The lives and deaths of these two most romantic of Romantic poets are lovingly recounted in this memoir by Edward Trelawny, a contemporary and friend of both men. The action unfolds mostly in Italy, where Shelley and Byron frolicked and swam (and where Shelley drowned, just off the coast of Cinque Terre); then it follows Byron to his own death in Greece. Trelawny was a fascinating figure in his own right, and his tribute to his two lost friends bears all the marks of his own generous, wild personality.  (ITL336, $10.95)