The Titanic: An Interactive History Adventure
Series: You Choose: History
Written by Bob Temple
Capstone Press 3/20/2016
978-1-5157-3388-1
112 pages    Ages 8—12

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“It is 1912. Titanic, the world’s largest and grandest ocean liner, is about to set sail. And YOU get to experience its historic first voyage. Will you sail in luxury as a first class passenger? OR Will you travel in third class with other immigrants seeking a new life in America? OR Will you work as a crewmember, serving passenger’s ad trying to keep the ship safe? Everything in this book happened to real people. And YOU CHOOSE what you do next. The choices you make could lead you to survival or death.” [back cover]

Review
The Titanic, the safest, longest, and most luxurious ocean liner in the world is deemed “Unsinkable” thanks to individual watertight compartments, which would isolate any water that got into the Titanic, keeping it afloat. Unfortunately, we all know this system somehow did not work. Thanks to a large iceberg, which tore a long gash into the side of ship just after midnight on April 15, 1912, Titanic sunk. Only 705 people survived that night. More than 1500 died in the waters of the cold Atlantic Ocean.

Now it is your turn. Are you a first class passenger, a third class passenger, or a member of the crew?

In first class, you will meet ether Jacob Astor or Hudson Allison, both wealthy men. You must also decide if you are altruistic and determined to help or ready to keep on living, not willing to take a chance on your fate. In third class, the same options are there, but your chances for survival lower simply due to your class. As a crewmember, you have equally difficult decisions to make, not knowing if you are running toward life or death.

After reading each role and the possible twists and turns along the way, it became painfully clear how your status in life weighed heavily on your chances for survival. First class had the best odds, while third class sometimes never even had a choice. Some of those whose gender kept them out of the lifeboats were brave to the last minute, while others were utterly terrified. Each scenario did an excellent job of making this clear to the reader. Kids will find reading The Titanic a scary situation. They will also find Titanic a wonder to behold, as the ship met every assumption one could make regarding its luxuries and opulence.

There have been a lot of book written about the Titanic, even for kids. I read a lot of them because I am fascinated with the ship. The Titanic: An Interactive History Adventure is one of the best for getting the reader into the story from three different viewpoints. I love that the third was as a crewmember. I expected one for each class, but second and third class were very similar. Bringing in the crew’s point of view completely covered the possibilities on this giant ship.

The Titanic is a wonderful book to use in the classroom or in home schooling, as are all of the You Choose books. Kids learn about historical events by being there, or as close as they ever could short of going to a Titanic exhibit. These interactive books are terrific for getting kids interested in history, especially those, like myself, who are “reluctant” for whatever reason. I simply found history boring. The Titanic is not boring. The You Choose: History books are all fascinating and do a wonderful job of getting the reader right into the middle of the action, in this case, of a sinking ship.

THE TITANIC: AN INTERACTIVE HISTORY ADVENTURE (YOU CHOOSE:  HISTORY). Text copyright © 2016 by Bob Temple. Copyright © 2008/2016 and reproduced by permission of the publisher, Capstone Press, North Mankato, MN.

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Find The Titanic on Goodreads HERE.

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Capstone Press is an imprint of Capstone.

AWARDS
International Reading Association – Teachers’ Choice Award
Association of Educational Publishers – Distinguished Achievement Award
Junior Library Guild Award
Learning Magazine – Teachers’ Choice Award for Children’s Books
VOYA – Nonfiction Honor List

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Copyright © 2016 by Sue Morris/Kid Lit Reviews. All Rights Reserved

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The Titanic: An Interactive History Adventure
Series: You Choose: History
Written by Bob Temple
Capstone Press 3/20/2016
9781515733881