An intriguing read for anyone interested in historical accounts of the Titanic’s sinking. While the original may have contained errors and oversights due to its speedy publishing following the accident, this edition acknowledges these in the foreword and adds helpful historical context to the eyewitness accounts featured.

This book is definitely a product of its time with all the dramatic descriptions and embellished writing. I like that this newest edition adds many footnotes with extra explanations and some corrections along the way, without changing the source material.
I really enjoyed all the added photos, drawings and paintings at the end too.
The meat of the book, however, felt clunky so the reading flow wasn't really there and it felt a bit dry at times.

Fascinating read for anyone who is an interested in the story of Titanic. It feels well researched and was a good read.

I love reading about the Titanic because it has always fascinated me and that's the reason i requested this book. Thank you publishers and Netgalley for granting my wish. This book describes most of the events on that tragic night of April 14th 1912 when the iceberg struck sinking the unsinkable ship the great Titanic in the early hours of April 15 1912. Its heartbreaking and also terrifying but yet so fascinating to read. I realized that this book was first published on the same year that the Titanic sunk sharing the memories of the survivors. I would really love to buy this book and read it again once this newer version is released.

This new edition reads as two books in one. The original book came out soon after the initial disaster, filled with quotes from the survivors, many of whom testified to Congress, and was written up in a sensational style as well as reporting what was known - or thought to be known - at the time. This edition is filled to the brim with academic footnotes, letting readers know the correct names of various people who were identified incorrectly at the time, correct outright mistakes, such as reporting the "known fact" of Captain Smith committing suicide, and giving readers all the information that has since come to light about the science of what happened that night.

Given the emotional style of writing and the amount of facts that are proven wrong, the whole book could have easily just been tossed out - however, I like this corrective approach, to let readers both know the true facts and also get a glimpse into what it was like immediately after the sinking and how confused people would have been with so many rumors swirling and all the true facts decades away from being discovered.

“When the order that every man should take his post, as the vessel was sinking, was sent through the Titanic,” said Hardy, “there were eleven men on duty in the hold. “The twenty others, without the least hesitancy, came hurrying to their posts beside the engines and dynamos. They must have known as well as Captain Smith that the Titanic was going down, for when they arrived in the engine room the water was rising over the floor. There was nothing for them to do but to keep the dynamos running.
“Not one of them moved to quit their posts and not one would have dared to, even they had been willing, in the face of the stern men who had chosen to die there. Yet they could be of no use, for the Titanic was
going down then.
“The water was rising about them when I looked down from a gallery. I saw the little circle of Chief Engineer Bell and sixteen of his men standing there in the water with their lips moving in prayer. I pray that I may never
see the like of it again; it was real heroism.”

This was a heart-breaking collection of accounts from survivors as well as the crew and passengers of the Carpathia which rushed to the aid of the sinking Titanic and covers the time from the collision to the survivors reaching New York and the investigations that followed. I was amazed by the calmness of the men when women and children were prioritized for boarding, the courage of the engine men and electricians who willingly went to their deaths to give the people on board the best chances of surviving and sheer heart-break of families being separated due to the quick sinking and insufficient response to the incident, by other ships in the vicinity to the shortage of lifeboats and trained personnel to man them. There were illustrations which made it clear why passengers were more comfortable staying on the "unsinkable" Titanic than being lowered 70 feet off the side in tiny lifeboats which were not properly equipped, whilst being dressed in flimsy nightwear. Some of the reforms that arose from the hearings post the tragedy, left me in awe that this was not law before

Although at times, it felt slightly repetitive, this was expected as it was a collection of stories from the survivors who naturally had their own versions of what had happened and this was well put together and followed a clear timeline. This updated version opens with expert introductions and includes notes which clarify/correct certain accounts as they appear in the book.

This is well worth a read, even if non-fiction isn't your normal genre to gain insights into one of the worst maritime disasters in history

I enjoy nearly anything about the Titanic and this was no exception. Lots of "eyewitness accounts" and first hand details. This is a reissue with more added. I gather the original album was published in 1912. A fantastic edition to my Titanic library.

Thank you to Netgalley for the digital review copy.

For the lovers of all things Titanic, this updated book by Mowbray is an amazing piece to add to the collection. In this book you will get so many first hand accounts of what happened as well as photographs and facts galore of the sinking of the Titanic. This tragedy has always interested many people of all ages but rarely do we get a book that has so much information already gathered in an easy and approachable way for readers to learn all there is to learn about the sinking. This book is definitely something to add to your bookshelf and have many people see it and read a littler here and there, their interest will be sparked and more will end up learning new things about this great tragedy that had the world so confused and had so many loved ones lost.

The original edition of this book was an 'instant book'; I hadn't heard this term before, but it is a book that is rushed out following a tragedy in order to capitalise on public interest, and sold door to door. As a result, the original book reads like sensational journalism rather than an informative text on the events the night Titanic sank. It is based on interviews with many of the survivors, so while you sometimes feel almost as though you were there with them, it is deeply flawed, and full of inconsistencies, for example, some people claim Ismay got off on the first or second lifeboat, others that he was there to the end and was in the last boat to leave the ship. There are various different accounts on how Captain Smith met his end. The book repeats itself endlessly, as we look at the same events through hundreds of different eyes. Nowadays of coursr, we know much more about what really happened that night This new Pen & Sword edition has a great introduction explaining the origin and the flaws of the book, and extensive footnotes throughout the book explaining the inaccuracies and giving us the information we now know to be true.

A worthy addition to any Titanic enthusiast collection.

*Many thanks to Netgalley and Pen & Sword for a review copy in exchange for an honest opinion*.

If you are a true lover of the Titanic, you will love this book. Otherwise, this may be a little too much for just a mild interest.

Obviously has been extremely well researched and for people like me, who love Titanic books, I could not put it down, but it is incredibly detailed.

Thank you Netgalley for providing an ARC of the new version of "Sinking of the Titanic: Eyewitness Accounts".

I had never read this before eventhough I do love reading about the Titanic and watch every docu about it that is out there.

I loved all the notes and maps and extra information given, the only thing is that it read and showed very well as a PDF, but I also send it to my kindle and there it got all choppy and weird looking. Might be my kindle, it is old and hardly ever used since I switched to Kobo 🙈

Anyways, I do recommend this book to anyone interested in the history of the Titanic.

This is a fascinating book about the tragic sinking of the luxury ship Titanic. Told by those who actually survived this terrible tragedy and witnesses on the Carpathia who picked up the survivors. Also told by witnesses who saw the heartbroken survivors as they arrived in NYC.
As in many books written about the Titanic many of the stories told have different recounting. For instance whether Captain Smith went down with his ship or committed suicide. Same with Officer Murdoch who some said he shot himself and others denied this occurred. Many of these rumors may never be proven but this book is definitely worth a read.
This book was first published in 1912 by Mr. Mowbray but new info., photos and maps have been added.

I love love love anything to do with the Titanic. I think I have read pretty much anything I could get my hands on since 1997. A lot of times even for us mega fans the information could be a bit repetitive, but I found this book to be interesting and provided information I had not previously know. Great for those that love the Titanuc and it’s history or are new to learning.

Titanic is one of my favourite films and I’m interested in all things to do with it do this book was a pleasure to read and full of fascinating information….. First published in 1912, Jay Henry Mowbray’s Sinking of the Titanic was hugely influential in the aftermath of the maritime disaster, recording the harrowing, first-hand accounts of the survivors - from sailors, to stewards, to passengers – throughout the ordeal, from when the iceberg first hit to when the Carpathia eventually arrived, and honouring those who were lost on that fateful night in 1912. Mowbray’s text even follows the survivors when they make it back to land - a lesser-known, riveting aspect of the tragic saga that deals with the investigation and the hearings that took place in the US and UK in the months that followed.
The swiftness of the publication of Mowbray’s text, the sheer number of first-hand witness accounts therein and the intensity of the chaos and fear that their accounts convey makes for a unique compilation which, together with new notes, maps, images and expert introductory material in this new, updated edition, will fascinate, educate and deeply move contemporary readers as much today as the original publication would have back in 1912.

I always have enjoyed reading books about the Titanic and this was wonderfully done. I was invested in reading these accounts. You could really feel like you were there, this did everything that I was hoping for and was a wonderful nonfiction book.

I absolutely loved reading this book. I was completely drawn into the topic and could not stop reading it. I love anything involving the Titanic.