A review by emiged
The Survivors Club: The Secrets and Science That Could Save Your Life by Ben Sherwood

3.0

The topic of this book is so similar (read: almost identical) to the one I read just previously (The Unthinkable by Amanda Ripley) that I'm afraid it suffers just because of the order I happened to pick them up. And it's impossible to write this review without comparing the two of them. Several of the same disasters were discussed, the same scientific findings analyzed, the same experts quoted. The Survivors Club adds some interesting tidbits - like the best place to have a heart attack is in a casino because of the proximity to defibrillators and people trained to use them and statistically you're more likely to die during the week surrounding your birthday than any other time. It also delves more deeply into the role of faith and the will to live than the other book. But I liked the way that The Unthinkable was organized better - there was a methodical approach to the individual's reaction to a disaster - it was more accessible and applicable. The Survivors Club seemed a bit more scattered in its structure. Part II of The Survivors Club, which provides the reader the opportunity to complete an online test to identify his/her "Survivor Profile" and top strengths in a survival situation, was the biggest difference between the two books, but that's the part I found least interesting or helpful.

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