a guide to the best survival books based on true survival stories
As an avid traveler, I have been very interested in the power of humans and how far they can go to survive the tough situations that life presents.
As such, survival storybooks based on true stories are something I like to read. I have many of them in my little library and today I will share some with you.
You are reading: Books on survival stories
When I started reading these books, I couldn’t help but imagine the pain that person might have experienced by tuning outdoor adventures to tragic incidents of captured officers during ages past. These stories have a lot to tell and teach.
what drives people to overcome seemingly imminent death or risky situations can teach you a lot. The survival stories that I will share today have exciting plots that captivate me to continue reading.
Also, I’m always looking for more true survival story books and if I’ve missed any please let me know, I’d love to read them.
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summary: the best survival storybooks
15 best survival story books based on true stories
Written by Laurence Gonzales, Deep Survival has survival stories that serve as examples of how adventure in the great outdoors can turn tragic. Gonzales spent his entire life fascinated by the incredible true stories of survival that he heard as a child.
This book is divided into two parts. the books contain many true mini-stories of outdoor adventures turning into tragedies and how one wrong decision can lead to disaster.
“how accidents happen” is the first part where you will learn how someone can be involved in unplanned incidents. says that having a very strict or rigid plan can often become the reason for unplanned events.
The second part, “Survival”, will allow you to go through the survival stories of mountain climbers, sailors and even pilots. you’ll read how a split-second decision change saved them from disaster.
The author also shares some tips on how to react to crises and how to overcome them. the careful planning, the fluidity of the thought process, and the rush of emotions in unexpected situations are what will keep you hooked on the book.
Outdoor enthusiasts and adventurers alike will love this deep survival book. It’s one of the best survival books to read!
2. kon-tiki
by thor heyerdahl
Traveling across the Pacific on a hand-made wooden boat might just be the most amazing survival stories ever!
It deals with the journey of Thor Heyerdahl along with his five friends for 101 days traveling 4,439 miles in the Pacific Ocean with the idea of realizing that South Americans settled in Polynesia during pre-Columbian times.
The journey began in the year 1947 on April 28, and within these three months, the team survived sharks, whales, raging storms, and the endless blue sea. Thor Heyerdahl wanted to show the world that people could have survived the journey if they had tried using the limited technologies and material available during that time. They sailed the ocean on a raft.
kon-tiki is indeed one of the craziest survival stories you could read! It’s one of the most fascinating survival books out there!
3. lost in the jungle: a harrowing true story of adventure and survival
by yossi ghinsberg
This non-fiction survival storybook was left far back in my library, but a few days ago I was searching for something to read to catch up on my adventure survival book series and laid hands on this. Believe me, I found this one to be great and was thinking about why I didn’t read it before.
Written by ex-Israeli military man Yossi Ghinsberg, Lost in the Jungle is about four travelers who find themselves in Bolivia and head into the heart of the Amazon jungle to discover unknown tribes.
However, what started out as a dream adventure quickly turned into a dangerous nightmare, and after weeks of wandering through the dense forest, the four backpackers split into two groups.
but this was not all that could happen. A terrible rafting accident separates Yossi from his partner, and he is forced to survive for weeks alone in one of the wildest settings on the planet. Stranded without a knife, map or survival training, he must improvise a shelter and search for wild fruits to survive.
As his feet begin to rot during the storms, as he loses all sense of direction and begins to lose all hope, he wonders if he will make it out of the jungle alive.
This wilderness survival book is a true and terrifying tale you won’t be able to put down!
4. 438 days: an extraordinary true story of survival at sea
by jonathan franklin
Survival at sea stories have always fascinated me since I hitchhiked across the Atlantic Ocean. Written by Jonathan Franklin, 438 Days is the miraculous account of the man who survived alone and adrift at sea longer than anyone in recorded history.
on november 17, 2012, salvador alvarenga set out on a two-day fishing expedition off the coast of mexico with an inexperienced sailing partner, ezequiel córdoba.
Shortly after leaving, a fierce storm hit them and swept them west. the boat’s engine died, and the storm swept the boat out into the endless sea. Salvador even thought of committing suicide many times, but somehow, he always came up with an innovative idea to survive nature’s attacks.
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In the midst of all this, salvador learned to fish with his hands. Not only this, he also made a net out of some plastic bottles. On January 29, 2014, she made landfall in the Marshall Islands, 9,000 miles away.
438 Days is one of the best true sea survival stories you should read! It’s captivating from page 1!
5. after the wind: tragedy on everest: the story of a survivor
by lou kasischke
If you are looking for true survival stories and are passionate about mountain climbing, then After the Wind is a must!
Written by Lou Kasischke, it is based on the 1996 Everest tragedy. It was the worst tragedy in Everest’s history, as eight climbers died. lou was there, and she has seen it all and in her book she recorded everything that went wrong that day…in detail!
This harrowing storybook describes what went wrong in a way never before told, including why the climbers were desperately late and out of time.
The writer’s personal story captured in After the Wind recounts the intense moments at the top. these moments also revealed a love story that saved his life.
6. skeletons on the zahara: a true story of survival
by dean king
Skeletons on the Zahara by Dean King is one of the spectacular real-life survival stories based on Riley’s survival memoir through the extremes of the Sahara Desert in the early 19th century.
In 1815, the American trading brig crashed on Cape Bojador. The ship was destroyed but Captain James Riley managed to save all of his men on board. they landed, happy to be alive.
However, they found themselves stranded in a vast desert, the Sahara, without any knowledge of the local language or culture. they were soon captured by nomads and sold into slavery.
Forced to trek through the desert in the extremely hot sun with no food or water, the crew survived by drinking their urine…among other things.
Skeletons in the Zahara, based on true stories of survival, is Dean King’s masterpiece of courage and brotherhood.
7. touching the void: the true story of the miraculous survival of a man
by joe simpson
Touching the Void is the heart-stopping account of Joe Simpson’s terrifying adventure in the Peruvian Andes. He and his climbing partner Simon Yates completed one of the most difficult summits in the world: the West Face of Siula Grande in June 1985. They were the first ones to do that.
Sadly, their happiness didn’t last long. During the descent, Joe slipped and broke his leg. however, due to harsh weather conditions and joe’s frostbitten hands, the rope slipped and he was sent off the cliff.
since his ropes were tied, simon couldn’t continue without joe. so, he made the impossible decision to cut the rope and save his own life. however, joe miraculously survived the 150 foot drop.
touching the void is one of the epic stories of true survival in the wild, as well as a compelling testament to friendship.
8. the long walk: the true story of a journey to freedom
by slavomir rawicz
The Long Walk is one of the harrowing true survival stories of seven escaped Soviet prisoners who desperately marched out of Siberia through China, the Gobi Desert, Tibet, and over the Himalayas to British India.
In 1939, during the German-Soviet partition of Poland, Slavomir Rawicz, a twenty-six-year-old cavalry officer, was captured by the Red Army and sent to the Siberian Gulag.
In the spring of 1941, he escaped with six of his fellow prisoners, including an American. So he began his amazing journey to freedom with no map or compass, just an ax head, a knife, and a week’s supply of food.
9. alive: the story of the survivors of the andes
by paul read springs
Written by Piers Paul Read, Alive is one of the most incredible true adventures of the last century. On October 12, 1972, a plane carrying a team of young rugby players crashed into the most remote Andes covered with snow.
Of the forty-five passengers and crew, only sixteen made it out of the mountain alive.
For ten weeks, they endured suffering that is beyond the imagination of any of us. they experienced that nature can be more furious and inhospitable than we ever believed. and in order to survive, they were forced to do what would once have been unthinkable. you’ll find out in the book.
alive is particularly a great read for nature enthusiasts.
10. 127 hours: between a rock and a hard place
by aron ralston
Brilliantly written, funny, honest, inspiring, and downright astonishing, 127 Hours is one of the most extraordinary short survival stories ever told!
aron ralston writes about his intense account of six days trapped in one of the most remote places in america, and how an inspired act of bravery brought him home.
aron ralston grew up in the midwest and moved to colorado, a place where he fell in love with the outdoors.
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In 2002, he gave up a promising career and climbed all fifty-nine peaks in Colorado over 14,000 feet in winter…alone!
11. in nature
by jon krakauer
This book is based on a young man, Christopher Johnson McCandless from a prosperous family. In April 1992, he left his friends and family to hitchhike alone to Alaska and walked alone into the wilderness, north of Mt. McKinley.
donated his $25,000 savings to charity, the organizations abandoned his car and most of his possessions, burned his wallet, and created a new life for himself.
Four months later, a group of elk hunters found his decomposed body. how mccandless came to die is the unforgettable story of into the wild.
12. adrift: seventy-six days lost at sea
by steven callahan
Steven Callahan’s Adrift is a dramatic survival at sea story and was a New York Times bestseller for more than 36 weeks!
is an undeniable classic for lovers of navigation and a captivating first-hand story of the only man known to survive more than a month alone at sea.
fought for his life on an inflatable raft after his little sloop capsized just six days later. adrift is a must for any adventure library!
13. in peril: the sinking of the uss indianapolis and the extraordinary story of its survivors
by doug stanton
A harrowing and adrenaline-charged deep survival book, the In Harm’s Way is an account of America’s worst naval disaster and of the heroism of the men who, against all odds, survived.
By combining the stories of survivors, Doug Stanton has brought this amazing human drama to life in a narrative that is incredibly personal and timeless.
The most amazing part is how the 317 men survived battling sharks, hypothermia and dementia. This book on survival at sea is a compelling story of above-average warfare, skill, and courage.
14. resistance: shackleton’s incredible journey
by alfred lansing
It is the definitive account of Ernest Shackleton’s fateful trip. In Endurance, Alfred Lansing brilliantly shares the harrowing and breathtaking voyage that has defined heroism for the modern age.
In August 1914, polar explorer Ernest Shackleton boarded the Endurance.
It was crushed between two ice floes, leaving Shackleton and the other 27 men trapped on the ice island. how did the men survive?
they attempted an almost impossible journey of more than 850 miles through the most unpredictable and frigid seas of the South Atlantic to the next outpost of civilization.
15. unbroken: a story of survival, resilience and redemption from the second world war
by laura hillenbrand
Laura Hillenbrand writes with the rich and vivid narrative voice telling the unforgettable story of a man’s journey into extremity.
Imagine an Army Air Forces bomber crashing right into the Pacific Ocean. It’s hard to believe anyone could have survived, but the bombardier, young lieutenant, Louis Zamperini did survive this unimaginable accident in 1943.
The story takes you through the life of the lieutenant since he was a child. He knows what happened to Louis Zamperini, how he survived hunger and thirst, and how he was saved from deadly sharks.
Facing the limits of endurance, Zamperini’s life depends on the strength of his will.
Continued, one of the best survival books is now a great movie, directed by Angelina Jolie and starring Jack O’Connell.
Then these are some of the best survival books to read and be inspired by.
why read survival story books?
Survival storybooks tell us what human beings are capable of when pushed to their limits and are a great way to feel someone else’s situation who has been there without having to experience it yourself. you can learn a lot from him!
plus, with a good survival book, you can feel the adventure you’ve always wanted from the comfort of your home. To help you choose your next true survival stories, I’ve selected a list of 15 of my favorite survival books that I consider to be the best survival stories.
If you are a bookworm and an outdoor lover, you might also consider the best wilderness survival books or the best outdoor adventure books you should read. or why not show off your wanderlust with these beautiful travel coffee table books.
Many of the recommended books can be purchased at rei.com. I love them for their attractive sustainable policies! and they have a great selection of survival story books.
short frequently asked question about the best survival story books
If you can’t get enough of survival books based on true stories, have a look at my webstory here.
See Also: GitHub – EbookFoundation/free-programming-books: Freely available programming books