I have heard a lot about this author but have never read any of his books till now. Dead Wake is the story of the last voyage of the Lusitania. The ship that is frequently but inaccurately said to be the sister ship of the Titanic. Erik Larson gives a stunning account of the history of the Lusitania. He gives great background on this ship from the time the Lusitania and others were commissioned and then built as well as their pre-war history and more. He also gives this history from the British, US and German side of the story. Being a history buff I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I will admit that the tragedy of the whole thing of this story as well as other historical tragedy's such as the Titanic, Holocaust and more; always gives me pause and requires me to put the book down for a time to absorb and reflect on what I have read. But I guess that's the humanity in us; if the stories of what happened to these people as well as the many other stories of historical events doesn't get to us or give us pause and require us to absorb the facts and ponder on these stories as well as our own lives I would be concerned me as to the nature of said humanity.
If you enjoy learning more about history and the world around you and if you have wanted to learn more about the Lusitania I would highly recommend this book. I also look forward to reading more books by this author.
