Customer Reviews (2)

A Book to Read and Ponder
The author has compiled an impressive collection of instances of the 'third man' phenomenon--the sensation that one's survival is aided by an 'extra' presence in times of great duress.

Beyond the compilation of a plethora of third-man stories (from mountain climbers, castaways at sea, arctic explorers, over-worked medical students, etc.), the author considers various explanations to the phenomenon.From the divine (supernatural) to the arcane (an artifact of the brain's reaction to low-level magnetic fields) to the evolutionary (a relic of the caveman's bicameral brain).The book provides plenty of anecdotal material and explores the various explanations without drawing a final conclusion.The reader is free to draw his own extrapolations from the raw data.

A good read.Provides plenty of nourishment for intellecutal expediture.

Splendidly revealing
This is a great book of revelation detailing experiences many have had and not understood. It is not a book of science but a book of wonder at a "mystery." Not all mysteries need to be solved scientifically. My 1911 encyclopedia states"uranium is a useless metal." This FASCINATING AND ARTICULATE BOOK IS A FIVE STAR READ FOR ANYONE WHO STILL HAS A LIFE OF INTEREST...DREAMERS AND POETS. ... Read more

Product Description
Close calls and unbelievable survival stories from the file of Robert Ripley, who explored more than 190 countries seeking the bizarre. You¹ll be amazed by the people and animals who have faced unbelievable danger ­ and survived! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Not as Good as Others in the Series
From the same series as World's Weirdest Critters, Creepy Stuff and Odd-inary People, Amazing Escapes in not in the same enjoyable league as these others.Too many similar entries for my liking such as numerous Tornado stories where someone was picked up and put down somewhere else, its interesting the first time but a simple dot point entry with person's name and place for the numerous others would have sufficed.

The eight page colour photograph insert in the middle of the book is a great addition although it must have been an afterthought as the same stories are in the rest of the book as well. Some interesting entries inside though such as a guy who used the body of snake instead of a bandage to stop the poison from flowing through his body and the surfer who prevented a shark biting him by ramming his surfboard down its throat.

Not a bad book and if it is a really cheap price pick up a copy.Much better though is Creepy Stuff from this series as well as the much larger Ripley's Believe it or Not Encyclopaedia of the Bizarre.

cool!
Amazing escapes is packed with real stories of people who survived scary things. Test your own survival skills by taking the No WAY test. ... Read more

Product Description
Quirky, gutsy, and independent, Rowena Gay Wine grows up in the repressed ambiance of 40’s and 50’s small-town America, struggling with a spider-web of parental and social animosity up to and including abuse. Rowie intuitively fights back with imagination, determination, and humor – learning how to survive by traveling out-of-body, how to win favor without conforming, and how to maintain her inner life against aggressive, impersonal external forces – all of which transform her from victim to victor. The Skinny runs the gamut of timeless human experience, from terror to tickling, from deep love to shallow sex, from "baby whispering" to an intervention by angels that keeps Rowie alive when it seems her time has come, and much more in between, even including a car chase! Along the way, Rowie “accidentally” discovers forced vomiting, which her mother unthinkingly approves, since skinny-ness makes girls more socially acceptable. For decades before the words “binge,” “purge,” and “bulimia” enter public awareness, Rowie feels empowered. When she finally realizes she is hooked, her self-awareness, personal insights, and creative courage open the floodgates for a whole generation of women to escape from limitations and doubt. Although Rowie's bulimia is primary to her, it’s not the center of her story, nor does it stop her from living adventurously. Far more complex than a “bulimia book,” The Skinny invites you to journey far and wide with Rowie as she explores life, sex, love, business and politics with her razor sharp senses, endless curiosity, penetrating intuition, and biting wit. Ripped from the real lives of countless women, The Skinny will forever change your perception of yourself, and your place in today’s world.About The Author RAYNI JOAN is a poet, musician, actor, improv artist, businesswoman, mother, grandmother, minister, wedding officiant, astrologer, shaman, and cultural pioneer. She lives and loves in Santa Monica, CA. You can contact her at www.myspace.com/raynij.Having lived a series of exciting adventures over the past handful of decades, Rayni Joan has penned a page-turner that will make you laugh and cry from start to finish. Imagined from her own life, the author’s fictional alter ego, Rowena Gay Wine, “outs” herself as a bulimic before the term “bulimia” was known with the first revelatory news article confessing to her own binge-and-purge behavior and analyzing the socio-political impact on women caused by popular but unrealistic body images. Ms. Joan’s real-life article, written for Liberation News Service, famously dominated the pages of alternative weeklies across America and was talked about by more than a million women. (See The Skinny’s appendix for a reprint of the front page article from L.A. Free Press of June 5, 1970.) ... Read more

Customer Reviews (10)

The Skinny
The Skinny is a fictional story based upon the author's real life experiences from her earliest memories using food as a soothing mechanism during an air raid siren through her dysfunctional childhood to her realizations about how she used food to fill that empty place within herself, twenty-five years worth of memories. The subtitle, Recollections of America's First Bulimic, refers to an article that the author wrote in 1970. This article, included with the book, describes bulimia, its origins, and its effect upon women.

The author's fictional alter-ego in this book is Rowena Gay Wine. The author states unequivocally that this alter-ego is her and the experiences are real. From the start of the book, I wondered why the author bothered calling the work fictional at all if it were her true story and why she had used a fictional character to star as herself. I also questioned how much of the story was real and how much was doctored so that the work was still based upon her life. These unanswered questions distracted me reducing the otherwise important overall message of the book.

A Slice of Life with an Eating Disorder
Hurray to Rayni Joan for her bold, honest and incredible tale of the adventures, torment and confusion experienced by Rowie! Knowing this was based on a true story made it all the more interesting because the tale at times makes you so uncomfortable when Rowie was taken advantage of again and again. You'll cheer for her every time she makes a step forward and feel every set back deeply, painfully.

Rayni is a wonderful story teller and paints pictures so vivid that you experience every step of the journey right along with Rowie, even when she's headed out of body for awhile to disengage from the pain of abuse.

This is a great read for anyone trying to understand what their child or loved one is going through when suffering with bulimia and why they aren't able to just "stop." You will finish this book having just digested a slice of life sadly experienced by millions of young girls and women today.

Lori Hanson, Award-Winning Author It Started With Pop-Tarts... An Alternative Approach to Winning the Battle of Bulimia

Enthralling
I was so engrossed in this book that I missed my train stop twice. It's a quick read, yet a very spiritual story. It's lusty and fun, yet she also shares her journey from open-minded abused child to confused, self-abusing young woman. What makes it work is how raw Joan tells it. She made me wonder what was fiction and what was the true story of her life. I often felt like she was holding nothing back, like I was looking directly into her soul. And I certainly came to view bulimia in a different light, more as an addiction than just an eating disorder. On the negative side though, I agree with another reviewer here that it was a little long and moved too slowly towards the end. Overall, this is a very enjoyable read.

Brave & Honest plus a fabulous story!
This book is an amazingly truthful statement about what life is like with an eating disorder and more specifically, an eating disorder drenched in shameful acts that the suferer thinks can only be performed by themselves!
Other reviewers have said the book is too long - I don't agree!This story could not have been told without all the wonderful details of the "adventures" Rowie takes.This book is about bulimia but it's also about growing up female in America and about growing up Jewish.It's about life and love and unfortunatly the gross realities that hit us as we try to grow up.

A Lively Banquet of a Life
Auntie Mame's dictum that "Life is a banquet and most people are afraid of a little indigestion" would get some revision if she had read Rayni Joan's semi-autobiographical travails. Heroine Rowie, who we meet as a pre-teen, is as lively as Auntie Mame year after year, but far riskier with her mind, body and digestive tract.

Rayni Joan, adept at chronicling the angst of any moment so that her heroine's 'solutions' of eating and purging make a kind of sense, tells this perversely lively story with compassion and clarity, and more than a few successful dramatic set pieces. I think its bright moments of candor, reminders of the closed mind-set of the mid-20th century, in-depth look at the self versus the world, and a talent with words make this novel a satisfying meal for any reader.
... Read more

Product Description

In the winter of 1952, New England was battered by the most brutal nor'easter in years. As the weather wreaked havoc on land, the freezing Atlantic became a wind-whipped zone of peril.

In the early hours of Monday, February 18, while the storm raged, two oil tankers, the Pendleton and the Fort Mercer, found themselves in the same horrifying predicament. Built with "dirty steel," and not prepared to withstand such ferocious seas, both tankers split in two, leaving the dozens of men on board utterly at the Atlantic's mercy.

The Finest Hours is the gripping, true story of the valiant attempt to rescue the souls huddling inside the broken halves of the two ships. Coast Guard cutters raced to the aid of those on the Fort Mercer, and when it became apparent that the halves of the Pendleton were in danger of capsizing, the Guard sent out two thirty-six-foot lifeboats as well. These wooden boats, manned by only four seamen, were dwarfed by the enormous seventy-foot seas. As the tiny rescue vessels set out from the coast of Cape Cod, the men aboard were all fully aware that they were embarking on what could easily become a suicide mission.

The spellbinding tale is overflowing with breathtaking scenes that sear themselves into the mind's eye, as boats capsize, bows and sterns crash into one another, and men hurl themselves into the raging sea in their terrifying battle for survival.

Not all of the eighty-four men caught at sea in the midst of that brutal storm survived, but considering the odds, it's a miracle -- and a testament to their bravery -- that any came home to tell their tales at all.

Michael J. Tougias and Casey Sherman have seamlessly woven together their extensive research and firsthand interviews to create an unforgettable tale of heroism, triumph, and tragedy, one that truly tells of the Coast Guard's finest hours. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (28)

A terrific read, and accurate to boot!
As an ex-coastie, I found the book to be a well written and accurate. I recommended it to my wife, and she loved it as well.
If you like this one,you'll like "Deadliest Sea" by Kalee Thompson.

THE FINEST HOURS
Great book - I've never read about coast guard rescues - this should be a movie!

A Story of Brave and able Men
The authors tell the story of two 503 foot oil tankers that broke in two off Cape Cod during a brutal Nor'Easter on 18 February 2002 along with the rescue of most of the ship's crews through the incredible bravery and skill of Coast Guard men. Tougias and Sherman researched the details of thestory well and brilliantly capture its spirit, including the probable hand of Providence in the events, suggested with nuance. Altogether an excellent read.

The Finest Hours
Mr. Sherman came and spoke to our group. He did an excellent job on the book. He brought the heros to life in saving others.

Anita
I was on the Amazon site ordering a book when "The Finest Hours" popped up as a recommended purchase...how ironic..I am the daughter of one of the 4 Coast Guardsmen of the Gold Medal Crew that amazingly rescued 32 men. Of course I already have a couple copies of the book..signed by the authors.(thank you, once again) They have both done such a wonderful job of telling the "story" and relating it to the lives of those involved. It makes me so proud to see the reviews of the book and know my dad was actually a part of that! I also know it would have made my dad proud -- not in regard to himself but for the Coast Guard. Michael and Casey, thanx again for keeping the "story" alive. ... Read more

Product Description
Clinging to the hope of one day returning to their homes, Teru and Ako have overcome obstacle after obstacle and survived the most painful experiences in their lives. But even as they come closer to their goal, more challenges await them as the cataclysmic after-effects of the massive disaster continue. Will they be able to reach Tokyo--alive?"Gritty, harrowing and blood-soaked, it is a manga that should instantly appeal to fans of Battle Royale." --IGN.com ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Nowhere is safe.
Minetaro Mochizuki, Dragon Head, vol. 8 (Tokyopop, 1999)

The crew stopped their press towards Tokyo to grab some supplies from an abandoned shopping mall, but that turns out to not be the greatest of ideas; when another earthquake hits (along with another pillar of fire, this one from the direction of Tokyo), Iwada is forced to try and take off in the middle of an ash storm, and Teru gets left behind. This allows Mochizuki to get us back, in much of the final three-quarters of the volume, to the series' original existential claustrophobia. We're getting close to the end (I think the series runs ten volumes), and it's still of the same quality it was from day one. Good stuff. *** ½

The story of survival continues
In Volume #8 of Minetaro Mochizuki's "Dragon Head," our heroes and heroine find a safe spot for landing on the roof of a gutted Shopping Mall.Before they have a chance to settle in and get comfortable the area is drenched with heavy rains, flooding and a tornado that wrecks immense damage to the group.When Teru awakens after being knocked out he discovers that the helicopter has crashed and that his companions are nowhere to be found.On foot, Teru heads toward Tokyo in hopes of rendezvousing with Ako. ... Read more

Product Description

Explodes the myth that the cause of death can be attributed to loss of moral fiber or lack of will to survive. Leach gives good practical advice on the psychological first aid needed to survive.-Chris Brooks, Chief Medical Officer, Canadian Air Force

In circumstances of extreme stress and deprivation, why do some survive while others perish? In this primer on the psychological aspects of human survival, John leach draws on dramatic historical and contemporary incidents of disaster to provide an engaging look at survival psychology under the harshest physical and psychological conditions. Focusing on such factors as hunger, thirst, cold, heat, crowding, isolation, fatigue, and sleep deprivation, and on their psychological consequences, Survival Psychology reveals much about the short and long term effects of disaster on the human psyche.

Product Description
Adrenaline Books' search for the world's best and most exciting reading has taken readers from the peaks of Everest to the jungles of Papua, New Guinea. Now, publishing's most successful adventure literature series returns with Storm, first-hand accounts of battling the elements: hurricanes; blizzards; tornadoes; sandstorms - in mountains, seas, plains, and jungles. Included are sections from sailors, climbers, captains, and other hardy souls, such as Patrick O'Brien, Stephen Venables, Chris Bonington, Sebastian Junger, Joseph Conrad and Apsley Cherry-Garrard. Harrowing adventures that test human endurance, Storm contains stories of individuals who must fight to stay alive: Barry Lopez is trapped among arctic floes by a sudden squall; Art Davidson's team freezes in a wind storm on Mt. McKinley as the temperature hits 148 degrees below zero; an idyllic sail turns tragic when Gordon Chaplin loses his ship and lover in a South Pacific typhoon. Adrenaline Books presents the latest installment of the most thrilling accounts of men and women who have had to face the full force of nature's fury. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Not as good as the others
I love this series and I have all the books - so I know.It hurts me to only offer three stars but, simply, this one just isn't as good as the rest.First of all, it's nothing like as advertised above.There are 18 stories, but only 9 of those shown on that cover, which has been redesigned, too - I don't know what happened.Despite the publisher's notes above, there is NOTHING from Bonington, Venables or Davidson - no story of -148 wind chill on Mt. McKinley (the one I anticipated most). We got some wires crossed here someplace.Of the 18 stories you do get, 5 of them are fiction (including the 2 longest )- a greater percentage than any other in the series except "Dark".Of the 13 nonfiction tales, several have very little to do with survival as we've come to know it from earlier books in the series - they really just express wonder at nature.I'm surprised at the inclusion of "The Storm" by Junger - it fits, sure, but it's so well-known by now, and one of the best features of the Adrenaline Series has been how it introduces us to stories and authors we may not know.I do not mean to say that these aren't well-written pieces: the ones by Chaplin, Groom and Gann are riveting.I guess it just depends on what you expect.But don't let this book be your introduction to this awesome series; get High, Epic or Wild Blue instead, and if you've read them already, don't expect as much here. ... Read more

Product Description
The people in Panic Rising are far from the extreme sportspeople happily outrunning an avalanche or blithely bungee-jumping into the Grand Canyon. Brett Nunn tells the story of people who would never try to cheat death — a mother and daughter whose playful tobogganing down a winter hillside plunges them into the terror of a treacherous crevasse; a carefree backpacker whose world suddenly changes when he realizes he's lost in a vast wilderness; two buddies whose fun day of snowmobiling becomes a nightmare when they're suddenly pursued by an avalanche. These stories lay bare the humanity and emotions of people on the edge of disaster and remind the reader of nature’s sometimes lethal power. Based on interviews with the participants in these terrifying scenarios, along with their friends, families, and others whose lives were changed by these events, Panic Rising is filled with gripping stories of ordinary people suddenly brought to the brink of death. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Hey, I was there
As one of the rescuers in a chapter, I can tell you that Mr. Nunn tells the tale honestly and as it happened. I learned things I was unaware of or had forgotten from reading the account I was involved in. This book is an accurate and truthful recount of ordinary people caught up in extraoridnary events.

Respect for Mother Nature
Panic Rising is aptly named.I felt the sensation reading these fast-paced stories even though I was in a warm and comfy armchair with a hot cup of tea at hand.

I liked the idea that these adventures involved ordinary people, rescued and rescuers, who showed courage and fortitude to save lives.I connected especially with the stories set in my own backyard, like Heliotrope Ridge that I've ventured out on.It is so easy to imagine spontaneously sliding down an inviting snowy hill into an unseen crevace.Yikes!

I was struck by the inspiring synchronicity in some of the rescues.

I bought this book for my son who loves to hike in the woods and mountains.To be on the safe side maybe it should be accompanied by a personal locator beacon device.

interesting
not that great but this book is great.I was impressed by the breadth of coverage including the chapter about whale hunting.Just amazing!!!! ... Read more

Product Description
Following the successes of Epic, High, and Rough Water, the latest addition to the Adrenaline Books series presents the most gripping rescue narratives. Rescue includes Doug Scott's account of saving himself by crawling off Pakistan's Ogre with two broken legs, and Spike Walker's story of the race to recover a king crab fisherman from the Bering Sea in midwinter. The book also explores other environments, including an account of trying to rescue two canoeists battling hypothermia on a storm-tossed lake; Alison Osius's tale of two teenagers lost in the Great Gulf Wilderness of New Hampshire; and a missionary doctor and his dog team being blown out to sea on an iceberg off the coast of Labrador. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Another Winner!
'Rescue' carries on the series' tradition of choice excerpts (19) from well-and lesser-known authors.Therein lies the beauty of this series - I had never heard of Spike Walker (!) but after reading the riveting excerpt in 'Rescue' I ran out and bought both his books.Two of the selections are fiction, not my taste, but the other 17 tales of peril, shipwrecks, avalanches and plane crashes will have you reading all night.The stories range from professionals who take one risk too many to everyday folks who find themselves over their heads without warning.A great gift book for anyone who thrives on adventure and especially if you you know someone in search/rescue or the Coast Guard.Get all the books in this series - I have and I love 'em! ... Read more

Product Description
The August 1979 Fastnet race, from Cowes on the Isle of Wight in the English Channel to the Fastnet lighthouse off the south coast of Ireland, started calmly enough for the 303 boats taking part. The previous two races had been uneventful and none of the sailors, among them former British prime minister Ted Heath and American cable TV millionaire Ted Turner, anticipated anything out of the ordinary this time. They expected a challenge, an exhilarating ride, and three days of top-flight competition. But once the yachts left the shelter of the Cornish coast, they were hit by a storm that gained ferocity minute by minute until it was blowing Force 10 and raising mountainous waves. At Force 10, the wind speed at sea is fifty-five knots, just shy of a hurricane. Winds that strength on land uproot trees and demolish poorly constructed buildings.

Beyond Endurance is the story of that race, which culminated in a night of terror, courage, and split-second reactions, of ferocious seas that forced each sailor either to give up and face almost certain death or to find within himself the extraordinary strength and skill that might, just might, keep him alive. Not all of them made it. Among the survivors were twenty-six men from Canada, Britain, and the United States, whom Mayers has interviewed about what they still call “that night.”

Beyond Endurance is Mayers’s dramatic story of the Fastnet race: its hopeful start, the camaraderie of its crews, the challenges of the earlier cross-Channel races — and the deadly storm that caused the worst tragedy ever to befall an ocean-sailing race.


From the Hardcover edition. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Some of the comments that I've received.
(1) John Brandt - I haven't read a book non-stop, cover to cover since The Perfect Storm. What a yarn! The fearsome ocean images Mayers painted were palpable. The fear and the superhuman effort to manage it were gut wrenching.
(2) Marilynn Milligan - For me, it was "I can't put this book down until I'm finished reading it." The survival and drama of the race I found very gripping. The ability to swim (or not) probably would barely have helped anyone during that race. My guess is that that kind of challenge would be life-changing, if not immediately, then certainly over the next part of a person's life. It is an amazing book. Now I am thinking about who I know that I can recommend it to who will really enjoy it in the same way that I did. It is truly quite a story!
(3) Bob Hampton - What a great book!...I'm about half way through it and it's difficult to put the book down.... My flight is taxiing down the runway!...I hate it when flights are on time!
(4) Elizabeth Hayes - I had many friends on those boats and heard their stories and private thoughts at the time. Reading this book created a more complete picture of their experiences for me.

A non-sailor's account of the Fastnet disaster
The 1979 Fastnet Race was disaster for yacht racing. A severe storm struck the fleet half way to the turning mark at Fastnet Rock. The smaller boats were the worst affected as they still had miles to go before being able to turn and run for home. The wiser skippers dropped out early and sought shelter. The boats themselves were often poorly designed for the conditions as the rating rule had changed in 1973 and many were designed with rating in mind more than seaworthiness. A major problem was the motion of some of these smaller boats that was so violent that crews chose to abandon ship and go into life rafts when the safer course would have been to stay with the yacht. This is a good account from interviews of surviving crew members. The author is not as knowledgeable about sailing and racing as others who have written accounts of the event but this is a worthwhile addition to the literature about that incident. John Rousmaniere's "Fastnet Force 10" and Adlard Coles' "Heavy Weather Sailing" have more sophisticated accounts but this is worthwhile. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Staying Alive: The psychology of human servival
This is a must read for anyone interested in the future of this planet. If you are concerned about nuclear proliferation or global warming this title was way ahead of it's time. Roger Walsh M.D. is known as one of the foremost thinkers in transpersonal psychology; yet, if you are interested in ecopsychology this book is an early milestone in the paradigm shift we must all embrace. This book needs to be republished in a new edition. ... Read more

Product Description
For those who dare, things often go wrong under the sea. Such tragedies, spurred by the booming interest in the Titanic and the Andrea Doria, have been the focus of tremendous literature from the world's finest authors. Deep Blue offers compelling tales of shipwrecks and salvage, submarine adventure and free diving, nautical survival and cannibalism. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A disappointment . . .
As a collector of the entire series, no one awaited this book more than I.I feel let down.Of the 13 stories, (and it's only 318 pages, not 352), seven are fiction.These were not well chosen: selections from Treasure Island and Moby Dick are not even set at sea, but are the land-based openings of the books.The non-fiction does not live up to the billing of the editorial reviews that preceded it on this page.There is not much shipwreck or survivial: several are more like philosophical essays as opposed to stories with an edge.The story on diving the Andrea Doria is perhaps the best in the book, but many of us will have seen it elsewhere, as it is recent.Why a fictional account of the Titanic and not a true one?For a book on treasure, why nothing of Mel Fisher and the Atocha?If you want sea adventure, the earlier book in the series, Rough Water, delivers a bigger punch.This volume, regratably, is one that you can put down between stories.

More adrenaline, please
As a passive individual, I live through the words andexperiences of first hand authors for my adventure. This narrative simply scratches the surface of those before it. "Ship of Gold", "The Fatal North" and "Abandon Ship!" come to mind immediately as adrenaline rush examples. Any of the several publications on "The Endurance" far exceed the expectations of "Deep Blue". The human spirit has greater tales to tell. ... Read more

Product Description
The author of The Tent of Orange Mist, a National Book Critics Circle Award nominee, pens a panoramic novel about two American military pilots who find integration into civilian life as hard as war itself. 12,500 first printing." ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

This is a book for a sophisticated reader.
I read it, loved it, and wrote a review of it. Come on, the plot itself is incredible. A book narrated by an alien from Alpha Centauri, an alien who is among the first in the universe to receive TV signals from earth. His entire knowledge of earth is inflected by 60 sit-coms and the Weather Channel. Brilliance. Don't let dense prose throw you off. It's an acquired taste.

Seeing cool reality through a crappy mirror ...
This book is about two reconnaisance pilots who get shot down, then have to come to terms with their rustic desert surroundings -- and themselves.

I consider myself well-read and open to a variety of genres. This book is the internal reflections of the two pilots. While you occasionally will read about the activities of the pilots, mostly you get a stream-of-thought that mixes their individual histories, fantasies, and a little reality.

The best analogy would be buying a great DVD, but then instead of being able to watch it, you learn about what technically happens inside the DVD player as the cool DVD is playing. Sure, sometimes you might catch a glimpse of a cool activity. But most of the rest is unintelligible and meaningless.

Another example -- one PARAGRAPH lasts 8 pages. Eight pages of run-on sentences in one paragraph.

This is probably the worst book I've ever read. I don't blame the author -- I just can't believe a publisher would pay for it. ... Read more

Product Description
From the terror of a father and his young son trapped in a Cornish cave by a huge storm tide to a terrified child trapped in an upturned pleasure boat off the coast of Australia...from a crane operator imprisoned in his cabin above a raging fire in Atlanta to the victim of a stabbing who is so close to death a young doctor must perform open heart surgery on the floor of a London pub to save his life. This is a unique and extraordinary anthology of heroism in the face of disaster, and the remarkable courage and determination displayed by those who risk their lives to save others. It is a celebration of the power of the human spirit against all the odds. ... Read more

Product Description
In The Greatest Search and Rescue Stories Ever Told, Joseph Cummins takes you inside the lives of the premiere mountain rescue team in Aspen, Colorado; belts you into the seat of a rescue helicopter at the top of the world; puts you behind enemy lines with LRRPs searching for a colleague trapped by the North Vietnamese Army in Cambodia; and brings you into the hearts and minds of New York City police and firefighters tunneling under the World Trade Center rubble in the desperate hours following the September 11 attacks.These twenty gripping tales of salvation and loss include the work of well-known authors such as Sebastian Junger, whose The Perfect Storm chronicles the horrific tribulations of an Air National Guard helicopter after it ran out of fuel during a rescue operation, and Mark Bowden's Black Hawk Down, which shows the now-notorious attempt by Army Rangers and the elite Delta Force to rescue fellow troops trapped in Somalia in 1993. But lesser-known authors with stories no less exciting are also present. Jack Olsen's The Climb Up from Hell portrays the fate of four men caught on the north wall of the Eiger in the Swiss Alps, while Spike Walker's Coming Back Alive describes the desperate rescue of a small boy and his father from frigid Alaskan waters. From the dramatic story of a dog team's efforts to find a teenage girl lost in the Rockies to the miraculous rescue of submariners trapped at the bottom of the North Atlantic. The Greatest Search & Rescue Stories Ever Told is human drama at its most satisfying. (6 1/4 x 9 1/4, 304 pages)

Joseph Cummins was born in Detroit. He is the author of The Snow Train, a novel. He also edited the anthology Cannibals: Shocking True Tales of the Last Taboo on Land and at Sea. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

INCOMPLETE STORIES
The stories themselves are great, but in some cases very poorly written, loaded with typos and INCOMPLETE!

I'm about halfway through the book, and, so far, two of the stories are grossly incomplete telling about some survivors, but leaving you completely in the dark about others. I've had to go online to find "the rest of the story"

NOT RECOMMENDED.

Review
It is a good compilation of chapters from other great books; Better to buy the books it borrows from than to buy this book however. ... Read more