the past back to the disaster that was the Titanic. Allowing you to see through the eyes of a level-headed journalist, as well as through the eyes of many aboard the Californian steamer. Bringing light on the way this ship was managed and how the management of the ship resulted in thousands of lives being sacrificed.
The Titanic. Her name, and the tragedy that eclipsed her, are unmistakable. Hundreds of people - mostly third class passengers - died when she sank after hitting an iceberg on her maiden voyage. But what if many of those passengers could have been saved? "The Midnight Watch" discusses the lesser-known fact that there WAS ship in the vicinity, and it is thought that she could not only see the Titanic on the horizon, but could have possibly changed the outcome of the tragedy. That ship was the Californian.
David Dyer takes us through the fictionalized account of the two ships through two main people - Officer Stone, the second officer on the Californian, and John Steadman, an alcoholic reporter for the Boston American. With alternating chapters, Dyer shows the reader not only the facts behind the story, but attempts to show the whys and hows.
The story itself was quite well written. Knowing the ending of the Titanic did nothing to take away from the looming tragedy. Learning about the Californian helped me to see the tragedy with new eyes. It would have been nice to have a brief afterward to explain what was fact, what was fiction (I can't seem to figure out if that particular reporter actually existed, though I'm guessing not.), and some of the sources Dyer used in his research. For inquiring minds, it would have been interesting as follow up. Overall, however, the story was interesting to read and well worth the time invested. It's a new look at an old, though never forgotten, unnecessary tragedy.
David Dyer takes us through the fictionalized account of the two ships through two main people - Officer Stone, the second officer on the Californian, and John Steadman, an alcoholic reporter for the Boston American. With alternating chapters, Dyer shows the reader not only the facts behind the story, but attempts to show the whys and hows.
The story itself was quite well written. Knowing the ending of the Titanic did nothing to take away from the looming tragedy. Learning about the Californian helped me to see the tragedy with new eyes. It would have been nice to have a brief afterward to explain what was fact, what was fiction (I can't seem to figure out if that particular reporter actually existed, though I'm guessing not.), and some of the sources Dyer used in his research. For inquiring minds, it would have been interesting as follow up. Overall, however, the story was interesting to read and well worth the time invested. It's a new look at an old, though never forgotten, unnecessary tragedy.
First: This unbiased review is exchange for an ARC provided to me by Netgalley.
When I first started "The Midnight Watch," I was disappointed, thinking this book would just be a clunky by-the-numbers recounting of the "Titanic" sinking. The book quickly zoomed out, though, to show what makes it special: It is the story of a jaded journalist (always drinking, always lying to get close to his source) trying to get to the bottom of a mystery in the "Titanic" story--why the "Californian" did not rush to the rescue of "Titanic" upon seeing its lights. I enjoyed the characterization of the journalist, and I thought the central problem, appreciating the distinction between evil and error, was very compelling.
When I first started "The Midnight Watch," I was disappointed, thinking this book would just be a clunky by-the-numbers recounting of the "Titanic" sinking. The book quickly zoomed out, though, to show what makes it special: It is the story of a jaded journalist (always drinking, always lying to get close to his source) trying to get to the bottom of a mystery in the "Titanic" story--why the "Californian" did not rush to the rescue of "Titanic" upon seeing its lights. I enjoyed the characterization of the journalist, and I thought the central problem, appreciating the distinction between evil and error, was very compelling.
3.5 stars, rounded up because reasons.
Review to come.
Review to come.