“The best survival book in a decade” (__Outside__ magazine), __438 Days__ is the true story of the fisherman who survived fourteen months in a small boat drifting seven thousand miles across the Pacific Ocean.On November 17, 2012, a pair of fishermen left the coast of Mexico for a weekend fishing trip in the open Pacific. That night, a violent storm ambushed them as they were fishing eighty miles offshore. As gale force winds and ten-foot waves pummeled their small, open boat from all sides and nearly capsized them, captain Salvador Alvarenga and his crewmate cut away a two-mile-long fishing line and began a desperate dash through crashing waves as they sought the safety of port. Fourteen months later, on January 30, 2014, Alvarenga, now a hairy, wild-bearded and half-mad castaway, washed ashore on a nearly deserted island on the far side of the Pacific. He could barely speak and was unable to walk. He claimed to have drifted from Mexico, a journey of some seven thousand miles. __438 Days__ is the first-ever account of one of the most amazing survival stories in modern times. Based on dozens of hours of exclusive interviews with Alvarenga, his colleagues, search-and-rescue officials, the remote islanders who found him, and the medical team that saved his life, __438 Days__ is an unforgettable study of the resilience, will, ingenuity and determination required for one man to survive more than a year lost and adrift at sea 438 Days is the miraculous account of the man who survived alone and adrift at sea longer than anyone in recorded historyas told to journalist Jonathan Franklin in dozens of exclusive interviews. On November 17, 2012, Salvador Alvarenga left the coast of Mexico for a two-day fishing trip. A vicious storm killed his engine and the current dragged his boat out to sea. The storm picked up and blasted him west. When he washed ashore on January 29, 2014, he had arrived in the Marshall Islands, 9,000 miles awayequivalent to traveling from New York to Moscow round trip. For fourteen months, Alvarenga survived constant shark attacks. He learned to catch fish with his bare hands. He built a fish net from a pair of empty plastic bottles. Taking apart the outboard motor, he fashioned a huge fishhook. Using fish vertebrae as needles, he stitched together his own clothes. He considered suicide on multiple occasionsincluding offering himself up to a pack of sharks. But Alvarenga never failed to invent an alternative reality. He imagined a method of survival that kept his body and mind intact long enough for the Pacific Ocean to toss him up on a remote palm-studded island, where he was saved by a local couple living alone in their own Pacific Island paradise. Based on dozens of hours of interviews with Alvarenga and interviews with his colleagues, search and rescue officials, the medical team that saved his life and the remote islanders who nursed him back to health, this is an epic tale of survival, an all-true version of the fictional Life of Pi . With illustrations, maps, and photographs throughout, 438 Days is a study of the resilience, will, ingenuity, and determination required for one man to survive fourteen months, lost at sea. Declared "the best survival book in a decade" by Outside Magazine , 438 Days is the true story of the man who survived fourteen months in a small boat drifting seven thousand miles across the Pacific Ocean. On November 17, 2012, two men left the coast of Mexico for a weekend fishing trip in the open Pacific. That night, a violent storm ambushed them as they were fishing eighty miles offshore. As gale force winds and ten-foot waves pummeled their small, open boat from all sides and nearly capsized them, captain Salvador Alvarenga and his crewmate cut away a two-mile-long fishing line and began a desperate dash through crashing waves as they sought the safety of port. Fourteen months later, on January 30, 2014, Alvarenga, now a hairy, wild-bearded and half-mad castaway, washed ashore on a nearly deserted island on the far side of the Pacific. He could barely speak and was unable to walk. He claimed to have drifted from Mexico, a journey of some seven thousand miles. A "gripping saga," ( Daily Mail ), 438 Days is the first-ever account of one of the most amazing survival stories in modern times. Based on dozens of hours of exclusive interviews with Alvarenga, his colleagues, search-and-rescue officials, the remote islanders who found him, and the medical team that saved his life, 438 Days is not only "an intense, immensely absorbing read" ( Booklist ) but an unforgettable study of the resilience, will, ingenuity and determination required for one man to survive more than a year lost and adrift at sea. “The best survival book in a decade” ( Outside magazine), 438 Days is the true story of the fisherman who survived fourteen months in a small boat drifting seven thousand miles across the Pacific Ocean. On November 17, 2012, a pair of fishermen left the coast of Mexico for a weekend fishing trip in the open Pacific. That night, a violent storm ambushed them as they were fishing eighty miles offshore. As gale force winds and ten-foot waves pummeled their small, open boat from all sides and nearly capsized them, captain Salvador Alvarenga and his crewmate cut away a two-mile-long fishing line and began a desperate dash through crashing waves as they sought the safety of port. Fourteen months later, on January 30, 2014, Alvarenga, now a hairy, wild-bearded and half-mad castaway, washed ashore on a nearly deserted island on the far side of the Pacific. He could barely speak and was unable to walk. He claimed to have drifted from Mexico, a journey of some seven thousand miles. 438 Days is the first-ever account of one of the most amazing survival stories in modern times. Based on dozens of hours of exclusive interviews with Alvarenga, his colleagues, search-and-rescue officials, the remote islanders who found him, and the medical team that saved his life, 438 Days is an unforgettable study of the resilience, will, ingenuity and determination required for one man to survive more than a year lost and adrift at sea The Miraculous Account Of The Man Who Survived Alone And Adrift At Sea Longer Than Anyone In Recorded History. For Fourteen Months, Alvarenga Survived Constant Shark Attacks. He Learned To Catch Fish With His Bare Hands. He Built A Fish Net From A Pair Of Empty Plastic Bottles. Taking Apart The Outboard Motor, He Fashioned A Huge Fishhook. Using Fish Vertebrae As Needles, He Stitched Together His Own Clothes. Based On Dozens Of Hours Of Interviews With Alvarenga And Interviews With His Colleagues, Search And Rescue Officials, The Medical Team That Saved His Life And The Remote Islanders Who Nursed Him Back To Health, This Is An Epic Tale Of Survival. Print Run 75,000. The Sharkers -- A Stormy Tribe -- Ambushed At Sea -- Search And No Rescue -- Adrift -- Hunter Gatherers -- A Fight For Life -- Swimming With Sharks -- Encounters With A Whale -- On The Road To Nowhere -- A Year At Sea -- Another Slow Death -- The Rooster -- Who Is This Wildman? -- Found But Lost -- Ambushed By Cockroaches -- Call Of The Sea. Jonathan Franklin.