Desperate Journeys, Abandoned Souls: True Stories of Castaways and Other Survivors (MP3 CD)

by Edward E. Leslie (Author), Patrick Cullen (Narrator)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
With painstaking research, riveting detail and elegant prose, freelance writer Leslie here creates a keen psychological study as well as a paean to the courage, resourcefulness and perseverance of the human body and mind. This is a hefty chronicle of true stories, from the 1500s to the present day, about survivors of shipwrecks, maroonings and plane crashes, lost in every sort of climate and environment, struggling against animals, humans--savage and civilized--and the forces of nature. There is Peter Carder, who sailed in the 16th century with Drake, was castaway once and twice marooned, ingratiated himself with Brazilian cannibals and outwitted his Portuguese enemies. Leslie insightfully describes the real "Robinson Crusoe," Alexander Selkirk, a sailing master who quarreled with his captain and was stranded for four years on an island paradise off the coast of Chile in the early 1700s. The account of Marguerite de la Roque, a 16th century French woman who was betrayed as an adulterer by her adventurer cousin on an Atlantic voyage and then left to die, pregnant, on an island off the coast of Canada with her servant and her lover, is affecting. But for sheer thrills and inspiration, readers will be fascinated by the tale of the ill-planned and ill-fated Stefansson Polar expedition of 1913. Illustrated.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal
Surviving against insurmountable odds is the theme of these two disparate booksone a mass market paperback, the other a trade publication. Adams's book is a freewheeling, believe-it-or-not litany of death-defying feats of survivorship taken largely from the 20th century. Most of these mishaps involve aircraftcrashes, in-air collisions, and exiting disabled craft. Natural disaster survival stories cover avalanches, lighting, tornadoes, and earthquakes. A lack of editorial supervision has resulted in a lack of organization and cohesiveness. This journalistic effort could have been entitled "Best Disaster Stories from the National Enquirer." From Alexander Selkirk (the real-life model for Robinson Crusoe) to Antoine St.-Exupery, Leslie tells the stories of 20 men and women involved in shipwrecks, deliberate maroonings, and aircraft crashes. Each chapter covers one person's story, carefully footnoted and fleshed out with primary source materialoften from diaries. The bibliography is extensive; the footnotes annotated. A scholarly but highly readable treatment of a subject holding an inordinate fascination for many people. Adams's book will probably have more circulation, but buy both: Leslie's for the adult collection, Adams's for YA. Paula M. Zieselman, Debevoise & Plimpton, New York
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• MP3 CD
• Publisher: Blackstone Audiobooks; MP3 Una edition (September 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786159723
• ISBN-13: 978-0786159727
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,398,599 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Addictive!, March 12, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Desperate Journeys, Abandoned Souls: True Stories of Castaways and Other Survivors (Paperback)

This book was obviously exhaustively researched, as it spares no details in the dozens of true and horrifying accounts of people throughout the ages who were trapped in hopeless survival situations. Many lived, many did not... The only flaw in this teriffic book is that it may be a bit long and seems to lose momentum before the end. It could have been a third shorter and still been as powerful and just as fascinating. I was a little disappointed that the author did not cover the Raft of the Medusa or the Donner Party, as they would fit perfectly into this book. Perhaps he thought they've already been studies more thoroughly by other reasearchers. But it was still very much worth reading and never got boring. I was surprised at how many instances of civilized cannibalism have occured throughout history! I would recommend this book to anyone interested in survival or human psychology.

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Stories of TRUE "survivors", October 4, 2002

By	Michael Freeman (Blanchard, OK) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Desperate Journeys, Abandoned Souls: True Stories of Castaways and Other Survivors (Paperback)

This 20+ chapter book is a compilation of accounts of individuals who survived real-life tragedies--everything from shipwrecks back in the days of wooden ships, to modern events such as plane crashes, etc.

The one thing each of the stories has in common is that each of the survivors not only had to withstand the tragedy itself, but then they had to fight against nature or the elements to preserve their life.

I did enjoy the book, but I can't give it more than 3 stars. I generally judge a book by how difficult it is for me to set it down before it's finished--this one just wasn't that gripping. The stories were interesting, but at times it didn't seem like there was enough continuity.

In addition, I think the last chapter could have been eliminated entirely. While the other chapters were generally dedicated to one story per chapter, the last contained a dozen or so stories from the 20th century. As a result, they were much more brief, and left me wondering about the details that were necessarily omited.

That said however, the author did a fantastic job of researching the accounts, especially given the number he covered.

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "Real" adventure stories, not modern contrived ones., August 16, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Desperate Journeys, Abandoned Souls: True Stories of Castaways and Other Survivors (Paperback)

With the bestseller lists populated by the likes of such adventure stories as Into Thin Air and other contrived adventures of the bored rich, it is refreshing to read about adventure stories that hark back to a time when man was less concerned with adventure and more concerned with science, discovery, or just making a living. Adventure was just something you accidentally stumbled into. The author recounts many lesser known survival stories, and attempts to reconstruct a mental and psychological profile of the victims as well. In an age where we look at adventure and heroism as more important than the preparation and foresight that would make such adventure unnecessary, it is refreshing to read about survival stories where those suffering the hardships simply want to get it over with. The book hums along nicely for about 2/3 of the 500+ pages, but the author seems to run out of steam and stories, and seems to want to read more i nto the adventure experience than is actually there. Many of the survivors seem less than willing to elaborate upon their experiences, or semed less than heroic in their hardships, but this only adds weight to the contrast between explorer/discoverer and the modern adventurer. But those of you with a taste for the bizarre will love this book, it contains enough morbidity,death, cannibalism and suffering to satisfy the most harcore adventure enthusiast. THe chapters on the rampant cannibalism i n the history of the British Navy and in other adventure scenarios are especially gruesome. Bon Appetit! All in all a worthwhile if a bit long of a read.