Real Life Survival Stories
In this post, I recommend nonfiction stories about people who survived catastrophic events.
My dad and I were talking recently about a book he had heard about called Maurice and Maralyn: An Extraordinary True Story of Love, Shipwreck and Survival by Sophie Elmhirst. This is the account of a British couple who quit their jobs, sell their belongings, and buy a boat to sail to New Zealand and begin a new life. But what starts as a romantic journey quickly turns into a fight to survive after their boat is struck by a whale and sinks in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. With only a small raft and very few rations of food, the couple must figure out a way to make it to shore. This is not only a survival story, but a story about love and connection when all else seems lost.
Maurice and Maralyn: An Extraordinary True Story of Love, Shipwreck and Survival
By Sophie Elmhirst (2024)
Talking about this book with my dad inspired me to make a list of other stories of people surviving against the odds. While I feel a little stressed reading stories like this, learning how people find the will to survive and discover the resources they need is very compelling. It takes a lot of determination to make it through experiences like these!
**As important as I think it is to support libraries and independent bookstores, I understand this is not a possibility for everyone. So, I’ve included links to purchase the books mentioned in this post through Barnes & Noble and Amazon.
If you are looking for a gentler survival experience, try these books where the author chooses a new journey or way of living:
The Half Bird: An inspiring true story of adventure, solitude, and soul-searching on the ocean
By Susan Smillie (2024)
When Susan quits her job in London to sail around the British Isles with only the basics, she begins to fall in love with the traveling lifestyle and extends her trip by three years to sail to several different countries. In the process, she discovers an appreciation for life and all it has to offer, through both good and bad experiences. This is not just a journey around the continent, but a journey of one’s soul and figuring out what truly matters in this world.
The Way of the Hermit: My Incredible 40 Years Living in the Wilderness
By Ken Smith (2024)
Ken Smith has spent much of his life living off-grid in the Scottish Highlands. Loch Treig provides his food, and the surrounding forest his firewood. Ken talks about what led him to leave his home and job in Derbyshire, England, to travel new parts of the world, which ultimately taught him about his love for nature and living a more simple and peaceful life. This was one of my FAVORITE books I read in 2024, and I hope you decide to read it, too!
Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail
By Cheryl Strayed (2012)
Cheryl Strayed’s life begins to fall apart after her mother passes away and her marriage ends. Four years later, she decides to bravely walk 1,000 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail, from California to Washington, on her own. With no training or survival skills to her name, Cheryl must forge the path that lays ahead by her own strength and determination. Not only will this journey challenger her, but it will also ultimately help her to heal the wounds of her past.
Island of the Lost: An Extraordinary Story of Survival at the Edge of the World
By Joan Druett (2007)
In 1864, two separate ships are shipwrecked on an island 285 miles south of New Zealand. Auckland Island is one of the most dangerous places on earth to try and survive - freezing rain and high winds are a constant occurrence. The two crews are only separated by 20 miles of cliffs, but while one crew bands together to survive and ultimately escape, the other crew turns on each other to suffer a much worse fate. Using historical records and survivor’s journals, Joan Druett weaves a tale of determination and leadership, but also chaos and madness.
438 Days: An Extraordinary True Story of Survival at Sea
By Jonathan Franklin (2015)
What Salvador Alvarenga thought would be a two-day fishing trip turns into 438 days on the ocean - the longest amount of time anyone has survived alone at sea ever recorded. After a severe storm causes his boat engine and electronics to fail, Alvarenga must use his limited resources to try to stay alive. Struggling with constant shark attacks, a lack of drinking water, and a lack of food, Alvarenga considers if it’s even worth trying to live. But he manages to keep his mind in survival mode long enough to wash up on shore 9,000 miles from home, 14 months after he originally set out. In this account, Alvarez chronicles his journey at sea and how he was able to use his limited resources to survive.
Jungle: A Harrowing True Story of Survival in the Amazon
By Yossi Ghinsberg (1985)
Yossi Ghinsberg and three other travelers meet in Bolivia to travel together though the Amazon Rainforest. But their travels turn into a fight for survival after realizing that trekking through the jungle isn’t as simple as a regular hike in a park. The travelers split into groups of two, but Ghinsberg becomes separated from his partner and must survive in the heart of the jungle alone for weeks. He is eventually rescued, but not before the horrors of the jungle - wild animals, flesh-eating insects, and torrential rains - make their mark on Ghinsberg. This story is not for the faint of heart. Read at your own risk!
Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience and Redemption
By Laura Hillenbrand (2010)
Set during WWII, Hillenbrand gives the account of Air Force Lt. Louis Zamperini, whose strength and resilience will help him to survive a nightmarish journey. Zamperini’s bomber crashes into the Pacific Ocean, but he manages to escape the wreckage on a life raft. Here, he will face sharks, emeny aircraft, starvation, and thirst, but that is merely the appetizer to what lies ahead after he washes up on an island and is captured by the Japanese. Here, he faces torture, starvation, forced labor, and additional unimaginable punishments. But Zamperini remains unbroken as he waits for his eventual rescue. Though the circumstances are grim, this story will inspire the reader with its message of hope.
Skeletons on the Zahara: A True Story of Survival
By Dean King (2004)
In the year 1815, the crew of the Commerce led by Captain James Riley left port in Connecticut for a regular trading voyage. However, a shipwreck off the coast of Africa changed everything for the crew. It starts with a confrontation by native tribesmen, then being sold into slavery by desert nomads. The crew is then led through the Sahara desert, where starvation, thirst, sandstorms, barbarism, and even death, test them daily. Captain Riley needs to find a way to save his men and hatches a plan, but it comes at a price. This is a journey through the desert unlike any other you’ve heard, where secret cities and hidden oases are discovered, and brotherhood is more important than ever.
Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster
By Jon Krakauer (1997)
This book details Jon Krakauer’s experience climbing Mt. Everest during the deadliest season in its history. Krakauer was on assignment to report how the mountain was experiencing growing commercialization, led on an expedition by world-renowned guide Rob Hall. Unfortunately, Hall, and many other climbers under his guidance, will not make it home. After a rogue snowstorm hits the mountain, the climbers must fight for their lives, some so severely frostbitten that they will lose limbs. Krakauer is one of the lucky few to come home alive, but not without the guilt of losing friends and acquaintances on the journey. Krakauer discusses what causes us to ignore our humanity and be lured to these expeditions, often at risk greater than we can comprehend.
The Twenty-Ninth Day: Surviving a Grizzly Attack in the Canadian Tundra
By Alex Messenger (2019)
17-year-old Alex Messenger and five of his friends are excited for their trip of a lifetime - a canoe trip through the Canadian tundra. A few weeks into the trip, Messenger is hiking alone when he is brutally attacked by a grizzly bear. Over the next several days, Messenger and his friends fight for his survival, tending to his wounds the best ways they are able until they can find help. This is a coming-of-age story unlike any you’ve ever heard before, where ingenuity and perseverance are key for a young man’s survival.
In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex
By Nathaniel Philbrick (2000)
In 1820, the whaleship Essex set out for a routine whaling voyage. Unfortunately, this voyage will not end like the others; an 80-ton bull sperm whale will strike their ship, sinking it in to the waters of the South Pacific. The 20-person crew will spend 90 days at sea in three small lifeboats, heading for the coast of South America 3,000 miles away. Facing starvation, disease, and the unknown depths of the ocean, only 8 members of the crew will survive the journey. This tragic story was the inspiration for the literary classic, Moby Dick by Herman Melville.
Lost in Shangri-la: A True Story of Survival, Adventure, and the Most Incredible Rescue Mission of World War II
By Mitchell Zuckoff (2011)
During WWll, a military plane crashes into the mountains of New Guinea during a sight-seeing excursion, leaving only three surviving members of the 24-person crew. Two of the survivors are wounded. The survivors must stick together, venturing into the thick, unknown jungles of New Guinea - where ancient tribes still live - to try and find a way back to civilization.
I’m sure that after reading these titles, you will pick up bits of knowledge for how to survive dangerous situations like the subjects of these books did. But, if you’d like more information on how to be prepared for a possible catastrophic event at home or while in your vehicle, you may want to pick up this book:
Prepared: A Manual for Surviving Worst-Case Scenarios
By Mike Glover (2023)
Mike Glover, a former Green Beret, teaches the foundations of preparing for a survival situation. From the first aid supplies to store in your vehicle, to the resources to keep on-hand in your home, Glover covers all the basics to give you peace of mind in every situation. He also explains how to get in the right mindset to create the best possible outcome for the situation at hand - your mental state could change everything.