Dead Wake by Erik Larson

On Monday, August 3rd, the Booked for the Day Book Group met to discuss, Dead Wake by Erik Larson. Here are a few things we discussed during the meeting:

• We started our discussion talking about whether this book held any surprises for us which it did. We did not realize that war was not declared until two years after the sinking of the Lusitania, that von Trapp ( of Sound of Music) was a naval officer for Germany during World War I and was highly decorated for the sinking of ships, the usually large number of children on board the Lusitania, and much more.
• We talked about Captain Turner and felt that he was not to blame, he did not abandon the ship and we were glad that the Irish coroner exonerated him.
• The personal stories that Larson told about the passengers helped us stay connected to the story and even though we knew the outcome of the Lusitania, the personal stories made us interested and concerned for the fate of the passengers Larson wrote about.
• We talked about President Wilson love life and golf game and even though we knew that this perspective was Larson’s view, it lessened our respect for him as a President. Some members stopped reading the book when his story was told.
• We talked about whether Germany and Mexico could have conquered the American Southwest plus none of us realized this was Wilson’s breaking point.
• We discussed Captain Schwieger and his part in the episode. We did not buy his good guy description due to the fact that on his way home he took out a few more ships.
• Some thought that Churchill deliberately chose not to protect the Lusitania in hopes that it would bring the United States into the war.
• We talked about the code breakers not only in World War I but World War II too. We discussed where the line should be drawn in protecting civilians.
• We talked about whether they were carrying ammunition from the United States and the curious second explosion which caused the rapid sinking of the ship. A marine archaeology expedition pulled up thousands of cases of ammo from the wreckage a few years ago which explains the second explosion but we wondered if they were carrying much needed supplies to the British, why wasn’t the ship  protected.
• We wondered if we would have cancelled our voyage knowing that the Germans advertised the risks. Would we have risked our children on such a voyage? Most of us thought we would not.
• Most of us enjoyed the book and liked learning the details of the tragedy but The Devil in the White City is still our favorite Larson book.

These are just a few things mentioned during the discussion. Please feel free to add any of your thoughts in the comment section.