Alive: The Story of the Andes Survivors
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| Author | Piers Paul Read |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | J.B. Lippincott Company |
| Released | 1974 |
Alive: The Story of the Andes Survivors is a 1974 book by the British writer Piers Paul Read.
Contents |
[edit] Story
- See main article: The crash and rescue
Alive tells the story of the Uruguayan Rugby team (who were alumni of Stella Maris College (Montevideo)) and their friends and family who were involved in the airplane crash of Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 which crashed into the Andes mountains on October 13, 1972. It was published two years after survivors of the crash were rescued.
Read interviewed the survivors and their families for an extensive period of time before writing the book. He comments on this process in the Acknowledgments section:
- I was given a free hand in writing this book by both the publisher and the sixteen survivors. At times I was tempted to fictionalize certain parts of the story because this might have added to their dramatic impact but in the end I decided that the bare facts were sufficient to sustain the narrative...when I returned in October 1973 to show them the manuscript of this book, some of them were disappointed by my presentation of their story. They felt that the faith and friendship which inspired them in the cordillera do not emerge from these pages. It was never my intention to underestimate these qualities, but perhaps it would be beyond the skill of any writer to express their own appreciation of what they lived through.
[edit] Criticism and reviews
The survivors approved Read's decision to write the book and helped with its production. In the acknowledgements, however, Read says that some of the survivors were disappointed with the manuscript because they "felt that the faith and friendship with inspired them in the cordillera do not emerge from these pages." Indeed, there are several passages in the book that discuss the tension and anger between the survivors during their time in the Andes. Read writes, "It was never my intention to underestimate these qualities, but perhaps it would be beyond the skill of any writer to express their own appreciation of what they lived through."[1]
The book was a critical success. Walter Clemons declared that it "will become a classic in the literature of survival."
D. Keith Mano, of The New York Times Book Review gave the book a "rave" review, stating that "Read's style is savage: unliterary, undecorated as a prosecutor's brief." He also described the book as an important one:
- Cowardice, selfishness, whatever: their essential heroism can weather Read's objectivity. He has made them human. 'Alive' is thunderous entertainment: I know the events by rote, nonetheless I found it electric. And important. 'Alive' should be read by sociologists, educators, the Joint Chief of Staff. By anyone, in fact, whose business it is to prepare men for adversity.
Michael Rogers concurs, stating that "Read has risen above the sensational and managed a book of real and lasting value."
[edit] Editions
The first edition was released in 1974. A paperback which referenced the film Alive: The Miracle of the Andes, was released in 1993. A new softcover edition, with a revised introduction and additional interviews with Piers Paul Read, Coche Inciarte, and Alvaro Mangino, was released by Harper in 2005. This edition also has a new subtitle: "Sixteen Men, Seventy-two Days, and Insurmountable Odds -- The Classic Adventure of Survival in the Andes."
[edit] Films
The book was adapted into the 1993 film Alive: The Miracle of the Andes, by Frank Marshall. A companion documentary, Alive: 20 Years Later was made at the same time.
[edit] Miracle in the Andes
In 2006, Nando Parrado and Vince Rause published Miracle in the Andes: 72 Days on the Mountain and My Long Trek Home which returns to Alive: The Story of the Andes Survivors, but is told from Parrado's point of view thirty-four years later.
[edit] References
- Clemons, Walter. "Alive" Newsweek (April 22, 1974), 104.
- Mano, D. Keith. "Alive." The New York Times Book Review (April 7, 1974), 2.
- Read, Piers Paul. Alive: The Story of the Andes Survivors - google books
- Rogers, Michael. "Alive." Rolling Stone. (May 23, 1974), 90.
