SuitabookDangerous Waters
Gregory Mone
- Reading
- Consider reading alongside a brief conversation about fact and invention: the Titanic and Harry Widener were real, while Patrick and the surrounding mystery were created for this story. Pause if the disaster becomes upsetting.
- Themes
- Ambition and work: Patrick leaves school, works as a steward and seeks a chance to be part of something significant, while his mother favours practical employment. The story gives Patrick’s ambition importance but places it alongside work, family history and pressure to be practical.
- Books, knowledge and opportunity: A wealthy book collector tutors Patrick and discusses Bacon and Treasure Island with him, while a rare book drives the mystery. The book presents this favourably.
- Historical disaster and invention: The story places invented characters and a rare-book mystery aboard the Titanic, whose collision and sinking are known within the narrative setup. It uses a real historical disaster as the frame for an invented adventure, encouraging attention to how personal stories are constructed around history.
- Worth knowing
- Theft, plotting and a murderous villain are also part of the story.