Survival Novels?

Thargor · 07-10-2014 8:45pm #1

Does anyone have any good recommendations of stories of survival, specifically the shipwrecked kind but Id be interested in any others, fiction or non-fiction as long as they're good... Thanks.

GLaDOS · 07-10-2014 9:41pm

The Martian, by Andy Weir.

I'm only about to read it myself so can't couch for it personally

, but anyone I know who's read it enjoyed it.

obrogair · 07-10-2014 11:16pm

You could try The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym, Edgar Allan Poe's gothic shipwreck-fantasy novel. Arthur does a lot of suffering.

Alfred Lansing's account of Shackleton's Antarctic expedition, Endurance, is a famous non-fiction one.

Thargor · 08-10-2014 10:26am

ScienceNerd wrote: »

The Martian, by Andy Weir.

I'm only about to read it myself so can't couch for it personally , but anyone I know who's read it enjoyed it.

Ive read it and hated it, smug twat of a main character and cringe inducing dialogue. The ending felt like he just couldnt be bothered writing anymore aswell and gave up with a line or two. When I was reading it I though to myself "I bet this is another one from this self-publishing fad we have at the minute" and when I checked it sure enough it was. the film might be good though as it is a good premise I just really hated the writing.

johnp001 · 08-10-2014 10:30am

Robinson Crusue - Daniel Defoe
Lord Jim - Joseph Conrad

Thargor · 08-10-2014 10:36am

Read them, thanks though.

ElWalrus · 08-10-2014 11:00am

'Touching the Void' - 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, reached the the summit of the remote Siula Grande in June 1995. A few days later, Simon staggered into Base Camp, exhausted and frost-bitten, with news that that Joe was dead.

What happened to Joe, and how the pair dealt with the psychological traumas that resulted when Simon was forced into the appalling decision to cut the rope, makes not only an epic of survival but a compelling testament of friendship." (Synopsis from Amazon)

Might not be shipwrecked, but its a fantastic survival story.

obrogair · 09-10-2014 2:28am

Two more polar survivors, both of expeditions gone wrong.

Apsley Cherry-Garrard's The Worst Journey in the World covers Scott's Antarctic expedition.

Valerian Albanov's memoir of his disastrous journey to the Russian Arctic was popular when it was published in Russia in 1917. It was fairy recently translated into English as In the Land of White Death: An Epic Story of Survival in the Siberian Arctic. (There's a Modern LIbrary edition, 2000). Albanov was one of only two survivors.

Rosy Posy · 09-10-2014 2:44am

The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood is a post apocalyptic survival story that I enjoyed. The Life of Pi is a good shipwreck one. Stay Alive, My Son by Pin Yathay is a horrific true account of surviving the Cambodian purges. Shakespeare's The Tempest is worth reading too.

Ipso · 09-10-2014 4:33am

ElWalrus wrote: »

'Touching the Void' - 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, reached the the summit of the remote Siula Grande in June 1995. A few days later, Simon staggered into Base Camp, exhausted and frost-bitten, with news that that Joe was dead.

What happened to Joe, and how the pair dealt with the psychological traumas that resulted when Simon was forced into the appalling decision to cut the rope, makes not only an epic of survival but a compelling testament of friendship." (Synopsis from Amazon)

Might not be shipwrecked, but its a fantastic survival story.

I thought the film was amazing, but couldn't get into the book at all.

Kilgore__Trout · 09-10-2014 11:30pm

Would highly recommend The Terror by Dan Simmons, if you're ok with a long, slow burn novel. Fictionalizes an arctic expedition with a horror twist.

The Postman, by David Brin is one of my favourites, but the primary threat to survival in that is other humans. It's an oddly hopeful book in such a grim setting, and there's something to like about that. The Road by Cormac MacCarthy also springs to mind, but is incredibly bleak.

If you want a zombie tale, you could check out the free audio drama, We're Alive.

The Martian was alright. Had the impression the author did a lot of research, but the protagonist was annoying at times and a lot of the humour fell flat on its face.

Dub_Steve · 12-10-2014 10:12am

obrogair wrote: »

You could try The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym, Edgar Allan Poe's gothic shipwreck-fantasy novel. Arthur does a lot of suffering.

Alfred Lansing's account of Shackleton's Antarctic expedition, Endurance, is a famous non-fiction one.

Thanks for this

Wailin · 12-10-2014 4:11pm

+1 on Touching the Void, great story. 127 hours (Stuck between a Rock and a Hard Place) and Into the Wild were great reads too.

Not a story of survival as such but The Perfect Storm by Sebastian Junger is an excellent book, just ignore it's ties to the absolute cockfest that was the movie.

TwoGallants · 14-10-2014 10:04am

Not really a book, but you could read the walking dead comic series. They´re truly excellent.

Thargor · 14-10-2014 10:10am

Excellent up to a point but then just dull, might catch up with what happened after Nagan or however you spell his name.

cack_handed · 15-10-2014 4:39pm

Quote:
Originally Posted by ElWalrus View Post
'Touching the Void' - 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, reached the the summit of the remote Siula Grande in June 1995. A few days later, Simon staggered into Base Camp, exhausted and frost-bitten, with news that that Joe was dead.

What happened to Joe, and how the pair dealt with the psychological traumas that resulted when Simon was forced into the appalling decision to cut the rope, makes not only an epic of survival but a compelling testament of friendship." (Synopsis from Amazon)

Might not be shipwrecked, but its a fantastic survival story.

I thought the film was amazing, but couldn't get into the book at all.

I read Touching the Void before I saw the movie, both were fairly epic I felt, although Simpson's subsequent output didn't do all that much for me. As far as death and survival is concerned and the issues surrounding survivor guilt, I dont think you can get any better than Jon Krakauer's Into Thin Air, the story of the disaster on Everest in 1996. Again it's not a shipwreck theme and there's death as well as survival, but that should not put anyone off, it raises so many complex moral questions, you will be thinking about it long after you've put it down

pavb2 · 30-10-2014 7:19pm

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Batavias-Graveyard-Heretic-Historys-Bloodiest/dp/0753816849

Batavia's graveyard

Recommend this quite a chilling and in many ways disturbing true story

When the Dutch East Indiaman Batavia struck an uncharted reef off the new continent of Australia on her maiden voyage in 1629, 332 men, women and children were on board. While some headed off in a lifeboat to seek help, 250 of the survivors ended up on a tiny coral island less than half a mile long. A band of mutineers, whose motives were almost beyond comprehension, then started on a cold-blooded killing spree, leaving fewer than etc etc

curtisbrown · 04-11-2014 6:03pm

Shackleton's Boat Journey.
Unbroken.
Miracle In The Andes.

Thargor · 04-11-2014 7:10pm

Thanks both, that looks like a winner pavb2, definitely tracking that one down.

sheesh · 04-11-2014 8:15pm

Adrift: 76 days lost at sea by Stephen Callahan is a great read.

sailing across the atlantic on his own and his yacht sinks he was in a life raft for 768 days pretty impressive stuff!
goes into good detail of how he survived but also goes into what he went through psychologically and how his view of the sea and nature changed.

karaokeman · 22-11-2014 12:05pm

Read The Cay by Theodor Taylor many, many years ago, and it has stayed with me ever since.

There's only two main protagonists but if you like depth in character backgrounds and a story which develops each as their journey progresses you will love this one.

Carawaystick · 01-12-2014 1:24am

the Life of Pi?
a work of fiction, despite how much I love the climbing or antarctic adventuring tales

Survival Novels?

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