– Customer review on 05/08/2009

I think this is a must have book for everyone to have on the bookshelf not only read but to keep as a referance and guide to being a more competent person at making good decisions both in modern life and out in the wilds where choices become a matter of life and death.

– Customer review on 31/12/2007

I'm a survival story junkie, I'll admit that. My eyes are always open for the next "Into Thin Air" or "In the Heart of the Sea." This book, though, does not follow one specific cast of characters through one detailed disaster. Rather, it outlines numerous such stories, gleaning common tidbits of survival psychology.

Why do some live and some die? What makes a full grown man babble incoherently and slip over the edge of a lifeboat into a group of sharks? What keeps a young child alive for two nights lost in a snowstorm? Gonzales deals with everything from survival tips to the power of prayer to emotional strength. His story is put into gear by an anecdote of his own father's survival in WWII, and grinds to a final halt centered around his coming to terms with his father. In between, we find numerous case studies of survival. Most are modern scenarios, pulled from mountaineering, sailing, and climbing. Some of these you'll be familiar with, while others will be fresh.

Gonzales puts his own spin on things, mixing scientific research with evolutionary theory and spirituality. He delves into the brain's responses to disaster. He expounds on common elements of most survivors' stories, keys that can be applied to life. Whether one's facing divorce, financial disaster, or literal life-and-death circumstances, this book offers hope and a call to resilience.

"Deep Survival" never matches the sheer narrative power of "The Perfect Storm," but it does break down complex ideas into very manageable bites. It does provide page-turning suspense. Ultimately, it shows the author's attempts to understand himself--and that is the key ingredient in each of the survival stories he shares.