The novel contains enlightening discussions of various disasters , including the '' RMS Titanic '' , the Hartford circus fire , the Hindenburg disaster , the Eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 , the 1883 eruption of Krakatoa , the Boston Molasses Disaster , and , almost as prominently as the '' Titanic '' , the sinking of the '' USS Yorktown '' . ( Willis has written extensively in several novels about events in World War II . ) Connie Willis 's inspiration for '' Passage '' came in part from her mother 's death , when Willis was 12 . Willis felt frustrated that relatives and friends tried to comfort her with platitudes , so she wanted to write a novel that dealt with death honestly and could help people understand the process of death and mourning
Hartford circus fire
Hartford circus fire
Passage (Willis novel)