Record Breakers of the North Atlantic

Book excerpt: -- Beautifully presented, with 50 color illustrations and 120 black-and-white photos -- Written by the preeminent authority on the great age of transatlantic travel The Blue Riband, a mythical trophy for the fastest transatlantic crossing, has fascinated the public for almost 200 years. Although the race never officially existed, the battle for the Blue Riband was real. Five nations -- England, the United States, Germany, Italy, and France -- fiercely embraced the Old World-New World competition to produce the fastest ship on the high seas. Covering the early paddle steamers to the last great high-speed, four-screw turbine liners, foremost authority Arnold Kludas uses sumptuous illustrations and detailed text to tell the tale of rivalry and remarkable engineering that embraced the commercial motivation of the great shipping lines as well as the political ambitions of governments.