Alive
by Piers Paul Read
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Book Reviews of Alive
Book Review: I GET BY WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM MY FRIENDS...
Summary: 5 Stars
Time has not diminished the drama of the tale of the Uruguayan rugby team whose plane crashed in the Andes Mountains. Of the forty five people on the plane at the time of the crash, sixteen came down from the mountain about seventy days later with a saga of survival not easily forgotten.
Theirs is a journey born of tragedy and human endurance. The author unfolds a tale that is gripping in the telling, as enthralling as it is almost unbelievable. It is investigative reporting at its best, because it does not fail to convey the human drama and pathos behind the story of this remarkable struggle for survival high up in the Andes Mountains. Masterfully written, it is a well balanced narrative that takes great pains to ground the experience of the survivors in the context out of which it arose.
The plane had crashed in the Andes Mountains on Argentinian territory. It was an exercise in terror for those on the plane, as it barreled down the mountain, before finally coming to rest in a valley of snow high up in the Andes. Of the forty five persons on board, thirty two had initially survived the crash. Some, however, had sustained serious injuries. Time would not be their friend. Moreover, with little warm clothing (keep in mind that October is springtime in South America), the survivors were exposed to the extreme cold of the night air, high up in the Andes. Though spring, this still meant temperatures well below freezing. Damp, cold, and hungry, amid the anguished cries of the injured, thus began the first of many such nights.
By their tenth day in the Andes, the limited food supplies, which they had rationed with all the care of a miser, had virtually run out. Starving and ravenously hungry, they voiced what they all knew to be true, but had not dared to voice before. They must eat, or they would die. The only thing left for them to eat, however, was abhorrent and deeply repugnant to them. Digging deep into their conservative, religious souls, they found a way to justify actions that would have them transcend a new reality. Their fallen comrades would now provide the means of their sustenance. All eventually succumbed to this only means of survival.
This, while one of the most dramatic parts of their story, is just that, a part. Their survival entailed much more. They had to endure other deprivations. They had to survive the elements. They had to overcome a profound despair over being seemingly forgotten by the outside world. Ultimately, only sixteen were able to do so. How they did so will fascinate all readers of adventure literature. The means that they took to let the world know that they were still alive will astound even the most jaded of readers. It is an account of human endurance that is thought provoking and compelling, a quest to reconcile physical needs with the spiritual. It is, above all, a riveting testament to life.
Book Review: Alive
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a classic book on winter survival, detailing the survival of 16 Uruguayan rugby players for 10 weeks after their plane crashed in the Andes Mountains on October 12, 1972. As is well known, these men survived by eating from the bodies of the victims that died in the crash or died afterwards. We learn of their physical and mental hardships and the group dynamics that arose during their ordeal, and how the survivors came to make the choices they made.
A movie was made about these events, and at least one survivor has written of his experiences on the mountain. The movie, which I haven't seen, is Alive. The memoir, which I haven't read, is Miracle in the Andes: 72 Days on the Mountain and My Long Trek Home.
Gruesome details of their cannibalism are rare in the book. One passage is quoted below.
"The last discovery in their search for new tastes and new sources of food were the brains of the bodies which they had hitherto discarded. Canessa ... had been the first to take a head, cut the skin across the forehead, pull back the scalp, and crack open the skull with an ax. The brains were then either divided up and eaten while still frozen or used to make the sauce for a stew; the liver, intestine, muscle, fat, heart and kidneys, either cooked or uncooked, were cut up into little pieces and mixed with the brains. ... For the stew Inciarte used a shaving bowl, while others used the top halves of skulls." (p 216)
The book is a factual report of what occurred on the mountain among the survivors and what efforts were made by their families, friends, and government officials to find the lost plane. The author limits himself to a dispassionate, careful telling of the events and does not abstractly discuss the psychology of survival or speculate on what a descent into cannibalism might imply about human nature or our conventional principles of morality. Do extreme situations loosen moral strictures or do such situations merely loosen moral restraint? The author does not raise these questions. The Roman Catholic survivors found moral support for their choice through believing they had a moral obligation to survive if it were physically possible, and therefore to act in accordance with that obligation, and then by using Christ's words at the Last Supper, they arrived at an analogy of a sacrifice of the dead for the living.
Book Review: A horrifyingly true story of triumph and tragedy
Summary: 5 Stars
It's become a bit of trivial fodder: In 1972, a plane carrying a Uraguayan rugby team and their friends crashed in the Andes. They survived there for over 70 days, doing whatever was necessary to survive, sustained on their faith, and the hope that they could one day break beyond the prison of the mountains and reach civilization.
Since the story HAS become a piece of trivia, it's important that we read something that makes us understand the underlying humanity of the situation. To that end, Read's book is almost a necessity. It details day-to-day life in the crashed plane, and attempts of the Uraguayan families to find their missing loved ones.
The great thing about "Alive" is that it chronicles the event in a somewhat detached manner. At first, this might seem odd; after all, such a tragic event is an emotionally-charged topic, especially once you get down to the human element. However, to tell the tale with emotion is to get LOST in the tale. To overcome this, read uses a scientific, detached description of events, which ultimately leads the reader to ponder the horrific reality these people went through. It is a very successful storytelling mode, which only hits a few snags (he insists upon calling cannibalism "anthropophagy," and admits in the introduction that some of the survivors felt the book didn't go into enough detail about the friendship they felt for each other). Also, there is the fact that this book dates back to 1974, only two years after the events; it would be nice to know how the survivors faced the rest of their lives.
Still, the book is thorough, and it's dry, almost dead-pan style is the only real way of describing the events that unfolded, without getting lost within the maze of emotions (actually, the dry delivery almost makes things even more horrible; don't read this book if you are squeamish). "Alive" is a tale of horrific events that tested the limits of humanity. It is a must-read for anyone interested in what being human really means.
Book Review: Alive
Summary: 4 Stars
Alive
Piers Paul Read
In 1972 a group of rugby players from Uruguay boarded a plane to take them to Chile for a game. Unexpectedly, they had to make stop in Mendoza, Argentina because of bad weather in the Andes Mountains. Everything went downhill from there, for as they set out across the Andes, one of the planes wings broke, causing the plane to fall at a catastrophic speed. More than ten of the passengers died in the crash and most were severely injured. They were trying to survive in below zero temperatures with nothing but bits of chocolate and rugby clothes. Many of the injuries proved to be fatal, ranging from parts of the plane sticking through stomachs to crushed femurs and frostbite. As everyone struggles to survive, more and more people die. There is virtually no food and to top it all off, an avalanche kills even more people. As everyone continues to grow weaker they are faced with a major dilemma: in order to survive they must eat their dead teammates flesh. But who could eat his best friend, who was alive and talking only hours before? This incredible non-fiction tale is enough to get anyone crying. This book deserves a 4 star rating because of the excellent description and the amazing adventure itself. This book is like something people have nightmares about and I have never read a book that is so intense. A number one best seller and "thunderous entertainment ... a classic human adventure... a narrative of terrific and enduring significance" (The New York Times.) It's easy to see why this amazing book stayed on the New York Times best seller list for over seven months. It's an absolute must read.
Book Review: to be taught in every university
Summary: 5 Stars
Alive is a book that speaks about human beings, trapped in the worst condition anyone can be caught in; freezing conditions, without adequate protection nor food, dead friends all around, 16 persons remaining alive from the 45 passengers, and no sign of a rescue nor an end to this ordeal. The only way out is to help each other and find a way to survive. The ordeal doesn't last a day or 2 but 10 weeks.
I have read Alive when it first came out in the 70's, when I was young and life was fast around me. I am reading this book all over again 30 years later, and I think this book should be thought in every university as it teaches how we could or should think in desperate situation, what could be done or what are the options instead.
Bad satiations always happen in life however how many times do we get the chance to find out or read about it the way we do in this book.
This is one of the best books I have read, and I recommend it for anyone who wants to learn from a deep and human story