Sock Poppet at Play's 2015 Read-By-the-Month Reading Challenge for July was to read a book:

1. that is a good beach read.
2 . that takes place near a body of water.
3. that you thought was all wet.
4. where a character(s) drowns or almost drowns or a ship sinks

to answer the fourth prompt, what could be more appropriate than something about the Titanic!

"God himself could not sink this ship!" - Unknown Titanic crew member to embarking passenger Mrs Sylvia Caldwell

Callie Elizabeth is in the eight grade and loves history. when her class goes to an exhibit about the RMS Titanic, Callie is drawn to a black and white photograph of a girl who looks like her. after the school trip, Callie's normal life is drastically altered when she experiences ghostly visitations from the little girl in the picture. determined to solve the mystery of the hauntings,  Callie, together with her friend and her grandmother's help, delves deeper into her family's history. along the way, she uncovers secrets and brings to light treasures kept hidden for almost a hundred years.

this book appears to be intended for young readers and i think this group would be entertained by the story. there is a mystery to be solved, a ghost that keeps showing up and treasures to be discovered. in between, they will be treated to snippets of factual information about the tragic sinking of the "unsinkable" RMS Titanic on April 15, 1912. the timeline shifts from the present to the past but it is clearly drawn and the reader will never get lost.

a passionate educator with a creative mind could transform this fictional account into a great learning tool for young minds. it could complement lessons on maritime history, disasters at sea, shipbuilding and a lot more. the newspaper articles, journal entries, old photographs and letters have also great potential as learning materials in a writing and/or art class.

a few niggles. i saw a few errors that should be corrected. one example that stands out would be "broach." i know that one broaches a subject but one could never wear it. a "brooch" would be more appropriate, don't you agree?

there are also a few ancestors mentioned whose relation to Callie overwhelmed me. i can just see young readers scratching their heads with "A was her 'great-grand-' or B was her 'great-grand-grand -'or that C was her 'great-grand-grand-grand-'. a simple family tree at the beginning or end of the book would have helped lessen the confusion. there were already photographs in the book so why not include a chart as well. just my two cents.

pardon the pun but it was not a total disaster though. it did not even come close. it was still a good read. extra credits go to the author for managing  to mesh fact and fiction  and coming up with a novel that not only entertains but also informs.

RMS Titanic