Book Review: The Survivors Club: The Secrets and Science that Could Save Your Life

I have referenced The Survivors Club a few different times, so I thought it was about time to do a full review of it.  Here is the book description from Amazon:

“Do you believe in miracles? This collection of extraordinary tales of survival is guaranteed to astound and inspire you in equal measure. Meet ordinary people who have found extraordinary strengths facing seemingly impossible challenges – like the woman who fell from the sky, or the man who floated 300 miles out to sea after the Asian tsunami. What is it about some people that they seem born survivors, or how does someone find the incredible strength from within not to give up on hope against all odds? Are some people just lucky? These and many other true stories demonstrate the strength we all possess to come through our life’s toughest challenges, and the precious wisdom that results from surviving. It is both a fascinating exploration and an inspiring celebration of the human mind, body and spirit.”

My Take:

I’ve always been fascinated by survival stories; people who get lost at sea and are somehow found weeks later, still alive, or people who are attacked, their will to live is stronger than their attacker and they hang on,  not only surviving but thriving, despite the attack.  I’ve wondered how one person could survive an ordeal but others with them did not.  The Survivors Club looks at those questions and more.  There are interviews from survivors of different kinds; from brutal assaults, shipwrecks, bizarre accidents, etc.  What happened to them and how they survived is discussed.
 

The Survivors Club also explores aspects of the science of survival, with information on the body’s reaction to hypothermia and how long someone can survive in frozen water, which is longer than you would think.  The author also explores the best place to sit on a plane, the best place to have a heart attack and other practical survival related topics.  I think he does a good job exploring what it takes to survive such as resiliency, luck, faith and other factors.    
 

There is also a survivor profiler that you can use to find out what kind of survivor you are.  I have tried twice and it hasn’t worked for me, but that could be operator error. 
 

My favorite part of The Survivors Club was the part that influenced my decision to do the “What Would You Do?” subjects once a week.  I’ve always thought about what I would do in different kinds of situation and I hope you all like this portion of the content. 

I learned a lot from The Survivors Club and can’t recommend it highly enough.  I give it five stars.