Reference - Dictionaries/Atlases - Disasters

"Shipwrecks of the Southern Seas tells 15 fascinating stories - some iconic, many little known until now - of shipwreck, mutiny, piracy and marooning in the region of Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific, concentrating on stories from the age of sail and steam. Gripping, engaging storytelling is the key to this book. These stories cover the gamut of human emotion and character: survival, courage, cowardice and treachery, as well as humour, mystery and the absurd. Featured stories include the wreck of the Batavia in the Abrolhos ... read more

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Offers a catalogue of maritime disasters, from the earliest times to the present day - right up to the Cutty Sark fire of 2007. This title presents the Titanic, the Mary Rose, the Mary Celeste and the legendary Flying Dutchman. It helps you find out how shipwrecks happen and how scientists explore underwater remains.

A series looking at interesting bits of history, containing subjects with high interest level.

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The sea may be our highway, but it can charge appallingly high tolls. Our ancestors rightly feared death and destruction at sea. In the last 200 years over 2000 ships have been fatally wrecked on New Zealand shores, sometimes with horrific loss of life. Many more have been salvaged only after epic struggle. In this lively book, leading historian Gavin McLean examines some of New Zealand's most interesting wrecks. In Full Astern he explores some of the iconic wrecks that wrote themselves into New Zealand history: the Orpheus, Genera... read more

Read the stories behind some of the most exciting discoveries and breakthroughs people have made in their hunt for knowledge

A series aimed at reluctant readers that takes a popular subject and reveals the TRUE stories behind it.

In the early hours of 15 April 1912, after the majestic liner Titanic had split apart and the 1,500 men, women and children struggled to stay alive in the freezing Atlantic, the sea was alive with the sound of screaming. Then, as the ship sank to the ocean floor and the passengers slowly died from hypothermia, a deathly silence settled over the sea. Yet the echoes of that night reverberated through the lives of each of the 705 survivors. SURVIVING THE TITANIC tells the extraordinary stories of some of those who survived. Although w... read more

Unfold a spectacular 3-D model of the TITANIC -- and read about her fateful rise and fall -- in a gorgeous gift set including several novelty features. On April 14, 1912, the largest and finest ocean liner of the age struck an iceberg and sank to the icy depths. Now you can discover all the glory and tragedy of the TITANTIC in this interactive re-creation of her maiden voyage. Fold out a breathtaking 3-D model of the TITANIC in all her magnificence. Then follow the ship's history from blueprint to ocean dream in a fascinating book ... read more

Books have been written, films made, we have raised the Titanic and watched her go down again on numerous occasions, but out of the wreckage Frances Wilson spins a new epic: when the ship hit the iceberg on 14 April 1912 and a thousand men prepared to die, J Bruce Ismay, the ship's owner and inheritor of the White Star fortune, jumped into a lifeboat with the women and children and rowed away to safety. Accused of cowardice, Ismay became, according to one headline, 'The Most Talked-of Man in the World'. The first victim of a press ... read more

Welcome aboard the most famous ship in history - Titanic! The scale and grandeur of Titanic and its dramatic story are brought to life with large photo-realistic artworks. A CD with 3D-modelled animations lets you explore the ship further. You can take a stroll along Titanic's vast deck, peek into its sumptuous cabins and wonder at the powerhouse of the mighty boilers below decks!

The largest, most luxurious ship in the world, wrecked on her maiden voyage after colliding with an iceberg in mid-Atlantic has become the stuff of legends, her name, Titanic! While everyone knows the new White Star liner was the most glamorous and was full of millionaires when she sank, few appreciate just how luxurious she was. Even in Third Class, the accommodation was better than on First Class on many older ships. For the first time, Bruce Beveridge, Steve Hall and Scott Andrews look at the ship itself, and at her interior des... read more

First published in 1912, within months of the sinking of the Titanic, this historic edition is a sombre yet sensationalistic look at the contemporary accounts of the time. As set forth in the original jacket copy, this “graphic and thrilling account of the sinking of the greatest palace ever built, carrying down to watery graves more than 1,500 souls” gives “exciting escapes from death and acts of heroism not equalled in ancient or modern times, as told by the survivors, and includes the history of ice... read more

Presents and dissects one of the most tragic events of the 20th Century in a dramatic insight into the Titanic's construction and fit-out, to its maiden voyage. This title includes the tales of the people on board including the captain, members of the crew, and passengers from first, second, and third class.

Marking the centenary of the Titanic disaster, 'Titanic Lives' is an utterly compelling exploration of the lives of the passengers and crew on board the most famous ship in history. The RMS Titanic was built as one of the world's largest and most luxurious liners. A marine Ritz, it was a 45,000 ton hotel of thin steel plates, travelling at a speed of 21 knots across the unforgiving ocean. On the night of 14 April 1912, the seemingly unsinkable ship hit an iceberg. It sustained a 300 feet gash and six compartments were wrenched op... read more

The story of one family's voyage on the Titanic. "I am filled with the worst feeling. Everyone says it is the safest, most luxurious ship in the world, but something about it is extremely unsettling." Evelyn Gilmore does not share her brother Thomas’s excitement about travelling on the maiden voyage of the luxurious Titanic. For Evelyn the ship is taking her away from everything she knows and loves. For Thomas it is taking him to his new life. How could they know what the trip would bring? •April 2012 is t... read more

Chased by their pasts and drawn toward a more hopeful future, four sisters embark on the journey of their lives--aboard the "Titanic." Weyn's take on the infamous disaster is wholly original.--"Booklist," starred review.

A century after the most famous shipwreck in history, The Rough Guide to the Titanic tells the full compelling story of the supposedly unsinkable liner. A comprehensive history, it covers every moment of the journery and the Titanic's final hours, from striking the iceberg to disappearing beneath the freezing Atlantic waters. Discover the epic human drama at the heart of the tragedy, with a rich cast of characters including the heroes, villains and victims aboard the Titanic, and the adventurers who re-discovered it in 1985. Plus, ... read more

Why does the story of the Titanic retain such a hold on the popular imagination, one hundred years after it sank on the night of 15 April 1912? In this new centenary edition, Howells explores the myths around the Titanic legend, showing what they reveal about the culture of their time, as well as the role that myth still plays in our lives today.