What year did the S.S. Hato sink in book The Cay?

The S.S. Hato, the ship in the book "The Cay" by Theodore Taylor, sinks in 1942.

This is explicitly stated in the book, during the initial narration about the events leading up to the sinking:

> "The Germans were winning... the war began in 1939. I was ten when it began. It was 1942..."