Deep Survival: Who Lives, Who Dies, and Why

Seems like it would be interesting, but isn't back by data... all just a bunch of crazy stories linked together by an author who talks himself up and has weird daddy issues. Normally I'm not so harsh, but, after noting this is the third similar book the author has written, I feel like he's reaching for something and just not willing to do the work to ground it in research... so he keeps getting the same poor results.

NOTE:
If you really like survival stories, this book might be a 3, but I would rather read the stories that others have written (and he just recounts) than read this book.

This book holds a great deal of intellectual and academic information. Intertwined with the elevated language and concepts of Chaos and Accident Theories are myriad stories of survival. Everything from cringe-worthy accounts to humorous narrative taken from the accounts of those who lived despite mounting situational adversity. I found this book triumphant and hopeful, yet challenging and “nichey.” Of course, as with most non-fiction, this book gathers a fair amount of the author's life and experiences. However, in this accounting the author used his personal life as proof and morale authority, lending weight to his research and findings. Gonzales has another book that I will likely read very soon. I enjoyed the way this book challenged my mind and forced me to look beyond my day-to-day personal philosophies and reach a bit higher trying to understand another's. While I don't agree with everything anyone writes carte blanche, I did find a number of his concepts both revelatory and novel. As I find a great deal of pleasure in outdoor recreation, I was able to pull from personal experience myself and place his lessons against a benchmark of my own; despite knowing I have not survived a few days in the winter, on the mountain, with a broken leg, six miles from freedom.

Very interesting book that is, quite frankly, on a topic about which you have to be in a mood to read: survival. Most people take survival for granted and those that don't attribute it to sheer luck. Gonzales, though, lays out the mental toughness that it takes to survive and describes the chemical and physical happenings of one's body and brain during survival situations in terms we can all understand.

This is not just a how-to manual. It is not a typical piece of non-fiction. Gonzales expertly uses personal stories, accounts of accidents, and vivid language to create a piece that reads like fiction. This is a book that is full of humor and poignant advice.

The most striking “take-away” from this book is Gonzales' urging to see reality. So many of us only see what we are told to see. We only see the “mental map” that we've created in our mind. In extreme survival conditions, this could be deadly. Seeing reality is something that we can practice in everyday, routine situations. Like Gonzales, I would encourage everyone to practice it.