Extreme Survivors: 60 of the World's Most Extreme Survival Stories

by Bear Grylls

The illustrated stories of 60 of the most daring escapes, famous shipwrecks, and ultimate survival stories—all astonishing tales of human endurance and endeavor The statistics, descriptions, archive photographs, and illustrative maps collected here will give readers a full understanding of how Joe Simpson crawled to safety in the South American Andean mountains, how Anthony Farrar-Hockley evaded capture after the Battle of Imjin River in the Korean War, and how Shackleton's men survived the incredible journey by boat to South Georgia. Survival stories include the Miracle of Stairway B, and how 16 people managed to escape death in the Twin Towers on 9/11 and the infamous story of the Montevideo rugby union team’s plane crash in the Andes, and their subsequent admission of cannibalism. Prison escapes range from Mary Queen of Scots and her escape from a remote Scottish castle, to three men pulling off what is possibly the only successful escape from Alcatraz, to Henri Charrière's (Papillon) five escape attempts from the Devil's Island penal colony. Such wartime escape stories are included as that of Dith Pran, the Cambodian journalist who escaped the genocide of Pol Pot, and how the German soldier Cornelius Rost escaped from a labor camp in Siberia and trekked for three years to Iran. The book also discusses hostage situations, like Naheeda Bi’s 10 years in captivity after her notorious tribal kidnapping in Pakistan and the dramatic rescue of Íngrid Betancourt by Colombian security forces after six years.

Genres: Nonfiction, Adventure, History

260 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

Bear Grylls has become known around the world as one of the most recognized faces of survival and outdoor adventure. His journey to this acclaim started in the UK on the Isle of Wight, where his late father taught him to climb and sail. Trained from a young age in martial arts, Bear went on to spend three years as a soldier in the British Special Forces, serving with 21 SAS. It was here that he perfected many of the skills that his fans all over the world enjoy watching him pit against mother-nature. Despite a free-fall parachuting accident in Africa, where he broke his back in three places, and after enduring months in military rehabilitation, Bear went on to become one of the youngest ever climbers to reach the summit of Mount Everest. Bear went on to star in Discovery Channel's Emmy nominated Man Vs Wild and Born Survivor TV series, which has become one of the most watched shows on the planet. Off screen, Bear has lead record-breaking expeditions, from Antarctica to the Arctic, which in turn have raised over £2.5million for children around the world. In recognition of his expertise and service, Bear was appointed as the youngest ever Chief Scout to 28 million Scouts worldwide, awarded an honorary commission as a Lieutenant-Commander in the Royal Navy, and has authored 10 books, including To My Sons.

Reviews

[Izarra Moore · Rating 3 out of 5]

You think your day was bad? Check out this compendium of schadenfreude. My favorite story has to be about the guy who picks up a trio of hitchhikers in the Australian outback, gets mugged, beaten and left for dead, and spends the next 3 months eating frogs and lizards to stay alive. (At 6'3", he was a skeletal 105 pounds by the time he was discovered.) Great little digestible chunks of thrill. Perfect summer fare.

[Matt Rose]

A collection of short stories about human survival under harsh conditions. The book is divided into the sections survival, prison, war, shipwrecks, and hostages. Several of the stories in this book are known to popular audiences through books, tv dramas, and movies. Each story begins with an overview so it is easy to decide whether one wants to continue reading one of the sixty stories in this collection. I could see it used by a middle or high school social studies or history teacher to share with students as a part of a unit or to share an interesting story at the end of lesson. I would recommend it to mature middle years students and adults interested in non-fiction.

[Scott · Rating 2 out of 5]

Writing is mediocre at best (and poorly edited), but the stories are pretty unbelievable. Also, this is not written by Bear Grylls, he has just written the foreward.

[Darla Ebert · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book contains stories of survival from varying aspects of life: shipwrecks, mountaineering disasters, polar exploration, strandings in the desert, to name a few. The need to survive and the human spirit are placed within us by God Himself, and He is the ultimate Savior after all. The courage of a seemingly average person is an inspiration.

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating book of true human-endurance stories, from the 1700's to the present. Included stories of being out in nature, shipwrecks, hostage situations and prison escapes. The detailed maps included made the stories more understandable and realistic.

[Arindam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Extreme Survivors are short descriptions of sixty survival stories from different timelines. Readers may find that these are not detailed descriptions of the ordeals but are rather brief excerpts of the actual happenings. Readers expecting nail-biting endings are bound to be disappointed.

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Truly amazing people!! It's totally baffling that people can withstand so much both physically and mentally and still survive. There isn't one that stands out above all others - they were all just awe-inspiring!
I loved this book and would highly recommend it.

[Shirlee Chia · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was in pain reading this book but nevertheless amazed by the human endurance in it. Never have I gone one day without eating, drinking or in the comfort of being in a safe place. The images of what the survivors had gone through felt surreal to me. It was an impressive read despite the rating I give. I rate my read based on my feelings to it.