Wilson (Beautiful Shadow: A Life of Patricia Highsmith) offers engaging portraits of the survivors of the world's best-known shipwreck and how they lived with (or repressed) their memories of the event. For some, survival inspired a carpe diem spirit and a determination to live life to the fullest; for others, it brought on nervous breakdowns and social ostracism, particularly for the men who escaped in lifeboats. The most poignant stories are those of the survivors who were plagued by additional tragedies, who died young or committed suicide. Conversely, the longest-lived survivors became beloved symbolic figures of minor celebrity.
VERDICT The author makes good use of archival and published sources and his own recently conducted interviews. This is a captivating read that begins where most other Titanic books end. (Illustrations not seen.) [See Prepub Alert, 9/22/11.]
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