Official Website of New York Times Bestselling Author
SURVIVING SAVANNAH
"The Titanic of the South"
Available Now in Paperback!
Also available in Hardcover, e-book,
and audiobook formats
Surviving Savannah
Page Menu
A Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and Publisher's Weekly Bestseller!
"An atmospheric, compelling story of survival, tragedy, the enduring power of myth and memory, and the moments that change one's life."
—Kristin Hannah, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Four Winds
It was called "The Titanic of the South." The luxury steamship sank in 1838 with Savannah's elite on board; through time, their fates were forgotten—until the wreck was found, and now their story is finally being told in this breathtaking novel from the New York Times bestselling author of Becoming Mrs. Lewis.
When Savannah history professor Everly Winthrop is asked to guest-curate a new museum collection focusing on artifacts recovered from the steamship Pulaski, she's shocked.
The ship sank after a boiler explosion in 1838, and the wreckage was just discovered, 180 years later. Everly can't resist the opportunity to try to solve some of the mysteries and myths surrounding the devastating night of its sinking.
Everly's research leads her to the astounding history of a family of eleven who boarded the Pulaski together, and the extraordinary stories of two women from this family: a known survivor, Augusta Longstreet, and her niece, Lilly Dawson, who was never found, along with her child. These aristocratic women were part of Savannah's society, but when the ship exploded, each was faced with difficult and heartbreaking decisions.
This is a moving and powerful exploration of what women will do to endure in the face of tragedy, the role fate plays, and the myriad ways we survive the surviving.
Listen to Audio Clip Surviving Savannah
Patti Callahan (Author, Narrator), Brittany Pressley (Narrator),
Catherine Taber (Narrator), Penguin Audio (Publisher)
paperback edition
April 5, 2022
Available Now!
Amazon Barnes & Noble
Books A Million Bookshop.org Hudson Booksellers Indie Bound Powells Target Walmart
Penguin Random House
signed first edition
Buy the Book
hardcover
e-book
audio download
For signed bookplates, please mail a self-addressed stamped envelope to:
Patti Callahan Henry
1919 Oxmoor Road. PMB #303
Homewood, AL 35209
In SURVIVING SAVANNAH, Patti Callahan has woven a sweeping, captivating tale; of a contemporary woman lost in a fog of grief who finds solace-- and finally, redemption as she uncovers the long-buried secrets of a nearly forgotten shipwreck—and the courageous women who survived to bear witness to history. Based in fact, steeped in heart-breaking detail, SURVIVING SAVANNAH raises the little-known, 180-year-old story of the Southern Titanic to the forefront of American historic fiction.
Surviving Savannah
Resource Center
"Go Behind the Scenes"
How do we
Survive the Surviving?
Video: The extraordinary true and untold story behind the novel Surviving Savannah with Patti Callahan at The Ships of the Sea Maritime Museum in Savannah, Georgia.
A New York Times Bestselling Author
Podcast Host and Co-creator of
Friends & Fiction
Patti Callahan Henry is a New York Times and USA Today best-selling author of sixteen novels and podcast host. She is the recipient of The Christy Award—A 2019 Winner "Book of the Year”; The Harper Lee Distinguished Writer of the Year for 2020 and the Alabama Library Association Book of the Year for 2019.
“With a belief that the power of story changes us and moves us, Patti’s historical fiction, SURVIVING SAVANNAH, WILD SWAN, and BECOMING MRS. LEWIS explores the untold stories of the past that affect us now.” (writing as Patti Callahan)
SURVIVING SAVANNAH, a new historical fiction, based on the true story of the Steamship Pulaski wreck, known as "The Titanic of the South" was released March 9, 2021. The new podcast series, "The Untold Story Behind Surviving Savannah" is an in-depth exploration into the fascinating stories explored in her novel, Surviving Savannah. The podcast series includes interviews with some of the foremost experts on the myth and lore of Savannah, shipwreck treasure hunting, the hidden stories in museums, and the astounding real-life family story that inspired the novel. Available now.
WILD SWAN, a novella following the fiery life of one of history’s greatest heroines and the mother of modern nursing: Florence Nightingale by Patti Callahan was released December 2020, as an Audible Original performed by the award-winning narrator, Cynthia Erivo.
BECOMING MRS. LEWIS—The Improbable Love Story of Joy Davidman and C.S. Lewis was released in an expanded edition, March 2020. The author is also the host of the popular seven-part original “Behind the Scenes of Becoming Mrs. Lewis Podcast Series”—the podcast audiobook collection including bonus material was released in January 2020.
ONCE UPON A WARDROBE is another tenderly imagined and enchanting story that pulls back the curtain on the early life of C. S. Lewis from Callahan— October 19, 2021, and available now—published by Harper Collins' new imprint —Harper Muse.
REUNION BEACH, Stories Inspired by Dorothea Benton Frank, a collaboration and tribute to be released April 27, 2021, and available for pre-order now. Patti joins a group of bestselling authors to present a moving anthology to pay tribute to the legendary NYT bestselling author and her literary legacy.
Patti Callahan is the co-host and co-creator of the popular weekly online Friends and Fiction live web show and podcast, featuring the five New York Times bestselling authors Mary Kay Andrews, Kristy Woodson Harvey, Kristin Harmel, and Mary Alice Monroe. With endless stories and special guests, they are live every Wednesday at 7 pm ET on the Friends and Fiction Facebook group page, their YouTube Channel, and Parade Magazine Facebook page. You can follow them on Instagram and, for weekly updates, subscribe to their newsletter.
In a recent essay series partnership with Parade Magazine, each Wednesday viewers get a new “life lesson” from one of the FF writers on Parade.com as well as a chance to discuss the themes later that evening on Facebook Live.
A full-time author and mother of three children, she now resides in both Mountain Brook, Alabama, and Bluffton, South Carolina with her husband.