Adrift by Steven Callahan. It’s an account of a sailor whose ship sank and left him adrift for 76 days. I find it it both grounding and life-affirming. It has also taught me some lessons that I have never forgotten since. For instance that one never gives 100% as long as there is still hope that someone else is going to come and save you.
The book 'Endurance', written from interviews with the survivors, is absolutely gripping. My partner and I read the whole thing out loud over the course of about a week - like binge watching a series.
There’s also “Miracle In the Andes” by Nando X (forgot the surname). And “Adrift” by Callahan (forgot the first name).
The latter is one of the few books I read thrice over the years. Combines for me beauty, survival, appreciation for life and our humanness, philosophy and knowledge about our world.
I'd like to make a book recommendation. The Outlaw Ocean by Ian Urbina. When I read this 12 months ago, I felt it was one of the most powerful accounts of the pillages still occurring in the world's oceans, as well as the horrific conditions many fishermen are forced to live in. I won't link to Amazon, but here is a review of the book: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/oct/02/the-outlaw-oce...
Incredible!! I read the book Endurance and it was absolutely riveting. There’s a particular passage where they describe the final boat journey rowing to the northern island that made me turn the heat up a little higher.
438 days. A memoir of a Mexican fisherman that spent over a year drifting across the Pacific Ocean. I’m a sucker for a good survival story and finished it in a day.
Seconding that. Newby's book is a great recounting of a slice of seaborne life. The author had some luck in making it without getting lost at sea in storms.
I enjoyed “Endurance” by Alfred Lansing, and would recommend it if anyone wants to read a riveting and mostly accurate account of Shackleton’s famous voyage.
Also, the aforementioned Frank Worsley (Shackleton's navigator) wrote a terrific book called 'Shackleton's Boat Journey', an account of their (successful, as it were!) attempt to rescue the crew after the pole-traversal expedition ran into problems. Reads almost like a thriller.
Also, Apsley Cherry-Garrard wrote a quite harrowing account of Scott's expedition. Highly recommended.
If you haven't read the book written by the NYTimes journalist Ian Urbina that much of the original research this article refers to, I highly, highly recommend it [1]. Not only is it illuminating, but the writing and stories within it are extremely compelling on a human level as well. I got a copy of it over the holidays, and literally experienced the trope of having a hard time putting it down.
One of the most astonishing books I've ever read is Unbroken, which is the true story of an American pilot (and Olympic athlete) who went through a similar experience as a POW of the Japanese. Well worth checking out.
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