When I Was In My Teens,

almost everyone I knew had one of these, a Haynes manual, it was a Do-It-Yourself guide to servicing and repairing your car, but to mark next year's 100th anniversary of the sinking of RMS Titanic they have produce one for the ship, entitled 'RMS Titanic Owners' Workshop Manual 1909-12 (Olympic Class),'

it is a 160-page hardback which covers both the technical specifications of the superlative steam ship and the all too human tragedy,

details range from the making and fitting of its three giant propellers to the furnishing of the luxury state rooms, the book also includes hundreds of photographs and illustrations showing how the ill-fated ocean liner was designed, built, launched, fitted out and operated - from launching the lifeboats to repairing a rivet, firing up the vast boiler furnaces, and running the giant refrigerator to produce ice for the champagne of the super-rich,

of the 1,320 passengers and 900 crew on board the Titanic when it sank, just 706 survivors were rescued by the Carpathia which picked up their distress call sent out by the Marconi radio operators using the new 'SOS' message, if like me you still find the Titanic interesting this is the book for you, the book is by David F. Hutchings and Richard de Kerbrech and is to be published by Haynes on April 7, priced £19.99.