Luck of the Titanic
Only Stacey Lee could tie together the Chinese Exclusion Act with the Titanic disaster, which she does with aplomb in her most recent young adult novel.
In April 1912, Chinese-British teenager Valora Luck is denied entry to the RMS Titanic because the Chinese Exclusion Act will prevent the newly orphaned young lady from disembarking in New York. Desperate to reunite with her twin brother, Jamie, who is aboard with other Chinese seamen ultimately bound for Cuba, Valora sneaks aboard. Using a veil to hide her Chinese features, she poses as her recently deceased employer, with whom she was supposed to make the journey in first class. Also on board is an American circus owner. If Valora can convince Jamie to show the circus man the acrobatic acts their late father taught them, maybe they can be allowed into the United States to start a new life. But Jamie proves hard to persuade, and, of course, the Titanic is bound for disaster.
By drawing inspiration from the ship’s eight real-life Chinese passengers (of whom an astounding six survived), Lee has provided a fresh take on the Titanic disaster. And in her usual style, she has used historical examples of racism that could have been drawn from the present. Readers will love Valora’s determination and the colorfast cast of secondary characters. The author’s note at the end tells readers what little is known about the Chinese men who survived the disaster, including how they were shipped away within twenty-four hours of arriving in America.
Luck of the Titanic tells a story of family, luck, and how society judges the value of a human being. As Valora says as she tries to board a lifeboat, “I… say a prayer that a woman who looks like me will still be worth saving.” Highly recommended.
