The Adventurist: My Life in Dangerous Places [Paperback]

Robert Young Pelton (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 19, 2001

The Adventurist is one man's story, a story that will change the way you think about travel, survival, where you have been, and where you are going.

Enter the world of Robert Young Pelton (if you dare), adventurer extraordinaire, author of Come Back Alive and The World's Most Dangerous Places (required reading at the CIA), and host of his TV series, Robert Young Pelton's The World's Most Dangerous Places.

A breakneck autobiography, The Adventurist blasts across six continents and spans four decades of hard-core living with its dispatches of mayhem, adventure in exotic locales, survival against formidable odds, memories of the pivotal events, and memorable portraits of the people that have shaped Pelton's obsessive spirit.

Be shelled with the Talibs on the front lines of Afghanistan; hang out with hit men and rebels in the Philippines; survive a plane crash in Borneo; narrowly escape a terrorist bombing in Africa; dance with headhunters in Sarawak; crew with pirates in the Sulu Sea; explore the events that led Pelton to his unusual calling (including how he honed his survival skills at "the toughest boys' school in North America"); and, perhaps most important, discover Pelton's secret mission--to understand the hearts and minds of the people he meets.

The Adventurist is a real book about the real world, an inspirational read that takes you places you might never willingly go.


From the Hardcover edition.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Readers for whom the word travel ordinarily conjures images of white-sand beaches or Tuscan hill towns might wonder what person of above-average intelligence leaves home in hopes of face-to-face contact with Afghan rebels, Malaysian pirates, warlords, headhunters, or terrorists. That person, apparently, is Robert Young Pelton. Among adventure enthusiasts, Pelton is probably best known for The World's Most Dangerous Places, his utterly unique, tough-guy's guide to where not to travel, and a similarly named series on the Discovery Channel. Part travelogue, part memoir, The Adventurist is Pelton's attempt to explain what some would call his lifelong death wish, but that the author describes as "an expedition of discovery, a dangerous one with no scripted endings."

The Adventurist juxtaposes scenes and reminiscences of Pelton's youth and young adulthood with stories of his latter-day adventures in the jungles, waterways, and deserts of some of the planet's most perilous locales. "It's in vogue now to blame things on your parents or society. I don't blame anybody for anything," Pelton explains, but considering his descriptions of his abusive parents and his harrowing stint at "the toughest boys' school in North America," it is difficult not to draw connections between the privations of Pelton's youth and his obsessive need to confront danger--and the people who survive it--in order to feel alive.

Although at times Pelton's prose style is about as subtle as the firing end of an AK-47 ("It was time to live like the wind and then to die like thunder"), The Adventurist delivers on its "invitation to you to join me on the wire. To take that first step, look forward, fight your fears..." It offers views of places and experiences that most readers would otherwise never know, with the careful reminder that, "like home, adventure is not places so much as people." --Svenja Soldovieri --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Publishers Weekly

In this jumble of exploration tales, Pelton (The World's Most Dangerous Places) combines biographical anecdotes, travel log entries, personal musings and philosophical realizations. Tests of survival begin early on when his parents enroll him in the "toughest boys school in North America," where he partakes in grueling excursions in the wilderness of Alberta, Canada. Painful but crucial childhood memories are often interlaced with accounts of his defiant journeys to the world's most dangerous places. One wonders why he seeks out outrageous peril, such as walking through minefields in Afghanistan, dancing with headhunters in Sarawak, communing with pirates on the Sulu Sea or simply visiting Algeria. He counts among his global acquaintances Robin Hood-like ruffians, freedom fighters and terrorists, including Taliban members in Afghanistan and hit men in the Philippines. His thirst for adventure appears insatiable. But behind Pelton's wild exploits lies something deeperAthe search for meaning in life: "I am happy running, at high speed, through danger, past even the most remote and unseen places. There is something here that is deeper than religion, a timeless window to what makes life worth living." Pelton's self-assurance can be supercilious, but the denouement of each episode brings personal reflections imbued with humility. (June)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 268 pages
• Publisher: Broadway (June 19, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0767905768
• ISBN-13: 978-0767905763
• Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.5 x 8.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #456,837 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

"Robert Young Pelton is the guy most men think they are after slamming two tequilas" - Tim Cahill

Robert Young Pelton (b. July 25, 1955, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada), is an author, journalist and documentary filmmaker. An iconoclast known for his entry into most of the world's conflicts over the last fifteen years, Pelton is known as an adventurer and a witness" to conflict. His reputation is built on his interest and ability to enter forbidden, deadly and violent places and emerge with a stunning story. Pelton has been present at many historic battles. He was US special forces and General Dostum during and after the battle of Qala-I-Jangi in Afghanistan, with Chechen rebels during the siege of Grozny in Chechnya, with the LURD rebels during the bloody campaign to take Monrovia in Liberia and approximately 3 dozen other conflicts.

He survived an assassination attempt in Uganda, a plane crash in Indonesia and was kidnapped by the AUC death squads in Colombia. He spent time with the CIA during the hunt for Bin Laden and ran Route Irish with Blackwater security contractors for a month during late 2004 during the war in Iraq.

Pelton's regularly published survival and political guide The World's Most Dangerous Places, provides practical and survival information for people who work and travel in high risk zones, was a best seller. With the book's best seller status Pelton has become an expert on work and travel in "high-risk" environments. He was also host of the Discovery Travel Channel series "Robert Young Pelton's The World's Most Dangerous Places" from 1998 to 2003. Now residing in Los Angeles, California, Pelton currently writes books and produces documentaries on conflict-related subjects.

He is also a frequent television and magazine interview subject, often appearing as an often humorous raconteur of his various misfortunes and safety tips on shows as diverse as Oprah, Conan O'Brien, CNN, Fox, BBC, ABC, CBS, NBC and others.

Pelton has also worked as a journalist for CNN, CBS 60 Minutes, ABC Investigative Division, National Geographic and others. He has probably spent more time with insurgent, rebel and terorist groups than any other journalist and is known for introducing the world to John Walker Lindh with his stunning Dec 2, 2001 battlefield interview on CNN.

Robert Young Pelton's Official Website is:
http://www.comebackalive.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Pelton Outta Control!, June 9, 2000

By 

John Wright - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Adventurist: A Life In Dangerous Places (Hardcover)

I have a hefty amount of admiration for Robert Young Pelton: not only is he a guy who gets to go to all the places I'd like to see, but he's a pretty talented writer with a nifty wit as well.

So what's my beef with this book then? It seems like RYP admires himself equally well. To his credit, he never actually comes out and says so; nevertheless, his overly florid prose gives the secret away. While there is some great writing in this book (most of which has appeared before in his Dangerous Places books, see below) there are far too many passages that reek of an author out of control. Where was the editor on this book?

I have no problem with the content here: the biographical passages describing his youth are just as compelling as his travel stories. It's a great story... I just wish he had written it with the same modest restraint that characterizes his other work.

For his great stuff, pick up a copy of The World's Most Dangerous Places (preferably the new edition.) Required reading for the enlightened traveler and citizen of the 21st century.

22 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars good material marred by poor writing, April 5, 2001

By 

M. H. Bayliss "book queen" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Adventurist: A Life In Dangerous Places (Hardcover)

I could even forgive the ego if the writing weren't so dreadful. For me, the fact that he adores his wife and beautiful twin daughters makes up somewhat for his arrogance, but nothing makes up for this writing which makes the Let's Go guides look like Flaubert. Plus, the editing was weak in that we jump ALL OVER the place with no logical starts and finishes. I enjoyed all the travelogues (even though I hate that present tense stuff -- I see the lion, it moves towards me) but just as you're getting into the Talibans, boom, you're in Borneo. I feel like I read the first half of 30 short stories. Plus, a book like this with not ONE map seems a shame since Pelton has visited some great places. What was the publisher thinking not to include maps.

Though I enjoyed the stories and even the parts about the author's upbringing (I didn't find much egoism here), this book falls short in the adventure genre since so many others write so much better.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An extraordinary adventure, October 13, 2001

By 

Allison - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Adventurist: My Life in Dangerous Places (Paperback)

A very cinematic, powerful journey through one man's life. Powerful, exotic and enligtening. Those who enjoy the detached stories of Sebastian Junger or the vicarious quasi adventure from Outside, Mens' Journal, Vanity Fair might find this life a little intense. An existance were Pelton has real consequences of being thrust into the front lines, deserts, jungles and rebel camps. Those who know Pelton's book The World's Most Dangerous Places will quickly realize that the Adventurist might be the Dangerous journey of all. It will truly change the way you view your own life.

The Adventurist is filled with nuances and clues to what makes Pelton tick, but they are equally relevant to anyone who wants to know how to overcome fear and attack life. Better yet is the deep understanding he brings to the amazing list of people he meets and befriends.

Anytime you think life is dull or whine about why you can't be like Pelton...just pick up the Adventurist.

A book you can read again and again. Stay alive Pelton we need you leading from the front !