Rating: 
Summary: Riveting true story of a disaster at sea.
Review: A fascinating account of a family surviving the
sinking of their sailboat by killer whales. For 37 days they battled the elements, hunger and thirst before finally being rescued. A great read! Highly recommneded.
Rating: 
Summary: A Fantastic Tale of the Power of the Human Spirit
Review: After a binge on many incredible adventure books, Survive the Savage Sea doesn't quite stack up. However, to the newcomer in this category of suspense, endurance, and survival books, Survive the Savage Sea is a great, quick read
Rating:
Summary: Powerful summary of survival and leadership
Review: Having read many survival and endurance books, I found this one exemplary. Written with quiet recollection - as only a log-keeping seaman could - he recounts both the inner and outer journey very well. I was appreciative of his honesty in the emotional shortcomings of himself and crew. You can imagine the difficulty of being so revealing of your own family in print! Without these insights, a reader would have been mislead about what it means to survive with others.
I also listened to an unabridged book-on-tape, and the idea of a long story, well told, detail by detail was wonderful. For someone who has waited out storms on the sides of mountains, I appreciate long, detailed, unhurried stories. This is a wonderful book.
Rating:
Summary: A great read.
Review: I read this book aloud with my wife and we throughly enjoyed the adventure together. I highly recommend it. Very enthralling!
Rating:
Summary: This book tells about the difficulties of being lost at sea!
Review: I think this book was a good adventure book and it teaches you about diffrent animals and the hardships that a family went through when killer whales attacked a boat. It also makes it clear in the book that at the end the family had a very little chance of survival. This book is a very good book. I encourage you to read it if you like adventures.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent!
Review: If you are looking for a nice down-to-earth, real-life, well-written book about survival and teamwork, this is it.
In fact, by the time you've read through it, you'll probably wish that their adventure had lasted even longer!Dougal takes care of explaining everything he does and the reasoning behind it so that under no circumstances are you left with any doubts as to why he makes certain decisions. The book also has some thoughts on what equipment perhaps you should put in your boating survival kit. In my opinion this part could have been even more elaborated on.
Rating:
Summary: This is real classic
Review: One family faced the ship-wrecked situation. They all help each other to fight for their survival. This is the real story that will stop you from doing anything else but reading it.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing
Review: The Robertson family's ordeal at sea would be unbelievable if it weren't true. It's hard to imagine a group of six people stranded for 37 days in a failing life raft and then a small dinghy. Robertson does an impeccable job of recounting details and procedures used in surviving the journey and his experience as a master seaman comes through clearly in the telling. There's barely a detial left out and the knowledge gained by his family's proactive struggle to save themselves has gone on to save others subsequently lost at sea.
The only aspect I felt wasn't thoroughly explored, save for a couple pages near the end, was the emotional side of the drama. Six people of varying ages, experience and personalities thrust together into unimaginable circumstances must have created more upheaval than was apparent in the story. Robertson's writing style (and, one gets the impression, his personality style), while perfect for describing the situation and its outcome, lacks a certain sensitivity to emotion and personal reflection.
That said, this book is a terrific read and makes one truly grateful for even the uncomfortable irritations of land and everyday life. The practical information learned and imparted, too, is fascinating, though one hopes after reading this book such information will never have to be personally applied.
Add this to your collection of castaway tales and you won't be disappointed. If you're looking for a more personal and introspective point of view, check out Steven Callahan's outstanding first-hand account, "Adrift." And for an even more technical and fascinating education about ships and the sea, try "The Perfect Storm" by Sebastian Junger.
Rating:
Summary: This is REAL "Survivor"!!!
Review: This book first came to my attention when it was printed (in abridged form) in "The Reader's Digest" in 1973, and later when the author appeared on "To Tell The Truth". I've always been a sucker for adventure stories and this true-life account of grit, determination and ultimate survival makes the statement "the truth is stranger than fiction" ring all the more true. By the way - with the 30th anniversary of the Robertson family's disaster looming - does anyone know what ultimately happened to them? NOTE 4/30/03 - After writing my original review, I was directed to the Robertson family website to learn the family's fate. Their daughter, who left the voyage in Miami and was not on board when the boat was sunk, is the web-mistress for the site, and was very gracious in e-correspondence when I sought details about her parents' later years. As stated in another review, Dougal Robertson passed away in 1992, aged 68, his wife Lyn following in 1998.
Rating:
Summary: outstanding
Review: This is one of the best survival adventure stories. The Robertsons are attempting a circumnavigation when their yacht is sunk by killer whales in the Pacific Ocean. With very few provisions, an inflatable raft (which later sinks) and a dinghy the Robertsons are able to survive 38 days on the ocean under extreme conditions. Dougal Robertson's account of the adventure is gripping, at sometimes understated and brutally honest. Robertson was probably not an easy man to get along with but his indomitability, his command presence and force of will, coupled with his wife's emotional strength, got their family through. It is a tremendous story of leadership under the most extreme circumstances. While looking up information on the Robertsons I was happy to find their own website, ... but was saddened to read that both Dougal and Lyn Robertson have since passed away. One of their twin sons however is preparing to embark on a round-the-world cruise with his own family soon.
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