Reading adventure stories has been found to boost happiness, and, quite, frankly, right now, amid this Coronavirus kerfuffle we could do all do with a little help on that front. Am I right?
Also, those independent book sellers could do with a hand too so, where possible, I share the link to Bookseller.org, an online bookstore that financially supports local independent bookstores.
Bookshop.org also helps us community of bloggers too by offering a much better commission than Amazon, so yes, I may make commission on books recommended.
But, well, I’m a voracious reader of adventure books, so feel well qualified to extol the virtues of some of the best around. (Also some of the worst but let’s leave that for now, shall we…).
From £1 wonders lurking on Kindle to musty books found in backstreet bookshops to newly released tomes with big fanfare, I read them all. From the wonderful The Age of Daredevils about the early days of those hurling themselves over Niagara Falls in barrels – to varying degrees of success it must be said – to 60-something Diana Nyad who spent her life trying to achieve her dream of swimming across shark-infested waters from Cuba to Florida. I know. I sooooooo wanted to be the first person to achieve it, too.
You may be able to get some of the benefits of an awe-inspiring experience just by reading about someone else’s. A 2012 study found that people who read about someone else’s adventure were more satisfied, less stressed, and more willing to volunteer to help others than people who were simply shown something that made them feel happy.
So, if I may be so bold, here are my eight recommendations for adventure books that could help boost your happiness in this admittedly tricky time.
Find a Way
Diana Nyad
Toothy sharks, deadly jellyfish stings, world-ending storms, for endurance swimmer, Diana Nyad, these were just obstacles to power through on her mission to be the first person to swim from Cuba to Florida without a shark cage. Five times the American tried the feat, and each time she learned more about herself, about life and the human spirit.
Extract:
“Don’t ever tell me what the parameters of the human spirit are. We have no idea how powerful our hearts and our souls are. We only know how limited our muscles are.”
The Age of Daredevils
Michael Clarkson
Recommended by a friend, this utter madness of a brilliant book focuses on those who have taken the plunge over Niagara Falls in a barrel. Not just a documentation of those who have tried – and succeeded and failed – but also the Hills, a father-son daredevil duo who not only rescued those who survived hurling themselves over the lip of the cascade but also partook themselves.
One image that sticks with me is of the lady dressed in her early 20th century finery, crumpling herself into the barrel in corseted dress and flamboyant hat. People are just brilliantly bonkers, aren’t they?
The Whole Story: A Walk Around the World
Ffyona Campbell
My older sister recommended The Whole Story: A Walk Around the World by Ffyona Campbell to me, and she should know about the personal journey of walking long distances having hiked part of the 500-mile Camino de Santiago pilgrimage in Spain.
Ffyona Campbell, meanwhile, set off from Britain aged 16 years old to walk around the world. More than a decade passed before she returned home, some 20,000 miles later.
Utterly absorbing, it is not so much an inspirational tale as a detailed – at times jumbled – personal journey, with an unflinching dissection of her own character. Particularly painful is the soul searching after failing to complete the walk non-stop.
Dare to Do
Sarah Outen
It may well have been April Fools’ Day when Sarah Outen set off to circumnavigate the world by human power alone in 2011, but the journey was no joke to the Brit. Dare To Do details Sarah’s multitude of adventures from kayaking, rowing and cycling across the northern hemisphere.
I loved the bit about Gao – a Chinaman who spoke no English (and Sarah no Chinese) who randomly joined part of the journey across his homeland, even though he could barely cycle. I cringed when Sarah is caught in a tropical storm while rowing from San Francisco to Japan – such a torturous event she was unable to speak about it when I interviewed her many years later due to post-traumatic stress disorder.
Ultimately though, the book reveals that people around the world are one and the same – curious, engaged and companionable – and that’s something we could all hear more about.
The Crossing
Ben Fogle and James Cracknell
TV presenter Ben Fogle and two-time Olympic rowing gold medalist James Cracknell set off from the Canary Islands in 2005 to take part in the near-3000 mile Atlantic Rowing Race – 49 days later, they made it to Antigua.
I’m not going to be all coy about whether they made it or not because a) it was more than a decade ago ago and b) look at the strapline. The book is written in the first person, with Ben and James each taking it in turns to write about the journey.
Barely knowing each other before setting off, the lads navigate their way, not only across the ocean, but through each other’s chafing character traits. The egotistical, maniacally competitive Olympian versus the placid, emotional yet determined media type were always going to be quite the combo, right?
Click here for more detailed book review.
A Test of Will
Warren MacDonald
I read this years ago and it still sticks with me, not least because at one point Warren’s toes are being munched on by river creatures and he couldn’t even feel it as his legs were so mushed by a boulder.
Let me go back a bit. An experienced hiker, Warren sets off to attempt a challenging climb on north Queensland’s Hinchinbrook Island. The biggest island on the Great Barrier Reef, the rugged island is nevertheless uninhabited so you really have to be properly prepared before you head over there, which Warren was.
Travelling alone, thankfully Warren hooked up with a Dutch traveller while he was there, and it was thanks to Geert van Keulen that Warren survived after a boulder came loose, trapping him for days while Van Keulen went for help.
Absolutely inspirational with that straight-forward Aussie humour, Warren’s story, one of the first adventure books I had ever read, still sits with me.
Facing the Frozen Ocean
Bear Grylls
You can’t have a list of adventure books without featuring Bear Grylls now can you?
Bear and his team set out to become the first crew to cross the frigid North Atlantic in an open rigid inflatable boat. Well, why wouldn’t you?
When the boys get caught in a storm, 400 miles from Iceland, this carefully planned record attempt soon becomes more about survival.
While reading about dodging icebergs as large as cathedrals, you just think, you’re all idiots. Why are you even putting yourself through this? But tucked up safely at home, your skin tingles with cold as you read about icy waves showering the men repeatedly. Your fingers begin to prune imagining the constant soaking. Moment to moment, you wonder how they get through this torture. (And we know they do because Bear is doing those TV adventure programmes now, so that’s not a spoiler 👍).
Proper adventury stuff this and given to me by niece Milly as a Christmas present, which makes it all the more a special ‘must keep’ book.
The Girl Who Climbed Everest
Bonita Norris
Life lessons for many of us can be prolonged tortuous introspections, often repeating the same mistakes until finally we recognize, oh yes, yes I see – that’s where I keep going wrong. But when you climb Earth’s highest mountain you learn those lessons fast, or else… well you die actually.
Luckily for us, Bonita Norris shares what she learned during three months of accelerated life education in her book The Girl Who Climbed Everest. Aged 22 Bonita became the youngest British woman to climb the 29,029ft (8,848m) peak.
Bonita writes in absorbing, cringe-inducing detail of the challenges faced, including being rescued close to death on her descent.
A relatively inexperienced climber, she had also overcome an eating disorder, which the once anxious teenager conquered after discovering a passion for climbing. One of the consequences of reaching the top of the world was that she learned to appreciate her body for what it could do for her.
