Status
Available
Publication
Vintage (2017), Edition: First Edition, 336 pages
Description
The author describes how her honeymoon was cut short when her plane crashed in the jungles of Peru, forcing her and her husband to try to survive aboard a makeshift raft as they made their way down the Amazon River to civilization.
Similar in this library
User reviews
LibraryThing member texicanwife
Holly FitzGerald and her husband, Fitz, set out on a honeymoon anyone would envy. they were set to see the world! They were to spend a year long adventure together! So romantic. Right?
But five months into their honeymoon, they are in a plane crash in Peru.
Surviving, and wondering how, the two find
But what they find is anything but civilization!
As their raft begins to come apart in piranha and caiman waters, they must choose whether to live or die.
They choose to live.
This is a book you simply cannot put down! I waited until I had a day where I could put all day into reading it. And I wasn't disappointed! This true story leaves you wondering what you would do if you were in these same straits?
Just what would you do?
It is amazing what the human body can put itself through when left with the decision to live or die!
I can't praise the author enough. Well written. Characters are brought to life. And you are literally there as they face each challenge (and there are many!).
I give this book five stars,
a big thumbs up,
and my recommendation for a great read!
But five months into their honeymoon, they are in a plane crash in Peru.
Surviving, and wondering how, the two find
Show More
they are engulfed by jungle. So they build a raft, of only 4 logs and head down the river, hoping for civilization.But what they find is anything but civilization!
As their raft begins to come apart in piranha and caiman waters, they must choose whether to live or die.
They choose to live.
This is a book you simply cannot put down! I waited until I had a day where I could put all day into reading it. And I wasn't disappointed! This true story leaves you wondering what you would do if you were in these same straits?
Just what would you do?
It is amazing what the human body can put itself through when left with the decision to live or die!
I can't praise the author enough. Well written. Characters are brought to life. And you are literally there as they face each challenge (and there are many!).
I give this book five stars,
a big thumbs up,
and my recommendation for a great read!
Show Less
LibraryThing member Stbalbach
Ruthless River is pure Amazonian adventure survival goodness. FitzGerald recounts the events of her youth 45 years ago. It is completely transportive, that magic ability to submerge into a place and re-live events. She writes in hyper-detail that is unusual for books like this but highly effective.
Show More
It's a great book and could easily stand on its own in the National Geographic canon of best outdoor literature. I would also make a great movie. Unlike Cheryl Strayed's Wild, another outdoor adventure book written by a woman recently, Fitzgerald doesn't have an inner journey of demons to overcome. She is actually delightfully innocent, which contrasts with the horror, the horror of the river. Show Less
LibraryThing member bogreader
I would be interested in reading this book with annotations by a survival expert.
LibraryThing member dele2451
A harrowing tale of jungle survival.
LibraryThing member dypaloh
A lot of adventure books are written by professional or semi-professional adventurers, people who it can seem would be disappointed if extreme trouble failed to come their way. Some folks, though, are just trying to travel to their destination without gratuitous risk. In Ruthless River we get to
The Fitzgeralds, after an unfortunate accident, decide it’d be best to raft down the Rio Madre de Dios from a settlement in Peru to one in Bolivia. In hindsight, if some geographic feature has “Mother of God” in its name then probably this should be treated as a warning oath (as in “Holy Mother . . . !”) and not as an invitation. But off they go.
Among the less hellish of their experiences was sleeping while sitting on a tree branch with lianas tied round their bodies to provide security against falling. Mosquitos bit endlessly during the night while pica ants crawled over their skin, piercing and burning them. Fitz, despite his fear of heights, fell asleep easily—when serving in the Vietnam War he learned to sleep no matter what the circumstances. For Holly it was more like how it’d be for you or me. This happened early in their great misadventure. Things get gnarly after that.
The author’s natural, open way of writing makes this story seem personal and intimate. It works. Every bit of what they went through is present and much of it fascinates. The account is testimony also to how supportive in extremity love and belief can be. The survival instinct is strong. With love it gains yet more power.
I commend Ruthless River to you but advise skipping the Prologue—it’s a minor spoiler.
Show More
read about such a couple. Their names are Holly and Fitz Fitzgerald. They find as much trouble as any of the pro or near-pro adventure set could possibly desire and fear.The Fitzgeralds, after an unfortunate accident, decide it’d be best to raft down the Rio Madre de Dios from a settlement in Peru to one in Bolivia. In hindsight, if some geographic feature has “Mother of God” in its name then probably this should be treated as a warning oath (as in “Holy Mother . . . !”) and not as an invitation. But off they go.
Among the less hellish of their experiences was sleeping while sitting on a tree branch with lianas tied round their bodies to provide security against falling. Mosquitos bit endlessly during the night while pica ants crawled over their skin, piercing and burning them. Fitz, despite his fear of heights, fell asleep easily—when serving in the Vietnam War he learned to sleep no matter what the circumstances. For Holly it was more like how it’d be for you or me. This happened early in their great misadventure. Things get gnarly after that.
The author’s natural, open way of writing makes this story seem personal and intimate. It works. Every bit of what they went through is present and much of it fascinates. The account is testimony also to how supportive in extremity love and belief can be. The survival instinct is strong. With love it gains yet more power.
I commend Ruthless River to you but advise skipping the Prologue—it’s a minor spoiler.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Castlelass
True story of Holly and “Fitz” FitzGerald’s journey down the Rio Madre de Dios in Bolivia in 1973. As young newly marrieds, they decide to honeymoon in the Amazon Rainforest. They took some pretty extreme risks, in line with the inexperience and bravado of youth. It is a story of endurance in
Show More
harsh conditions and working together to try to figure out how to survive. I found it engrossing. It shows that love and optimism can play a key role in survival. As an armchair traveler, I enjoyed reading about their adventures – just don’t ask me to follow in their footsteps! Show Less
LibraryThing member tokenn
I really liked this book (but I love adventure/survival books so take it with a grain of salt) and almost gave it a 5 but I was turned off by the "love story" chapter and the topic sprinkled in every once in a while. It was almost like Olive Oyl and Popeye..."My hero!!" Also the God stuff was
But, for me anyway, if you can overlook those parts, it was really an amazing read and held my interest throughout.
Show More
off-putting. I started to wonder where the book was going when the God references started showing up.But, for me anyway, if you can overlook those parts, it was really an amazing read and held my interest throughout.
Show Less
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
2017
Physical description
8 inches
ISBN
0525432779 / 9780525432777