Torpedoed!: A World War II Story of a Sinking Passenger Ship and Two Children's Survival at Sea

Description

A Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People 2018 Age range 10+ When 14-year-old Florence Kelly and 11-year-old Russell Park left their hometowns for summer vacations in Europe in 1939, they considered themselves awfully lucky. Many of their friends' families were struggling during the Great Depression and couldn't afford fancy trips. But the young pair would soon face life-threatening troubles of their own as it became clear German dictator Adolf Hitler was intent on invading neighboring countries. With tensions high, Florence, Russell, and their families cut their holidays short as many Americans scrambled to book passage back to the States. Safely aboard the luxurious passenger liner the S.S. Athenia, travelers settled in and breathed a sigh of relief. Surely, it was believed, the sleek, menacing German U-boats lurking in the Atlantic Ocean would never attack a passenger ship...would they? Torpedoed! vividly re-creates the events surrounding the attack on the Athenia, the first ship lost in the battle of the Atlantic. Through firsthand accounts, interviews with survivors, and powerful photos, award-winning author Cheryl Mullenbach brings to life the prewar environment in America and Europe, the anxious days leading up to the surprise attack, the frantic rush to escape the sinking ship, and the long, terrifying night that Russell, Florence, and others spent in churning lifeboats battling the elements and imagining the worst.

Cheryl Mullenbach is a former history teacher, librarian, and public television project manager and is currently a social studies consultant. She has contributed to Arizona Living Magazine, the Des Moines Register, Iowa Council for the Social Studies Journal, and Iowa Heritage Illustrated, as well as several entries to Women in American Military History: An Encyclopedia. She lives in Panora, Iowa.

"A gripping tale of disaster at sea." Laura Woollett, author of Big Top Burning: The True Story of an Arsonist, a Missing Girl, and the Greatest Show on Earth "An engaging, sometimes-harrowing account of the first casualty in what became known as the Battle of the Atlantic." Kirkus Reviews "Mullenbach's descriptions of the torpedo strike and subsequent rescue efforts, laced with survivors' first-person accounts, are immediate and chilling." Publishers Weekly "Loaded with personal details and stories, this true-life survival tale will increase interest in the Second World War." School Library Journal