On a May afternoon in 1943, an Army Air Forces bomber crashed into the Pacific Ocean and disappeared, leaving only a spray of debris and a slick of oil, gasoline, and blood. Then, on the ocean surface, a face appeared--Lt. Louis Zamperini. Captured by the Japanese and driven to the limits of endurance, Zamperini would answer desperation with ingenuity; suffering with hope, resolve, and humor.

Howard Hughes was a rich young man from Texas, heir to his father's fortune, when he decided he wanted to make movies. Age 21, he made the most expensive Hollywood film ever (at the time); and went on to break air-speed records, make another fortune in aircraft design, smash Charles Lindbergh's round-the-world flight record, and be romantically linked with almost all of Hollywood's famous beauties. Nevertheless, he died alone, sealed into a room he...