there were two books written by survivors, Owen Chase (1st mate) wrote “Wreck of the Whale Ship Essex shortly after he returned to New Bedford. The second book is called “In the Heart of the Sea” and was written by Nathanial Philbrick. It is based on an unpublished manuscript written by Thomas Nickerson, the 14 year old cabin boy on Essex. He was in the same boat with Chase.
I read the second book and it was horrifying.