Survive!: Essential Skills and Tactics to Get You Out of Anywhere - Alive

4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars | 810 ratings

Price: 22.04

Last update: 05-22-2024


About this item

An up-to-the-minute survival guide from the creator of Survivorman explores how to stay alive in the wild, in the jungle, in the desert, and in urban disasters.

From the sun-scorched sands of the Kalahari to the snake-infested jungles of the Amazon, Les Stroud has made a life of surviving in the harshest - and most remote - regions on Earth.

Now, the creator, producer, and host of the hit television program Survivorman transfers his decades of knowledge and experience to the audiobook Survive!, a practical guide that gives everyday listeners a no-nonsense look at the real world of survival.

Stroud offers listeners the essential skills and tactics necessary to endure in any corner of the globe, along with a wealth of insider information born of his own experiences in the outdoors and unavailable in any other book. Listeners will learn:

  • How to make a survival shelter and why a lean-to is largely a waste of time.
  • Why survival kits are important and why you should make your own.
  • Where to find water and why drinking contaminated water is sometimes warranted.
  • How to locate and trap small animals and why the notion of tracking and hunting large game is largely a pipe dream.

Whether seasoned in the outdoor arts or new to adventuring, all listeners will learn something from Survive! Stroud's many colorful anecdotes and cut-to-the-chase philosophy not only make for an entertaining listen, but also enhance anyone's ability to focus on the main goal when everything else has gone wrong - survival.

Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.


Top reviews from the United States

Schlitty
5.0 out of 5 stars Les Keeps it Simple and Logical
Reviewed in the United States on April 3, 2020
Survival guides often end up with a lot of the superfluous "fun" tidbits and often only apply in idyllic long-term scenarios. You simply don't need to know 100 different knots, how tan a hide, and build a bow and arrow when you twist your ankle on your overnight backpacking journey turning it into a three day crawl. You don't need to know the intricacies of pressure flaking an arrowhead and carving out a canoe when you're in the aftermath of a tornado. And so on and so on. Lots of those things are great fun and great hobbies but for 99.99% of the ways and places you'll end up in a true survival situation you just will never use 99.99% of it. Les Stroud's book is arguably guilty of this in some ways too, as the long term isn't completely ignored (hey, you never know!). However, the keyword in the title is most definitely "Essential". A lot of the fluff is left out here, and in its place is common sense tips about knowing where you are and where you are going. He has been to every corner of the world and learned from local experts but he's not trying to write an encyclopedia of knowledge here. The vast majority of this book is practical information that can be applied across the board in a wide variety of scenarios. And most notably it also focuses on the self and psychological self that most books ignore. It isn't perfect, and shouldn't be your only source of information. But it is the perfect foundation that can apply to the active backpacker lost in the woods or the obese coach potato caught in a natural disaster suddenly. His patented zones of assessment alone should be known by all. A very worthwhile and confidence building read.
Garbuncle
5.0 out of 5 stars Les' Book is the BEST!
Reviewed in the United States on March 2, 2009
This book is a no nonsense book. There is no sugar coating and no fancy junk that will wind up not working or getting you killed in this book. All you will find here are good, solid, PROVEN BY LES HIMSELF, tips to get you out of a situation you hope will never happen. This book could literally save your life.

I have read a number of these books over the years. Most of them have some good things and bad things in them. They all tell you the basics of fire making and shelter building but SURVIVE! does it in a way that you will keep with you when you find yourself there. He uses anecdotes and funny stories as well as serious tales of survival to show you the value of what he is presenting. Les wastes no time with the parlor tricks and sticks to the very things you will need when the chips are down. How to find water and make it worth drinking, how to build a shelter and fire and how to be rescued.

If I could take one book with me into the brush along with my survival kit, it would be this one. Not only will it help when it comes to starting a fire (paper makes great tinder) but the words will be a comfort and help in getting me home to those I love.
M. L Strickland
5.0 out of 5 stars The Real Deal!
Reviewed in the United States on December 31, 2008
This is the best book I have seen on the fundamentals of survival! I got it for Christmas and it is the first survival book, that I sat down and read cover to cover! Usually, with other survival books I scan them and pick out individual sections to read more carefully. I read every page in this one including the index! (Yes, it even has an excellent index!)

I have a collection of books on survival techniques and most of them have just copied from the Army Survival Manual and from each other. This is the first I have seen with such a unique and practical, down to earth survival philosophy.

Les doesn't try to go into advanced survival techniques, but instead opts for the best of the simple and most effective techniques for everything from making a fire to building a shelter or gathering food. Anyone who learns and practices the techniques in this book will be well prepared to deal with a survival emergency.

An example of Les' down-to-earth approach is in fire building. He goes over the standard wilderness fire starting techniques, such as flint-and steel and the fire bow. However his answer to the question of which is his favorite technique for a survival situation is "a butane lighter!".

I've never been in a "real" survival situation, but I do practice the survival techniques I have learned when I am out camping or hiking, or even in the back yard. I know enough about survival in the outdoors to recognize the genuine thing. Les has "been there and done that" and knows what he is talking about.

I worry a lot about some of the other TV shows on "survival" that are more entertainment and fantasy driven. It bothers me to think that some might try to follow the example of some of these other hosts. Not so with Les. Following HIS example and using the techniques in this book will give you your best chance to get out of a survival situation alive!
reluctant tech
4.0 out of 5 stars Amazing yet down to earth, a diverse range of survival techniques: pleasure to read!
Reviewed in the United States on November 25, 2008
Les rocks and I give him great respect. That said, I didn't expect much from a book based on a TV show but was pleasantly surprised to find it comprehensive, entertaining and well laid out. Note that this is not just a rehash of army survival books (that you can get online for free, BTW), nor is it a book on primitive living: this is the basics on how to get out of back country situations alive.

It would have been nice to see more detail in the book on some subjects. On purifying water for instance, two pages were spent on how to boil water in a plastic bottle but only one sentence on chlorine treatment. Granted, boiling water in a plastic bottle is an option, but it mostly makes for great TV (my whole family was raving about it). And the consensus on boiling water is that 5 minutes isn't necessary, just bring it to a boil and all is dead.

A fun read with lots of illustrations and photos, I would recommend this to anyone interested in real survival. If you only buy one book on the subject, this one covers all the bases and even (most) all the environments you may find yourself in. Heck, it even gives you a brief selection of edible plants found in different regions. After three days the odds of getting found alive drops to below ten percent: focus on the basics and keep a good attitude. This book helps you do just that.

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