''Titanic 2020'' is the first novel of the ''Titanic 2020'' series by Northern Irish author,

Colin Bateman Colin Bateman (known Mononymous person, mononymously as Bateman) is a novelist, screenwriter and former journalist from Bangor, County Down, Bangor, County Down, Northern Ireland. Biography Born on 13 June 1962, Bateman attended Bangor Grammar ...

, published on 19 July 2007 through

Hodder Children's Books Hodder & Stoughton is a British publishing house, now an imprint of Hachette. History Early history The firm has its origins in the 1840s, with Matthew Hodder's employment, aged 14, with Messrs Jackson and Walford, the official publisher ...

Plot

The novel is based in the year 2020 and follows a

stowaway A stowaway or clandestine traveller is a person who secretly boards a vehicle, such as a ship, an aircraft, a train, cargo truck or bus. Sometimes, the purpose is to get from one place to another without paying for transportation. In other cas ...

named Jimmy Armstrong and his journey on the brand new and purportedly "unsinkable" cruise ship ''Titanic''. Jimmys great-grandfather was on the original and drowned when it sank. During a school trip Jimmy misses his chance to see the newly built ''Titanic'' and so decides to return later that night to take a look by himself. The ship leaves port at this point, making Jimmy an unwitting stow-away on the ship's maiden voyage from

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

. Discovered by a crew member, Jimmy is brought before the Captain and, given their distance from shore, is ordered to work his passage on the ship's newspaper, the ''Titanic Times''. At the same time, an incurable disease is quickly spreading around the world resulting in widespread rioting and panic.

Characters

* Jimmy Armstrong - protagonist teenage stowaway * Claire - spoiled daughter of the owner of the ''Titanic'' * Scoop - editor of the ''Titanic Times'' * Jeffers - first officer of the ''Titanic'' * Pedroza - chef of the ''Titanic'' * Captain Smith - captain of the ''Titanic'' * Dr Hill - on board doctor of the ''Titanic'' * Mr Stanford - owner of the ''Titanic'' and Claire's father

Development

The novel was originally based around a cruise ship named ''The Emperor of the Seas'', after a ship that Bateman himself had been on.

Reception

In 2011, ''Titanic 2020'' was selected as one of ten titles to be issued free as part of

World Book Day World Book Day, also known as World Book and Copyright Day or International Day of the Book, is an annual event organized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to promote reading, publishing, and copyrig ...

Laredo, Cantabria Laredo () is a town in the autonomous community of Cantabria. According to the 2008 census (INE), the municipality has a population of 12,648 inhabitants. In addition to Laredo, the municipality includes the villages of La Arenosa, El Callejo, L ...

. The novel was well received by reviewers. Keith O'Sullivan, for ''Inis Magazine'' called ''Titanic 2020'' Bateman's "most accomplished hildren's novelto date". He further found that Bateman "convincingly develops the relationships between his central characters"; calling the "well conceived narrative": "innovative" in its storytelling, "subtle" in its cultural and literary references and adventurous in "the twists and turns in its plot". Simon Barrett, for ''Just Imagine'', called it "an adrenalin-fuelled, fun adventure", calling the dialogue "witty" and finding that "the situational comedy is often of a black nature that will amuse young people". Barrett did comment that he "groaned when I read the title", although found that "any homage to the film is simply the starting point for Colin Bateman's imagination and fantastic story-telling". Author

James Lovegrove James M. H. Lovegrove (born 1965) is a British writer of speculative fiction. Early life Lovegrove was educated at Radley College, Oxfordshire, and was one of the subjects of a 1979 BBC television series, ''Public School''. A follow-up progr ...

, in a review for the ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...

'' found that "this fast-paced ocean-going adventure never wallows in the

doldrums The Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ ), known by sailors as the doldrums or the calms because of its monotonous windless weather, is the area where the northeast and the southeast trade winds converge. It encircles Earth near the thermal e ...

Awards and nominations

The novel was short-listed for the 2008

Bisto Book of the Year Awards The CBI Book of the Year Awards ( ga, Duaiseanna Leabhair na Bliana CBI), previously known as the Bisto Book of the Year Awards, are literary awards presented annually in the Republic of Ireland to writers and illustrators of books for children ...

and the

Bolton Children's Book Award The Bolton Children's Book Award is an annual award given to works of children's literature published in paperback during the previous year. The award is sponsored by Bolton Literacy Trust, The University of Bolton and Page Nation. List of prize w ...

in the same year. ''Titanic 2020'' also won "Book of the Year" at the

Rotherham Rotherham () is a large minster and market town in South Yorkshire, England. The town takes its name from the River Rother which then merges with the River Don. The River Don then flows through the town centre. It is the main settlement of ...

children's writing awards.

References

External links

* {{Colin Bateman Novels from Northern Ireland Novels by Colin Bateman 2007 British novels British crime novels British children's novels Fiction set in 2020 Novels about RMS Titanic Hodder & Stoughton books 2007 children's books Children's books set on ships Children's books set in the 2020s