A Closer Look

The Story Behind the Story

From John Schu’s blog, Watch. Read. Connect.

I discovered Bess Walder and Beth Cummings, strangers who became best friends on the SS City of Benares, while researching Lifeboat 12 in the National Archives in London. The girls didn’t fit into the narrative of Lifeboat 12, but I couldn’t stop thinking about them. They were the age my British mother-in-law would have been when she was evacuated during the Blitz. I collected info about them and put it aside…just in case.

I’m thrilled to tell their story in this book, using actual quotes from the girls. In many ways, Lifeboat 5 is the flipside (pun intended) of Lifeboat 12. Most lifeboats did not float safely away as Ken Sparks’ did, but swamped, capsized, and threw passengers into the stormy sea as the Benares sank. Bess and Beth surfaced on either side of their overturned lifeboat and managed to hold hands across the keel, waiting for rescue. 

Growing up in wartime Britain and being teased at their different schools, both girls had faced fear and self-doubt. Each thought the Benares was her escape from the bombs and the bullies. After the ship sank, each girl had to reach deep within herself to discover the strength at her core—the physical might, courage, hope, and determination to survive impossible odds in the frigid North Atlantic. Bess battled not only the sea, but also enormous guilt. She had promised her parents to look after her little brother Louis on the ship; she had no idea where he was. 

Lifeboat 5 is a book in verse, told from three different points of view: Bess Walder, the older girl; Louis Walder, her little brother who was separated from Bess on a different lifeboat; and their common adversary, the Sea. 

The story of Bess and Beth astounded me because each of the girls, by herself, might not have made it. Beth couldn’t swim; Bess couldn’t see without her glasses. But they held fast to each other. As the hours passed, each girl wanted to give up, but she held on knowing her friend would die if she let go. Thanks to their bond of friendship, the two girls survived, rescued after nearly nineteen hours. Bess and Beth went on to become lifelong friends and then sisters-in-law when one married the other's brother. It’s all true! Each girl emerged from this maritime disaster with a strong sense of power and purpose, realizing she has two hands: one to help herself and the second to help others.