Brief Description
Fascinating for any reader, and absolutely essential for anyone who takes a hike in the woods, this book will change the way readers understand themselves and the great outdoors.
Learn More about the Book
Examining such stories of miraculous endurance and tragic death how people get into trouble and how they get out again (or not)Deep Survival takes us from the tops of snowy mountains and the depths of oceans to the workings of the brain that control our behavior. Through close analysis of case studies, Laurence Gonzales describes the "stages of survival" and reveals the essence of a survivor truths that apply not only to surviving in the wild but also to surviving life-threatening illness, relationships, the death of a loved one, running a business during uncertain times, even war. Fascinating for any reader, and absolutely essential for anyone who takes a hike in the woods, this book will change the way we understand ourselves and the great outdoors. "
About the Author
Laurence Gonzales is the author of Surviving Survival, Flight 232and the bestseller Deep Survival: Who Lives, Who Dies, and Why. He has won two National Magazine Awards and is a scholar at the Sante Fe Institute. He divides his time between Evanston, Illinois, and Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Review Quotes
1. A fascinating look into why we are who we are. -- Bill McKibben, author of The End of Nature and Enough
2. A fascinating look into why we are who we are.--Bill McKibben, author of The End of Nature and Enough
3. Gonzales's writing is effortless and compelling, and his research is first-rate. I can't imagine a better book on the topic. --Sebastian Junger, author of The Perfect Storm"
4. A fascinating look into why we are who we are. --Bill McKibben, author of The End of Nature and Enough"
5. A superb, entertaining addition to a nature buff's library or for anyone not tucked safely away in a bunker. "
6. Great stories of disaster and survival where one irresistibly wonders, "How would I do in this circumstance?" combined with revealing science about the physiology and psychology of how we deal with crisis. [Gonzales's] science is accurate, accessible, up-to-date and insightful. An extremely good book. --Robert Sapolsky, author of Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers"
7. Remarkable, unique, and compulsively readable, Deep Survival is three books in one: a compendium of vivid tales of disasters and near misses in the wilderness; a probing analysis of what the latest neuroscience and psychology can tell us about 'who lives and who dies'; and, finally, a moving memoir about Gonzales's father, whose own miraculous survival after a plane crash behind German lines in World War II launched the author on his lifelong quest into the mystery of risk and adventure. --David Roberts, author of True Summit: What Really Happened on the Legendary Ascent on Annapurna"
8. A feast of excitement and wonder. Makes complexity and chaos come alive...fantastic accounts of danger and death.--Charles Perrow, author of Normal Accidents
9. Laurence Gonzales has masterfully woven together personal survival stories with the study of human perception to reach rock-bottom truths about how to live with risk.--Peter Stark, author of Last Breath: The Limits of Adventure
10. Deep Survival provides a new lens for looking at survival, risk taking, and life itself. Gonzales takes the reader on a rollercoaster ride that ends with rules of survival we can all stand to learn. Equally important, he answers the question: what is the value of taking risks. I love this book. --Jed Williamson, editor, Accidents in North American Mountaineering
11. Professional rescuers will love this book. It goes to the heart of the instincts that drive us to risk our own lives to save others. Gonzales tells us what we subconsciously know anything is possible.--Jacki Golike, Executive Director, National Association for Search and Rescue"
12. Deep Survival is by far the best book on the many insights into epic survival stories I have ever read. --Daryl Miller, Chief of Mountaineering, Denali National Park & Preserve
13. A gripping and thoughtful investigation of the greatest adventure of all survival. Through riveting tales of disaster and endurance, Gonzales explores the icy mental clarity that characterizes survivors.--Jerry Kobalenko, author of The Horizontal Everest: Extreme Journeys on Ellesmere Island"
14. Should be required reading for anyone venturing off the beaten path.--Jeff Randall, Peruvian Air Force School of Jungle Survival
15. Deep Survival provides a new lens for looking at survival, risk taking, and life itself. Gonzales takes the reader on a rollercoaster ride that ends with rules of survival we can all stand to learn. Equally important, he answers the question: what is the value of taking risks. I love this book. --Jed Williamson, editor, Accidents in North American Mountaineering
16. Deep Survival is by far the best book on the many insights into epic survival stories I have ever read. --Daryl Miller, Chief of Mountaineering, Denali National Park & Preserve
