Into the Abyss: How a Deadly Plane Crash Changed the Lives of a Pilot, a Politician, a Criminal and a Cop

by Carol Shaben

On an icy night in October 1984, a Piper Navajo commuter plane carrying 9 passengers crashed in the remote wilderness of northern Alberta, killing 6 people. Four the rookie pilot, a prominent politician, a cop, and the criminal he was escorting to face charges. Despite the poor weather, Erik Vogel, the 24-year-old pilot, was under intense pressure to fly--a situation not uncommon to pilots working for small airlines. Overworked and exhausted, he feared losing his job if he refused to fly. Larry Shaben, the author's father and Canada's first Muslim Cabinet Minister, was commuting home after a busy week at the Alberta Legislature. After Paul Archambault, a drifter wanted on an outstanding warrant, boarded the plane, rookie Constable Scott Deschamps decided, against RCMP regulations, to remove his handcuffs--a decision that profoundly impacted the men's survival. As they fought through the night to stay alive, the dividing lines of power, wealth and status were erased and each man was forced to confront the precious and limited nature of his existence. The survivors forged unlikely friendships and through them found strength and courage to rebuild their lives. Into the Abyss is a powerful narrative that combines in-depth reporting with sympathy and grace to explore how a single, tragic event can upset our assumptions and become a catalyst for transformation.

Genres: Nonfiction, Survival, Book Club, History, Biography, Adventure, Aviation

336 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2012

About the author

Carol Shaben is an award winning journalist and author. Nominated as Canada's Best New Magazine writer, she is a recipient of two National Magazine Awards including a Gold Medal for Investigative Journalism.

"Into the Abyss" sold to Random House Canada within two hours and has been published in the US, UK, Brazil, Spain and Spanish speaking world. It is a National Bestseller, a Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers Pick, a BBC Radio Book of the Week and an Amazon.com Best Book of the Month. Publishers Weekly called Into the Abyss an "electrifying history", the Washington Post deemed it a "deep and satisfying book' and Kirkus Reviews described it as "a complex, chilling narrative rendered with depth and precision." Into the Abyss received the 2013 Edna Staebler National Award for Non-Fiction and was a finalist for the BC Book Prizes Hubert Evan’s Non-Fiction Prize.

Reviews

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Late on the evening of October 19, 1984, Wapiti Air Flight 402 crashed into a bunch of trees, outside High Prairie, Alberta. Of the ten passengers on board, one was Larry Shaben, father of the author. In this information-packed book, Shaben explores not only the crash that kill six passengers, but also offers a detailed exploration of the four men who survived—Larry Shaben, a politician; Erik Vogel, the pilot; Scott Deschamps, RCMP officer transporting a prisoner; and Paul Archambault, the prisoner. Shaben cuts right to the chase and discusses the night of the crash, where Vogel miscalculated High Prairie’s landing strip, going on to document the fourteen hours the survivors spent in a snowstorm, waiting for military Search and Rescue to locate them. While this would surely make a sensational book on its own, Shaben goes further, sketching out the history of Wapiti Air and its problematic flight record, the fallout of the crash that led to Transport Canada to strip Wapiti of its operating licence for a time, and the guilt Vogel felt for having been at the yoke. Offering snapshot biographies of the survivors up to twenty years later, as well as the pall of the deaths of those who perished, Shaben pulls no punches as she tries to offer a 360 degree exploration, without pointing fingers or offering vilification. Perhaps most interesting of all is the epiphany that Deschamps underwent in the years after the event. Veiled in his own secret struggles, Deschamps came out of the event the most scarred and lost, as Shaben discusses throughout. While no loss of life can be deemed insignificant, the crash of Wapiti Air Flight 402 hit home for many, shaping the lives of ten family irreparably. That Shaben can present this horror in such a well-rounded manner speaks volumes and is indicative as to the calibre of her writing. While it is hard to offer a recommendation for this book, I would encourage anyone with an interest in the subject matter to locate this book and learn so much in short order.

It is surely not an easy thing to tackle such an emotional subject, but Carol Shaben does it in a professional manner. Her personal investment in the story is obvious from the outset, as Shaben explains how she was in the Middle East and read a small article that hit the international wires. To offer a succinct, yet thorough, context to the events allows the reader to educate themselves without being bogged down in minutiae. Through detailed interviews and document retrieval, Shaben is able to develop a strong foundation that keeps the book progressing nicely. While it is impossible to ignore the six who died (particularly when one was Grant Notley), Shaben does not dwell on them, choosing instead to develop a story to explore how the crash changed the lives of the four men who were rescued. Being sufficiently dramatic in parts, without turning things into a sob story, the author pulls the reader in and keeps their attention throughout. One miscalculation led to a domino reaction, but who’s to blame, if anyone?

Kudos, Madam Shaben, for such an impactful story that pulls the reader in from the outset. I know someone who was personally impacted by these events and I could not have asked for a more professional presentation, weighing information against the need for privacy.

Love/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/

A Book for All Seasons, a different sort of Book Challenge: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...

[Carol · Rating 4 out of 5]

My kind of book! And to think how I found it. Can you believe I spotted this book on a huge wall advertisement on the ferry from Vancouver to Vancouver Island(it pays to advertise)? Serendipity!

The ad and subtitle immediately caught my attention. Four men who survive a plane crash, the pilot, a politician, a cop and the criminal he was shackled to...all the elements of an adventuresome, adrenaline read. I'll say it again, my kind of book.

I knew from the outset that I'd be interested in how the plane crashed and how the details of four men's survival. Shaben did not disappoint here. What truly made the book for me was the rest of the story, what happened to the survivors and how it changed their lives.

I was fascinated with the setting, Alberta, CA, and environs. Even though I was visiting Vancouver at the time this book came under my radar, I feel I have much to learn about this region and our neighboring country. The whole business of bush or commuter pilots and small passenger planes was intriguing, something I hadn't thought much about but will undoubtedly stay in my memory. I'm not certain you'll find me on a under 100 seater anytime soon. There was a lot to consider in what caused this crash. Weather, pilot inexperience, error or fatigue, the airline mentality of the flight must go, equipment failure, all seemed to have its part in this disaster. Though four men lived, six others lost their lives on this icy night in October, 1984.

Carol Shaben is the daughter of one of the survivor's, Larry Shaben, the first Muslim to be elected to high office. She learned of his plight while reading a newspaper in the Middle East where she was a journalist. The book is as much a probe into understanding her father's feelings about the event, one he would talk little about, as it is to the event as it related to the other survivors. She succeeds on both counts.

[La Petite Américaine · Rating 1 out of 5]

REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS. (And FYI: Holy shit. I actually feel mean writing this). Anyway, let's get on with it.

This book motivated me to create a new shelf called ZZZZzzzZZZZzz.

So, a small commuter plane crashes in the Canadian wilderness in 1984. The four survivors spend a frigid night on a mountaintop while awaiting rescue. The daughter of one of the survivors goes on to write a book about the entire ordeal.

You bored yet? Don't worry, you will be.

I can see why Carol Shaben finds this topic more fascinating than the rest of us do. After all, her father was one of the survivors. But let's cut away the fluff and get to the bare bones of this memoir.

Our four survivors are a politician, a pilot, a cop, and a criminal with a drinking problem. Know what happens after they're rescued?

The politician leaves office and becomes a political activist instead.

The pilot doesn't get hired at any airlines because of the little commuter jet snafu on his record, but he eventually finds work as a pilot again.

The cop leaves the police force and travels the world. Then he returns to Canada and becomes a cop again.

The criminal is pardoned, enjoys a brief period of sobriety, falls off the wagon, goes broke, and dies.

Notice how nothing really changes? Not exactly a harrowing account of 72 days of survival and transformation, is it?

All that really happened in this book was that four guys had their lives briefly interrupted by a puddle-jumper crash and a cold night on a Canadian mountaintop.

I suppose Shaben could have gotten away with it if she were a better writer, but I just couldn't stand it. Shaben writes a lot like one of my C students in English 101: her repetition got to me (using the word "moan" two or three times per page to describe the aftermath of the crash), and passages like "slugs the size of bananas" (were they banana slugs, perhaps?) and "rakish good looks that wouldn’t seem out of place on the set of a Western movie" mean nothing to me.

This whole book begs for a good rewrite, or at least an editor who knows how to breathe a little life into bland and boring prose.

All of this when I could have been reading (and mocking) Pretty Little Liars or the new Dan Brown book. Ah well. C'est la vie.

Sucked.

[Catherine Howard · Rating 2 out of 5]

(2.5*)

First I should say that I would never in a million years have discovered this book were I to limit my reading to e-books or online bookstores. I just happened upon in a little independent bookstore, thought it sounded interesting (it actually immediately reminded me of the premise of that Liam Neeson movie THE GREY, minus the wolves) and a couple of chapters in, was delighted I had happened upon it. Yay for bookstores. Sadly, things soon took a turn...

This is (yet another) case of an overzealous copywriter or editor -- whoever wrote the blurb, and hey, let's throw the cover designer for the UK edition in there as well -- setting readers up for disappointment. The blurb reads:

"On a freezing October night in 1984, a Canadian commuter plane smashed headlong into a high ridge of remote, rugged forest. Among the four survivors was a small-time criminal ... now free of his handcuffs and the only one to escape the crash uninjured. The only one capable of keeping the other survivors alive -- should he choose to..."

Cue the dum-dum-DUUUMMMM music, right?

That blurb is why I picked up the book, because that does sound like a book I'd want to read. Clearly, this criminal was some sort of dark-hearted, soulless, serial-killing psychopath with no conscience or regard for human life, and he held the others' very LIVES in his hands, and now as the cold and the dark and the snow closes in, and they're practically zero chance of anyone finding them, he gets to decide who lives and who dies. Maybe it's just me, but that's what I think the blurb infers.

Now I don't mean to minimize or belittle what happened to these men, who were in a plane crash and spent a night in the wilds of Alaska awaiting rescue while three of them suffered from very serious injuries that needed medical attention, but the "criminal" was a petty thief who was actually, it sounds like, the nicest guy out of the lot, and whose handcuffs had long been removed by the cop accompanying him because he'd been such a nice guy and clearly wasn't a threat to anyone. And while this criminal, AKA Paul, was undoubtedly heroic in his efforts to keep the other men alive (and to pull one of them from the wreckage) there was no sinister, eerie decision-making process as portrayed by the blurb.

It reminds me of that newspaper summary of The Wizard of Oz: "Transported to a surreal landscape, a young girl kills the first person she meets and then plots to kill two others."

What this book is really about is the problems that existed in the 1980s with the small, regional airlines servicing the inhabitants of the Alaskan wilderness, and how four men fared in life after their paths crossed in a horrific plane crash that killed a majority of the passengers. And that story, while interesting, is more suited, in my opinion, to a long form magazine article. Padded out to book-length, the story slows and, at times, gets a little boring.

The author is the daughter is one of these men, and I commend her for writing so well and for fighting to write about a story that is obviously as important to her as it was to her father. I just think this is the wrong medium, and the anonymous blurb-writer has made this worst by promising a story on the back of the book that the pages inside don't deliver.

The other downside to this book is that since the events occurred in 1984 and the book just came out, it's describing a problem (the practices of regional airlines) that's nearly three decades old, so the reader can't even summon some indignation or anger about it, because (if my obsessive watching of airline investigation docs is anything to go by) these problems have been solved.

Well-written, but can't recommend.

[Kimberly Dawn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sad that several lives were lost in this plane crash, but interesting story of the survivors, some of whom were especially memorable characters.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great read. Discovered this accidentally when looking up a book with a similar title and knew I had to read it RIGHT now. (Though I can't believe I endeavored while flying during a snowstorm!) Two thumbs up from me, this true story is worthwhile.

[Tom Wood · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book a few years ago and I still think about it from time to time, such was its impact on me. A powerful tale not only of surviving a plane crash in the wilderness, but how that ordeal transforms the lives of those that survived. Fascinating, beautifully written and heartbreaking.

[Nicky McHugh · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oh no. Not at all what it promises. "Into the Abyss: An Extraordinary True Story -- Only four men survive the plane crash. The pilot. A politician. A cop -- and the criminal he was shackled to ..." ... promises the cover of the book. In reality, and I really don't think I'm giving anything away here -- the criminal was not "shackled" to the cop when the plane went down -- and the book is not really a survival tale. Yes the plane went down, yes the four men survived -- but that takes up less than 1/5 of the book. Instead this is a meandering tale, with lots of jumps back and forth in time told by the daughter of the politician. Overall it is sort of interesting but not at all compelling. And not even close to mediocre in the survival/adventure genre this book is trying to be a part of.

[Cindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are a few reasons why I would be predisposed to appreciate this book. First, it happened in my neck of the woods just a month before I moved here. Secondly, at the end of his career as a military transport pilot, my father flew Hercules aircraft for 435 Squadron, one of the aircraft and the squadron that was deployed in the search and rescue effort. And then, after his retirement from the military, my dad worked for the Ministry of Transport as an inspector (a job he didn't like very much except that it allowed him to continue to fly). He was still with MOT when this plane went down. (I'm eagerly awaiting a conversation with him.)

When I picked up the book, which I did for just those reasons listed above, I expected a dry, factual report on the crash, the events leading up to it and the follow-up. I was pleasantly surprised to discover a page-turner. Shaben crafts the book beautifully, with good pacing and well-drawn characters.

She does not, however succumb to sensationalism or judgement. She presents a balanced, objective account of the facts despite the emotional weight of her father being one of the survivors. It is a testament to her depiction of her father as an honest, humble and compassionate man that he clearly raised a daughter who could be unbiased and forgiving in the face of an accident that could have killed him.

Instead, it is clear that the blame lies across a broad spectrum: from the historical culture of the northern frontier to the regulated but competitive commercialism of our modern society. Shaben portrays each individual involved as a truly human, thus complex mixture of qualities struggling with his or her own journey in life.
Although well crafted, this is not a novel. There is no pat denouement. Don’t read this for a thrill – danger and survival is not always exciting - or for the satisfaction of watching the wrongdoer get his just deserts.

There are no villains and the hero is, after all, only human.

[Bev Walkling · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've just received my advance reader's copy courtesy of First Reads and was hooked right after reading the introduction!
24 hours later: This book did indeed grab me from the get go. The author Carol Shaben is a recipient of a gold medal for investigative reporting and her skills in this area shine through in this book which tells the story of a deadly aircrash in Northern Canada which took place in October 1984. The story is a personal one for her as her father, Larry Shaben, was one of the four survivors. The story is told, however, from the perspective of all four survivors and is well documented as to primary sources. The reader learns of the risks associated with being a pilot of small airplanes in the North and the factors which led up to the crash. Descriptions of the crash and aftermath were authentic and horrifying and for those who have lost family in similar crashes would be difficult to read. The story of the rescue and difficulties involved was eye opening and the inquest into causative factors was emotional. What makes this story different from many disaster stories though is the description of how the crash and their survival affected the lives of the four survivors. The scary thing I took away from reading this is that conditions may not have changed all that much when it comes to small plane flights and the difficulties pilots face as they are trying to accumulate hours.

[ALI · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.75 stars rounded up.

[Brie · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 Stars

The only reason this book ended up on my radar is because it's a bookclub pick for next month. That being said, I do remember when this book came out (I was working in a book store at the time), and the blurb on the front definitely catches your attention. I like a good survival story and I figured it would be interesting to see where these men's lives take them and the relationships they form with one another (which is what I felt the books synopsis really convinces you the book is about). And I'm a bit confused about why this book is classified as "Travel - Adventure"?? I think Canadian History would be more appropriate.

In reality, the plane crash and the one night they have to survive is such a small part of the book. Although in hindsight, what did I expect when the survivors only had to survive one night in the wilderness. I'm not downplaying that feat by any means, but I guess only so much can be said about one night. A large part of the book is about the safety, or lack there-of, of the small plane company that the pilot was working for (Wapiti Airlines). While this information was a bit shocking and made me feel badly for the poor pilot and all of the victims of small commuter plane crashes, I couldn't help but think about the relevance to today's small commuter airlines. Are these issues still a problem? Do safe flying practices still come second to transporting passengers?

The author is the daughter of one of the survivors, Larry Shaben, who was a prominent figure in Alberta politics back in the 80s, so I can see why this was an important story for her tell. And since I live in Alberta and grew up here, I could appreciate the landscape and the geography much more than probably someone reading this book who has not lived in or been to Alberta. It's always neat to read about a book that is set in your home province.

Of course though, I was just over a year old when this plane crash happened, so I have no recollection of this event or the impact it may have had on people and our government (Grant Notley, Rachel Notley's daughter, was leader of the Alberta NDP party at the time and killed in this plane crash). I think this book should have and needed to be written many years ago, especially since a huge part of it was looking into the safety issues of this airline. I don't know. I don't think I could recommend this book to anyone except for my mom (who happened to read my copy while she was visiting me anyway), because I'm not sure who the right audience is anymore. While the author's father was obviously a very nice man and a huge role model in her life, these men aren't that memorable for myself and I didn't find their after stories very compelling. (Meaning, they survived a plane crash, went through the necessary grieving period, discovered they wanted to change things in their life, and rarely kept in touch - nothing GRAND or truly life-changing happened in my opinion). Not a bad book by any means, it just has a very specific audience.

[Gloria Hatcher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow - this book moved me. I finished it yesterday and have found myself reflecting on it for the past 24 hours. As the title states, it's the true story of 4 men who are forever united by surviving a plane crash in rural northern Canada in the 80's, written by one of the survivors daughters. The author moves seamlessly between each mans story leading up to, during, and in the aftermath of the crash. She truly captures the complexity of the human condition. This book lays bare how life can change in an instant, how tragedy is a great equalizer, the power of love, the nuances of and varied types of heartbreak, the emotions that accompany surviving or creating a catastrophe- shame, guilt, pressure, forgiveness, confusion. The fine line between hero and villain. How multidimensional people are. I couldn't put this book down. I was captivated by the perspectives of the different men involved, how the crash brought them together, and how their lives intersected and changed. The final chapter highlights the survivors 20 year reunion and it actually brought me to tears. This book about far away characters from an unimaginable world are somehow every single one of us. This book was at the same time historical, cultural/political awareness, personal biography, and chicken soup for the soul. Into the abyss will be with me for a while!

[Beth · Rating 2 out of 5]

I feel bad giving this book only two stars, but it should have been a long magazine article instead. The main problem is that the cover blurbs did not match what was inside. For instance, I'm sure surviving a plane crash is unbelievably traumatic, but the men were rescued after one night by a campfire, so I'm not sure you can bill that as "extraordinary." And yes, one of them was a (petty) criminal, but so what? Then, as another reviewer noted, the experience did not really transform these four men's lives as the cover suggests--they all took a break and then eventually went back to doing pretty much what they were doing before. Despite all this, I'm glad the author was able to investigate this important part of her dad's life.

[Sarah Scribner · Rating 3 out of 5]

While the writing was fairly concise and captivating in this book - unlike some other non-fiction I have read, I'm not sure the actual incident itself was worthy of a book. The cover and blurb makes a big deal of the criminal being in the plane wreck when actually the fact that he's a criminal doesn't play into it hardly at all. The entire story is just kind of blah. They survived a plane crash and about 10 hours in the woods - which is in itself fairly incredible- I just don't think it's enough for an entire book.

[Sharon Orlopp · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fabulous book about a true story where a plane crash killed 6 and 4 survived in the midst of a winter storm in northern Canada although rescue efforts were hampered due to harsh weather conditions. The bonds that were formed by the 4 survivors as they spent hours together contemplating survival and death are inspirational and profound.

[Florence Buchholz · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was a cold, moonless night in October, 1984. The small plane was a commuter flight in northern Alberta, Canada carrying ten passengers. Four injured survivors crawled out of the wrecked plane into deep snow. They started a fire to ward off the deadly chill. Their pain and their fear felt palpable to me. Six other passengers perished inside the wrecked fuselage.

Due to Carol Sheben's vivid prose, I will remember that scene around the fire as the four survivors waited for rescue or for death. Their thoughts and physical agony seemed quite real. After being rescued, their paths in life changed profoundly. Each followed a course distinctly different from the pre-crash days. Through the years there was tragedy, redemption, accomplishment and at least one joyful reunion decades later. I savored it all.

[Jaime · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the face of tragedy a sublime and inexplicable life changing experience in resilience, selflessness and unforgettable friendship will help these four survivors cope with the memories of the crash.
The pilot, a prominent politician, a cop and the prisoner he was escorting, you figure, will be a superb narration of that fatal day brought to us in this unique book.

[Brooklyn Lyons · Rating 2 out of 5]

picked off a list to read for school and it was absolutely boring. majority of the book is not about the actual crash/survival.

[Jeremy Moore · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book advertises as a survival book, with the added spice of interesting social dynamics during the high stakes fight to survive.

I got very little of that. The survival itself is only one night, of survivors so injured they can only keep the fire going and hang on - not that that isn't impressive, it just doesn't have logistics that make for much of a story. The social dynamics fall mostly flat as well - the "criminal" turns out to be a normal guy, not some intense killer, who acts as we all hope we would in that scenario to help the others. The most interesting dynamic is the pilot, who has to sit there with the passengers whose lives he put in jeopardy.

Everything else around the actual plane crash, survival, and search and rescue is not very interesting, and way too long. The backstories take forever, and don't reach the climax they build to, because the survival and the social dynamic aren't that interesting. The aftermath is the exact same, except even worse, because the climax of the story has already happened. Not that I have zero interest in reading about what happens to people who survive a traumatic event, but that wasn't why I purchased the book.

I was going to note that the only person who would find this story interesting enough to write 300+ pages about is a child of a survivor, but that footnote needs to be fleshed out into a full critique - the author toggles between referring to the survivor as Larry or as Dad in a way that I found annoying, and the book (especially the aftermath) was chock full of thinly veiled bragging about how great her dad was. It could all be assigned to thorough research about how Larry approached life after surviving a plane crash - so maybe I had no tolerance for it because I didn't find the crash interesting in the first place.

Maybe I started off bound to dislike the book, because I couldn't stand this narrator. Her tone, inflection, and emphasis had an odd pace to them. It always felt like she was emphasizing words that didn't need to be - not in a way that was over dramatic, rather in a way that convinced me she didn't know what the book was about, or how to tell a story.

Usually I reserve one star reviews for books that I dislike so much I don't finish them. But the last 4+ hours (that's when the crash/survival ends) were close to un-listenable, and got steadily less interesting, and I only continued because I was so close to the end.

[Wanda Pedersen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Accidents change lives. I should know, my parents were killed in a car accident and my life is broken into two pieces: before and after that event. Maybe that's why this book spoke to me so strongly--I found this account of the four survivors of the plane crash very moving. I could recognize the dislocation and confusion that they suffered afterwards and sympathize as they struggled to get their lives back on track again. All four men had crises of some kind about what direction their lives should take, once they had been rescued. The RCMP officer, Scott, starts determinedly working his way through a bucket-list of items that he developed while laying in the snow waiting to be found. The pilot, Eric, works hard to find a new and meaningful career for himself and eventually claws his way back into the cockpit. The politician, Larry, doesn't meet his crisis until he gives up politics--and reconnects to his cultural heritage. They all do as well as can be expected. The poignant story is that of Paul, the felon, who is literally given a second chance at life as a result of this accident. He is hailed as a hero, the charges against him are dropped, he gets his job back and he gets his girl. And despite all of these advantages, he just can't keep his life on track. Turns out he chose the wrong girl and his inability to cope with that issue throws him into a tailspin that he just can't get out of. He dies, homeless and drunk, in the unforgiving winter weather of northern Alberta.

It seems we have paths that we follow in life--we make choices at each fork in the trail that we encounter and we have to be willing to make those choices everyday to keep heading in our desired direction. I chose to be happy again, not to wallow in bitterness. Its a choice I still make on a regular basis. It was fascinating to see these same struggles in other people's lives.

[Eleanor Cowan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A riveting and masterful story about a deadly 1984 air crash in Northern Alberta that killed six very loved Albertans including Elaine Noskeye, 39, a First Nations woman, the mother of fourteen children, Patricia Blaskovitz, 51, Ass't Director of Nursing in Fairview, mother of eight, Gordon Peever, 33, Director of Finance at the Alberta Vocational College, father of six, Dr. Terrance Swanson, 28, Dept of Agriculture, father of three, Christopher Vince, 30, Gov't Administrator, and Premier Grant Notley, 45, the father of our proud Rachel and her two siblings.

In a gripping narrative, the author zeroes in on the lives of the four survivors of the downed flight - a pressured pilot Erik Volt, an RCMP police officer, Scott, whose life was saved by Paul, the criminal he was escorting to court, and the author's beloved father, Minister Larry Shaben. Readers learn of the minutiae of their lives before the crash, the causes of the disastrous accident and the post-traumatic responses of men determined to rise from the ashes of the tragedy.

Sudden trauma can be a great leveler. Carol Shaben's riveting story celebrates the triumphs of the human spirit possible to those who hang on tight as the wheel of life turns over and over again.

It's not easy to write an intimate biography of four individuals in one go, but Carol Shaben earns five full stars for this magnificent, inspiring, and motivating national bestseller.

Eleanor Cowan, author of A History of a Pedophile's Wife: Memoir of a Canadian Teacher and Writer

[Lori · Rating 5 out of 5]

5+ stars! Though I may be a bit biased. Erik Vogel is my first cousin once removed whom I have never met. My aunt was telling us family stories since she has been spending a lot of time on ancestry.com. She happened to mention my grandmothers siblings and the story of Erik Vogel. This led to a conversation on this book and the story of the plane crash that changed many peoples lives.
This isn’t a book I would seek out. Though I must say it is an incredibly well written and researched book. I found the stories centring on Edmonton, Burnaby, Grand Prairie and High Prairie very interesting as I have been to all places and recognized with nostalgia many of the places Carol touched on.
I was fascinated by the changes in perspectives for all the survivors. Also the randomness of who survived and who died in the plane crash. One small insignificant decision can change a life forever. I also loved the growth and changes in all the characters throughout their lives following the crash.
Carol did an amazing job of telling a very factual and non-judgemental book. Portraying the humanity of each of the characters in her book. Despite this books’ purpose being to discuss the plane crash and the 4 survivors lives, I loved that Carol touched on the story of Wop May.
This is definitely one of my favourite books of the year.

[Lara Kleinschroth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I very gratefully received this ARC from the publisher and proceeded to devour this 'only-in-Canada' true story of survival, tragedy and heartbreak, and ultimate transformation. Carol Shaben had a difficult task with this as it is a deeply personal story - the surviving politician in the plane crash is her father - but she handled it brilliantly by sticking to the facts, and by heavily researching and presenting all sides to the story. The facts leading up to, during, and through the aftermath of the crash are perfectly counterbalanced by the stories of the struggles of the four survivors in such a way that one is never bogged down by the other. Shaben's writing is compassionate without melodrama, factual without being dry. The story itself is almost low-key, in a purely Canadian way - the survivors are humble and guilt-ridden and forgiving. What is truly compelling is the story of the rest of their lives, after the crash, how it changed each of them in fundamental - but each very different - ways, how it changed the trajectory of their lives. A classic transformation out of tragedy tale, pulled from the deep snow and dark woods of the Canadian North.

[Heidi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Riveting, well-told story and an instructional tale, with a bracing mix of heartbreak and triumph. The author does a masterful job of threading together the stories of the four survivors and other important people. I always knew where I was in time and place. (I seem to be mining every book I read these days for writing-craft gold.)

[Amanda Levy · Rating 4 out of 5]

An amazing look into a devastating story. See Gloria Hatcher’s review for more detail, but so fascinating and enthralling to read and imagine the complexity of human emotion and reaction in the face of trauma.

[Bettie · Rating 3 out of 5]

BOTW

[Colton Winslow · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was hoping more of the book would be about the crash itself and night of survival. Unfortunately there was a lot of build up and aftermath which was less interested imo

[J.H. Moncrieff · Rating 4 out of 5]

My feelings about this book dramatically changed from start to finish. In the beginning, it meandered and was often slow as it described in great detail the challenges of Canada's northern bush pilots, the dicey regulations that governed their bosses, and the plight of one bush pilot in particular.

As other reviewers have mentioned, the crash and its aftermath is a very small part of this book, which disappointed those hoping for an adventure-packed tale of survival. But few Canadians would be surprised by the angle this book takes, as Shaben's sweeping descriptions of landscape and countless metaphors are a decisive nod to the Canadian literary novel so lauded in this country. This, then, is not the story of a plane crash, but of people. It's a shame, but in their urge to market it well, the publisher targeted this book to the wrong audience. Into the Abyss isn't in the tradition of Into Thin Air at all. Think of it as a non-fiction version of Life of Pi, and you'll come closer to the truth.

However, as slow a starter as this book was, by the midway point, it had hooked me. I stayed up way past when I should have to finish it. The story of the four survivors' struggle to bring meaning to the rest of their lives is the point, not the accident that brought them there. My heart broke at one story in particular, that of a hero who'd only had one brief moment in the sun, but who had deserved so much more.

If you can stick with Shaben, and be patient, Into the Abyss will reward you with a story rich with characterization, depth and meaning far beyond the adventure thrillers it was erroneously compared to.

[Stephen Laird · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this up because the back of the book had comments from publications comparing it to Into Thin Air and The Perfect Storm which have been two of my favorite books I’ve read. It definitely didn’t live up to that comparison, but I still enjoyed reading this story. I debated a 3/5 vs 4/5 for this book, and ultimately rounded up to a 4 since I think 3.5 was where I landed.