It lurks in the corner of our imagination, almost beyond our ability to see it: the possibility that a tear in the fabric of life could open up wit...
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Dec 10, 2008
Brooks
rated it: 
Easy read on history of disaster planning. Good gut check on understand risk and how to respond. Starts with the Halifax Explosion in 1917 and explores 9/11, 1993 bombing, Sewer explosions of Guadalajara, and Katrina. Some of the interesting items. 1) Initial response in a disaster is always by neighbors or self rescue, so be prepared 2) Understand risk of activities – don’t watch the news (references Taleb above), so Heart Attack, Cancer, Stroke, Car accident. A study showed an addit
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Feb 13, 2009
Michael
rated it: 
Worth your time if you have any interest in these types of things. Results of a lot of research on who survives disasters and why.
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Jun 19, 2008
Alisa
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Everyone should read this book! Besides being filled with utterly fascinating tales of how different people react during disasters (did you know panic is actually an extremely rare response?) it gives very helpful ideas/plans for how to prepare yourself mentally for being involved in one. This is the type of book you're always reading bits aloud to whoever happens to be in the room; I cannot stress how terrific and interesting it is...just knowing the most common reasons people die in disaster
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Jul 01, 2011
Katie
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This was a great audiobook for my morning jogs. I may be morbid, but a book all about disaster striking was actually really riveting. And I thought it was really well-done, structurally. The book went through a lot of statistics but then in each case, asked "WHY do the numbers come out this way"? What is the story behind why people behave the way they do in disasters? And SO differently--people's reactions are really all across-the-board, and predictable in some ways but not others.
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Apr 19, 2011
Blair
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Today, nine out of ten Americans live in places at significant risk of earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, terrorism, or other disasters. Tomorrow, some of us will have to make split-second choices to save ourselves and our families. How will we react? What will it feel like? Will we be heroes or victims?
In her quest to answer these questions, Amanda Ripley, an award-winning writer on homeland security for Time, offers a compelling look at instinct and disaster response as she explo More...
In her quest to answer these questions, Amanda Ripley, an award-winning writer on homeland security for Time, offers a compelling look at instinct and disaster response as she explo More...
Mar 02, 2011
Jan
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This is the second book I've read in recent memory about disaster survival, and by far it is the better and more memorable of the two.
I think the thing I like the most about Ripley's book is that it has such a strong foundation in disaster science and psychology. I rarely felt like she was tossing out speculation. A lot of study has gone into the hows and whys of disaster survival; I feel like this book does a good job of encapsulating a large portion of that study into relatively shor More...
I think the thing I like the most about Ripley's book is that it has such a strong foundation in disaster science and psychology. I rarely felt like she was tossing out speculation. A lot of study has gone into the hows and whys of disaster survival; I feel like this book does a good job of encapsulating a large portion of that study into relatively shor More...
Nov 15, 2009
Steven
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The author, Amanda Ripley, reports her reflections on how people respond to disaster--and how they can improve that response. Throughout the book, she refers to a variety of disasters and notes how people responded--whether well or not so well. Her approach (Page ix): "I started to research the stories of survivors from. . .disasters. The overlaps were startling. People in shipwrecks, plane crashes, and floodwaters all seemed to undergo a miraculous metamorphosis. They performed better in s
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Feb 13, 2009
Ben
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This book is pretty much what you would expect from the introduction and cover blurbs. The best part was the author creating an equation for dread: dread = uncontrollability + unfamiliarity + imaginability + suffering + scale of destruction + unfairness.
I wanted to read this not to be better prepared for disaster, but to simply see what happens in one. As Naipaul once put it "the world is what it is."
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I wanted to read this not to be better prepared for disaster, but to simply see what happens in one. As Naipaul once put it "the world is what it is."
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Apr 03, 2011
Kal
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An engaging and cohesive narrative of what happens in our minds and bodies when shockingly negative things happen. I read this as research for a novel I'm writing -- I had a decent grasp of PTSD and other trauma disorders from a clinical perspective, but was hoping for something to help me connect the dots between psychiatric treatises and actual human behaviors. This book fit the bill nicely. I made pretty hefty use of my Kindle's highlight feature on this one.
I recommend this to anyo More...
I recommend this to anyo More...
Sep 01, 2008
Kelly
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This book was absolutely fascinating. It has a lot to do with the behavior of disaster victims, which is a not well researched area. I particularly liked reading the accounts of survivors describing what it was like to live through these situations; how they never thought they'd act the way they did. There's a lot of interesting information about how your body physically changes when under threat, and how your "disaster personality" comes out. I couldn't put it down.
Sep 09, 2011
Mary
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Everyone's wondered: how would I react in a crisis? Ripley describes the different reactions people have and why freezing up might be just as evolutionarily advantageous as being a hero. Her main take-away is that citizens need to be prepared to take care of themselves instead of relying on some other authority to tell them what to do. She makes the very good point that in flight 93 and the 9/11 attacks, citizens were draftees in the war on terror. This isn't to say that we need to be panicked a
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Apr 26, 2011
Heather
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If you were in a disaster, what would you do? How would you react? It might not be the way you think. Our disaster personalities can be quite different than the ones we expect to meet.
Filled with utterly fascinating tales of contemporary disasters and the people caught up in them, author Amanda Ripley reflects on the various ways people respond to disaster, what happens inside the brain physiologically, why some people fare much better than others, and how we all can improve our disast More...
Filled with utterly fascinating tales of contemporary disasters and the people caught up in them, author Amanda Ripley reflects on the various ways people respond to disaster, what happens inside the brain physiologically, why some people fare much better than others, and how we all can improve our disast More...
Mar 31, 2009
Trudi
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Each of us can benefit from this sobering read about human behavior in the face of disaster. There are some real surprises, including how infrequently humans actually panic -- that panic, while it does exist, is not the normal reaction. When faced with overwhelming peril, most of us will become paralyzed and be very slow to act. We will mill about (like cattle), we will look to others, we will gather personal belongings, and most alarming of all, we will forget how to perform the simplest of tas
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Aug 03, 2011
Ubersmaug
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As someone who visits denial regularly, I liked this book because it helped me realize that confronting your fears helps you overcome them. The author broke down different kinds of disaster responses into several chapters (denial, panic, paralysis...) and then explained why one would act that way. E.g. why would you sit passively as a plane burned around you? And in an amusing aside to that, flight attendants are apparently now trained to scream at people during a disaster ("MOVE IT!! MOVE
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Jan 06, 2009
The Unthinkable: Who Survives Disasters, and Why? By Amanda Ripley, narrated by Kirsten Potter, produced by Random House Audio, downloaded from Audible.com.
Ripley, a well-known New York Times writer, decides to take on the question: who survives traumas, and do those survive have talents or characteristics that those who don’t survive don’t have? She looks at what is known about various disasters, including famous ones like 9/11, various famous plane crashes, ferryboat sinkings, More...
Ripley, a well-known New York Times writer, decides to take on the question: who survives traumas, and do those survive have talents or characteristics that those who don’t survive don’t have? She looks at what is known about various disasters, including famous ones like 9/11, various famous plane crashes, ferryboat sinkings, More...
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Apr 11, 2009
Shannon
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What a fantastic book! Despite the ominous cover, it was a positive look at human reactions to disasters. It took case studies from September 11, Katrina, fires, plane crashes, etc and went through fear, dread, panic, heroism, and other reactions. The book was facinating, presenting so many intruiging facets of human behavior and brain functions. Once you read some of them, you immediately want to hurry and find someone to tell about it or talk it over with. It got to the point that Michael
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Feb 03, 2012
Michele
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Very well done. This is March's book for our book group and I can just tell the discussion is going to be amazing. She gave me pause several times while reading.
42: Individuals underperceive risk.
So you don't have to die!
47:When people imagine good things happening to them, they become more prone to take risks.
I have always figured I would be a good one in a crisis, but after reading this book, I'm having second thoughts. One of the points she makes, is More...
42: Individuals underperceive risk.
So you don't have to die!
47:When people imagine good things happening to them, they become more prone to take risks.
I have always figured I would be a good one in a crisis, but after reading this book, I'm having second thoughts. One of the points she makes, is More...
Nov 06, 2011
Shauna
rated it:
When disaster strikes, some people die; some survive but never recover; and some survive, bounce back, and thrive.
Author Amanda Ripley wondered why. She researched many major disasters and interviewed neuroscientists, trauma psychologists, and disaster experts. This book reveals what she learned and does so in an interesting and easy-to-read fashion.
She discusses the different ways in which people respond to disaster and how some responses are more likely to lead to survi More...
Author Amanda Ripley wondered why. She researched many major disasters and interviewed neuroscientists, trauma psychologists, and disaster experts. This book reveals what she learned and does so in an interesting and easy-to-read fashion.
She discusses the different ways in which people respond to disaster and how some responses are more likely to lead to survi More...
May 03, 2010
Melanie
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Amanda Ripley is a journalist and not an expert in Emergency Management, so I don't feel uncomfortable in saying that this book's information is a mile wide and an inch deep. You will not walk away being an expert, but that isn't the intention. The overall intention is to make one start thinking about how they would respond in a disaster situation.
The book is broken down into three sections that everyone goes though: Denial, Deliberation, and the Decisive Moment. Each section is More...
The book is broken down into three sections that everyone goes though: Denial, Deliberation, and the Decisive Moment. Each section is More...
May 23, 2010
refgoddess
rated it:
Recommended by a facilities dude from work. Fascinating. Tells of individual and group responses to disasters. The parts about individual brain activity are surprising. We can predict the likelihood of PTSD, of success as a marine. We can measure physiological responses. We can codify the behavior: freezing, gathering (of things and other people). The tendency to call other people to verify that it's an emergency, the tendency to not move if others don't, the lack of trust in the unknown
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Apr 10, 2009
Staci
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Ever had a book that keeps you up at night? One that provides starters for many conversations? One that you want to hand to everyone you live or work with and encourage them to finish it? One that makes you really want to stand up and take action? This book did all of those things for me.
Amanda Ripley did a fabulous job compiling disaster stories and presenting the reactions of multiple individuals.
I found myself reading passages to my husband and discussing how the peop More...
Amanda Ripley did a fabulous job compiling disaster stories and presenting the reactions of multiple individuals.
I found myself reading passages to my husband and discussing how the peop More...
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Mar 06, 2011
Andrea
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This book from beginning to end has a great flow. Ripley uses special stories of survivors to tie into the various topics surrounding survival. From denial, deliberation to decisive action, you are brought into the mind of the survivors and victims of some of the biggest tragedies of our time. She covers the World Trade Center attacks (both of them), the Tsunamis and Katrina in depth. I also learned about other tragedies I wasn't aware of, like the Mecca pilgrimages (happening present day) a
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Sep 23, 2011
Whitney
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I really enjoyed this book, probably because I have a small hippocampus and trend toward paranoia about random things. (people who've finished it will know what I mean) This provided a good overview on the current research and literature on disaster survival and psychology, interspersed with some fascinating stories by survivors. Things got a little annoying when the author talked too much about her experiences, but thankfully it was kept to a minimum. The most important aspect discussed, in my
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Feb 26, 2010
Tracie
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So far, it's interesting, but apparently working as a data analyst for a year and a half has forever ruined me when it comes to reading anything involving statistics because I know exactly how bullshit they are. I'm about 75 pages in, and, like I said, it's interesting, but it's not quite coming together for me yet. Seems a bit slap-dashy.
Finished it. It's a really quick read. And like I said, it's interesting, but that's about as far as it goes. I would have liked more examinatio More...
Finished it. It's a really quick read. And like I said, it's interesting, but that's about as far as it goes. I would have liked more examinatio More...
Aug 06, 2009
Kalyn
rated it:
This book is exactly what it sounds like from the cover blurb and introduction - the author examines human behavior in past disasters and speaks with scientific experts (neurologists, behaviorists, etc.), military/ police/ fire personnel (experiential experts), and disaster survivors to explore how the brain works for some people that makes them more likely to survive or perish in a disaster.
Through this exploration, she gives the reader a better understanding of how to mentally pr More...
Through this exploration, she gives the reader a better understanding of how to mentally pr More...
Apr 19, 2011
Bethany
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This is a book you will never regret reading. It sounds intriguing at first, "the science of how the body and mind respond to crises" as it details various disasters and interviews survivors to get a better idea of what goes on in the human mind and how reactions can be improved. I normally don't read a lot of nonfiction, but this was gripping and interesting as well as useful. While at first there was a worry that the book would have an unsettling effect, it is actually quite direct a
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Apr 05, 2010
Jim
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This is a great book. The marketing is a little deceptive, because it implies that this will help you survive disasters. That is not the emphasis of the book. The emphasis is on how people actually behave in large disasters and in other life-and-death situations, and why. The answers are suprising. This is well constructed, with a nice mix of first-hand accounts, results from scientific studies, and reasoning about why we might have developed these responses and whether they are suited to t
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Aug 20, 2009
Dotty
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If you were in a disaster, what would you do? This book says that you won't do what you think you might, because you won't be thinking clearly at all. You might freeze and do nothing, you might stop and start gathering things you don't want to leave behind, you might go along with the crowd even if you realize they are not acting sensibly. Amanda Ripley has written for Time magazine and the style of this book is magazine-like. It is full of information about the value of having thought abo
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Feb 13, 2009
Sarah
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Contains useful and interesting information, but this is buried under a lot of fluff. The misuse of statistics in a couple places annoyed me, as did the silly categorization of every part of an individual's disaster response actions as either "denial," "deliberation," or "action." Yes, I realize this book is written for the general public, but I don't see that as an excuse to dumb down the terminology used. More references to actual cognitive science studies of disa
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Nov 29, 2008
Donna
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Disasters, both big and small, occur all of the time. It is surprising to see that most people's first reaction is to do nothing. The author describes a huge fire in the Beverly Hills Club in Ohio, where a whole table of victims were found still seating in their chairs around their table. The book takes you through the stages that occur - denial, deliberation, and what she calls the 'decisive moment.' Interesting enough, sometimes playing dead is an effective choice as a student at VT survived b
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