September 17, a novel by Amanda West Lewis
This book is based on fact. On September 17, 1940, a ship called the City of Benares, carrying among its passengers 90 children went down en route from England to Canada. Only 13 children survived this tragic attack by the Germans. We see this gripping and meticulously researched account through the eyes of three of these children. Like most of the youngsters aboard, Ken and Bess have already undergone the ordeal of separation from their families. The third child, Sonia, is traveling first class with her mother and brother. The great irony of the book is that the parents thought they were sending their children out of harm’s way by sparing them the trauma of bombings at home. In most cases, they were sending them to a terrifying early death.
The book lifts the curtain on what it must have been like to cast off for a new country all alone at a young age, the mix of missing all that was and the excitement of heading to a new life, the joy of at last having enough to eat and the sorrow of not being able to share it with parents. When the torpedo strikes, all the hope for a new life transforms into a desperate battle for survival. Out of this harrowing experience, such qualities as courage, generosity, and endurance emerge. These are not the children of Lord of the Flies. For those that survived, the events marked their whole lives. Amanda has stated that it was for these survivors that she wrote the book.
On September 17, 1940, I was less than a month old. As I read this book I wondered if my mother heard about the sinking of the City of Benares on the radio.
