pagesofjulia

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading.

Unsurprisingly, Erik Larson’s newest release is outstanding, a masterpiece of gripping narrative writing with its own momentum. No one would ever think to compare this to a standard, old-fashioned book of history.

One of the things I think he does well is juxtaposition. For example, read these few lines, and imagine them side-by-side with a description of life aboard a German military submarine.

Aboard the Lusitania, there was quiet. There were books, and cigars, and fine foods, afternoon tea, and the easy cadence of shipboard life: strolling the deck, chatting at the rails, doing crochet, and just sitting still in a deck chair in the sea breeze. Now and then a ship appeared in the distance; closer at hand, whales.

It’s the whales that do it for me.

This quotation comes from an uncorrected advance proof and is subject to change.

Filed under: tuesday teasers | Tagged: history, nonfiction |