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Death in The West: Fatal Stories from America's Last Frontiers. [Soft Cover]
by Chris Becker
224 pages, $16.95
ISBN-13: 978-0873588935
Nonfiction
Review by Steven King, MBA, MEd
Diving into underwater caverns, scaling insurmountable mountains, or defying natural consequences of exploration, Americans are attracted to anything that produces a thrill. The adrenaline rush causes our hearts to beat faster and our spirits to soar. Adrenaline junkies are seldom satisfied unless they are defying death.
Whatever your vice for an adrenaline rush-do not strap yourself into a lawn chair and tie 45 helium-filled balloons to it. Your intention might be to rise to the top of the trees but you might find yourself spotted by airliners at 16,000 feet instead. Larry Walters, or Lawnchair Larry, as his neighbors in San Pedro came to know him, did just that in 1982. Unless, of course, you desire to be arrested - just like Larry was when he landed.
Becker writes of stories such as this in a powerful way to show where the odds catch up to thrill seekers. For every success, a handful of people die. It is unfortunate to be caught in the wrong place at the wrong time, but it can also have deadly consequences.
Sometimes, the Grim Reaper arrives as the result of really bad choices. If lightning strikes, the best refuge is not in a rock crevice where electricity can jump across side to side and destroy what is between. It is never advisable to hike into unfamiliar territory, without a compass, map, or extra clothing, and not tell someone your anticipated route. Becker's testimony rings clear: take precautions and provisions, or your next trek might be your last.
In spite of our best efforts, however, we are totally at the mercy of Planet Earth. Natural calamities abound and chances are, if you are in the wrong place at the wrong time, you might not return. Avalanches bury people, mudslides wipe out entire towns, and destructive fires burn across the landscape with apparent vengeance.
Sharks can mistake humans for natural food sources and grizzly bears can attack with little or no provocation. Mountain lions might stalk a hiker down a pathway and then attack for a late night snack. Perhaps our quest for adventure takes humanity too far into the natural habitat of the animal denizens of the planet.
A compelling read as Becker usually demonstrates how calamities could have been avoided. Reading these stories will certainly make the reader think twice before the next thrill seeking adventure.
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