All Stations ! Distress! by Don Brown

Brown, D. (2010). All Stations! Distress!: April 15, 1912: The Day the Titanic Sank (Actual Times). asd: Flash Point.

All Stations! Distress is a Bluebonnet Award Nominee and what a great Biography! I thought this would be an interesting fictional story about the Titanic. Boy, I was wrong. If I recognized the author, I would have known that Don Brown writes biographies in simpler terms- to present information to younger readers- at their level. This book tells the story of the Titanic, with the key players, and tells the chilling account of  what happened when the unsinkable ship hit an ice burg and began to meet the ocean floor, through actual accounts.
One of the aspects of this book that I liked is the 3 stages that Mr. Brown uses to write his story. He starts off by discussing the beginning of the ship making process and describing who the "rich and famous" were, then the events and activities of what was happening on that fateful evening, and concludes with some of the survivors accomplishments, or lack thereof,  after this horrific accident. Mr. Brown uses simple language to convey meaning and feelings for the lives lost. As my 9 year old daughter said " this story is scary and sad".
Mr. Brown has done his research and is evident by including a bibliography that he consulted when writing this book.
I checked this book out from the public library because it's always checked out in our school library. I will bring it into my classroom and have my history buffs read this book. I think they will be amazed at how easy it will be to read and learn information about the Titanic.