Thirty years after a torrid affair with a patient destroyed the family and reputation of psychoanalyst Solomon Grossman, the chancest of coincidences presents him with what he believes is an opportunity to make up for his past mistakes. Watching television coverage of a devastating airplane crash in Los Angeles, Solomon recognizes the National Transportation safety officer in charge as the son he hasn't seen since his wife left him after his affair.

Solomon leaves his busy New York office and, in the hope of a reconciliation, travels to the scene of the disaster. What follows is the haunting story of his fall from respectability, told through vivid flashbacks, and his desperate attempt to redeem himself and his life in the eyes of his son.

1. Picturing the Wreck is also a controversial exploration of the nature of psychoanalysis: utterly trusted by his patients, Solomon Grossman is the most fallible of men. He is a Holocaust survivor whose personal beliefs and experiences contradict the underlying philosophy of the profession he is sworn to uphold; a professional in the business of caring who no longer cares what he does.