Eric Jay Dolin, Left for Dead: Shipwreck, Treachery and Survival at the Edge of the World

423 notice, he joined Stella Polaris as the ship's photographer.He was assigned to a cabin of six and told not to photograph any passengers unless they made a specific request.Under the circumstances, business was slow.Better times were ahead.Entertainment officers, Curtis's later role, play a curious role aboard ship.On cruise ships at least four communities sail together.From the bridge, the captain and his officers command the ship.The deck crew keep the vessel neat and tidy and, when necessary, ferry guests ashore in tenders.The engine gang watches over all the ship's machinery, while the hotel staff and entertainment director see to the care and feeding of the guests.On cruise ships, where pleasure is the goal, aside from a friendly hello or an invitation to sit at an officer's table, most guests are unlikely to have direct contact with the officers, deck, or engine crew.No such separation for the entertainment director.To the guests they are the most visible person on the ship.They stand at the gangway welcoming guests aboard.Later they might give directions to board the tenders and remind guests when they are due back aboard.They manage the evening's entertainment, introducing the various performers.They frequently walk about the ship greeting guests.They listen patiently as guests insist on recounting all their previous cruises.They stand ready to explain why there is not more room around the pool and, in some instances, explaining why tenders cannot be boarded in six-foot seas.For many of the guests aboard, the entertainment director is the "ship."Curtis's well-chosen subtitle for Tales from Great Passenger Ships is A Jaunt Through Time.Well informed, Curtis writes with a graceful, sometimes humorous style.The book might have benefited from a proper index and more of Curtis' personal