Deep Survival: Who Lives, Who Dies, and Why by Laurence Gonzales Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Deep Survival: Who Lives, Who Dies, and Why
Book Review: Awesome. The Entertaining Psychology of Survivors
Summary: 4 Stars
Impressive, it exceeded expectations. I did not have great hopes of loving this book and had passed it by for years, even though the topic is right up my alley. Well, I was surprised to find this interesting, engrossing and remarkably fresh.
I'd heard all the survival stories in the book before, but the author put a fresh spin on them and kept it suspenseful. The mix of survival stories, anecdotes and psychological discussion are well-balanced.
I highly recommend this book.
Book Review: Could have been much better
Summary: 3 Stars
This is a nonfiction book set in the framework of a thriller. Gonzales frustratingly leaves stories in suspense. He often interrupts a gripping real-life story with pages of interpretation, some of it irrelevant and forced, and all of which could have been left until after the story finished. Besides this, his connections are often pretentiously esoteric (with a lot of tenuously-related Tao Te Ching verses), and he writes about things he doesn't seem to actually understand that well. One of his theses is something about chance being a pretty small factor in survival situations, but it's an underdeveloped thesis, and doesn't convince well. Other ideas are similarly unconvincing. He uses sources only tangentially connected to his idea, and repeats himself a lot. This book could have probably been cut down to half (or less) its current size, and organized better. I learned some, but I had to piece it together for myself.
After writing this review, I thought better of it and wanted to change it to two stars, but Amazon won't let me do that in the "Edit Review" thing.
Book Review: Needs more examples
Summary: 3 Stars
Explores engaging concepts of what makes one a survival, although it's questionable as to whether a survivor is born or made. Could do with a little less of the analysis and a few more examples.
Book Review: Meandering effort
Summary: 1 Stars
Deep Survival is the kind of book serious editors cringe through.
It's a bizarre, wandering mess. Gonzalez can't just tell a story and stick with the story, then do the play by play and summary.
Every step of the way he interrupts the narrative and tries to offer connections and resemblances. I lost it when he threw in a reference to Winston Smith in Orwell's 1984, declaring Smith lost his will to survive because he failed to maintain his humanity. Or something that banal and totally irrelevant.
I wanted a nuts and bolts survival overview. Gonzales wants to do something far more ambitious, a philosophical overview of the existential art of survival.
But it comes out poorly.
Not worth reading, really.
Book Review: The Psychology of Being Lost and Surviving
Summary: 4 Stars
The Psychology of Being Lost and of Surviving - Book Review of Deep Survival by Laurence Gonzales - 2004
About the Author - Other books, an upcoming "Everyday Survival" to be released later in 2008.
Overview
This book recounts stories of being lost at sea, lost in the wilderness, mountain climbing accidents, Apollo moonshot, firefighting, and other high risk situations. One thing that is great is both telling stories of those who lived and those who died.
The stories are gripping and while ultimately there is an attempt at summary at the end, a more loose set of concepts emerge which are not available in summary form. In particular there is the notion of "secondary emotions" (which can be both positive and negative). The discussion is not ultimately fulfilling or complete, but definitely interesting. The kind of training that experience and perception generates and recalls (sometimes inappropriately).
There is a bit of repetition in this book. The same stories are referred to at different points throughout. In many cases without benefit, though sometimes this is needed as different themes are present in the same stories.
These criticisms should not dissuade the reader, as this is an excellent book, and truly engages one in thinking about survival in extreme circumstances, and also how situations and environments can quickly become extreme.
However, this book has a more fundamental mission (which comes through most clearly when the author is discussing his father, which happens often). This book really can be considered nothing less than a modern day introduction to stoic philosophy. Marcus Aurelius, Herodotus, and most often Epictetus figure prominently throughout.
A worthwhile read.