This morning’s email brought news of a book deal for the passengers of US Air Flight 1549. Ballantine will publish their story on November 3.
From the press release:
A unique collaboration between many of the passengers themselves and two expert story-tellers, William Prochnau [of Vanity Fair] and Laura Parker [Washington Post writer], MIRACLE ON THE HUDSON will provide the first and the only full account, minute-by-minute, of that fateful day, in the survivors’ own words. . . . The survivors’ stories about their ordeal are moving and unforgettable. We see passengers watching as birds enter one engine. We relive the eerie silence in the cabin, save for fervently whispered prayers after both engines fail. We feel the impact as the plane violently hits the river, water pouring into the fuselage. We meet the passenger who opened the first door to safety, and another who stripped to his underwear in readiness for an impossible swim to shore. Then we see an incredible rescue take place from the viewpoint of the people caught in the middle of a frigid metropolitan river.
Sounds compelling, and more personal and in-depth than what we got on the news reports. But six months from now, I have to wonder whether this event will still be on readers’ minds. Think you’ll be spending $25 on this in November?
ETA: Perhaps more newsworthy than the passengers’ book deal is the New York Times‘ report that some of them will actually be getting their luggage back. This may be a bigger miracle than their survival. [Via]
