The Disaster Diaries

How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Apocalypse

By: Sam Sheridan

Narrated by: Donald Corren

Length: 10 hrs and 25 mins

Publisher's summary

Sam Sheridan has been an amateur boxer, mixed-martial-arts fighter, professional wilderness firefighter, EMT, sailor, and cowboy, and has worked in construction at the South Pole. If he isn't ready for the apocalypse, we're all in a lot of trouble.

Despite an arsenal of skills that would put most of us to shame, when Sam had his son and settled down, he was beset with nightmares about being unable to protect him. Apocalyptic images filled his head. If a rogue wave hit his beach community, could he get out? If he was forced outside the city, could he survive in the wilderness? Let's not even talk about plagues, zombies, and aliens. Unable to quiet his mind, Sam decided to face his fears head-on, embarking on a quest to gain as many skills as possible that might come in handy should the world as we know it end.

Each possible doomsday required a different skill set. Trying to navigate a clogged highway when everyone is trying to leave town? Better go to the best stunt-driving school in the country. Need to protect your family but have no ammunition? Better learn how to handle a knife. Is your kid hurt or mentally strained? Better brush up on emergency medicine and study the psychological effects of trauma. From training with an Olympic weightlifter to an apprenticeship in stealing cars with an ex-gang member, from an intense three-week gun course in the 100-degree heat of Alabama to agonizing lessons in wilderness survival, Sam left no stone unturned. Would it be enough if a meteor rocked the earth? Who's to say? But as Sam points out, it would be a damn shame to survive the initial impact only to die a few days later because you didn't know how to build a fire.

This is participatory journalism at its finest. A rollicking narrative with each chapter framed by a hypothetical doomsday scenario, The Disaster Diaries is for everyone who wants to know what it might take to make it through a cataclysmic event - or just wants to watch someone else struggle to find out.

©2013 Sam Sheridan (P)2013 Blackstone Audio, Inc

Critic reviews

"Sheridan, an amateur boxer and mixed-martial-arts fighter, uses a collection of stark disaster scenarios to wise up the reader on how to live through those final times…. As a quirky survivalist primer, Sheridan’s work spells out how to stay alive when the world goes topsy-turvy." (Publishers Weekly)

"How to survive any possible disaster, from aliens to zombies to everything in between…. An upbeat and entertaining survival guide for the end of the world." (Kirkus Reviews)

"This is no mere guide to surviving disaster; it's also the author's personal account of learning to prepare for catastrophe…. A clever and very useful guide to getting ready to face the unknown." (Booklist)

One of my favorite books of all time .

I've listened to thousands of books over the years and this is one of my absolute favorites. So well written and so thought provoking. I've listened to it multiple times and enjoyed it every time. Well worth your time and money.

Beautiful Surprise

I wasn't sure what to suspect from this book after reading the reviews and still, thos has turned out to be much more than I thought and is setting goals me off I. a new direction. Thank You and I highly recommend this book!

Suprisingly good. Really good.

I wasn't really sure why I actually bought this book in the beginning. Maybe it was on my suggested list? I really got into it quickly , and I realized that I could of written this book! This author and I have a very similar view and life experience. It is a good refresher for some folks, and an eye opener for a lot of folks I imagine. Good stuff. Brings up a lot of good points on how to be prepared, not in a crazy "prepper " way, but an average, everyday American doing little things to be ready when the eventual SHTF happens.

Great information

Great information. The author is an great writer and keeps you engaged. I don’t know how he pulled it off, but his adventures netted him, and the reader information and experience that is hard to quantify.. worth the money!

Similar thoughts of those that I have had myself

In this journey into preparedness, the author laid out several although outlandish scenarios, or were they metaphors of what could actually happen. Raised several questions to think about I.E. what are you prepping for? If you didn’t know where to begin this book would be a great general guidance. The biggest prep that is stressed throughout is the most time consuming, expensive, and least prepped item. Training, the author sought out training, everyone needs to train to be able to do most of the tasks that will or can happen in TEOTWAWKI, and as stated in the end credits all or most of the training is definitely perishable. This really got me thinking back on my initial training and made me realize the training that I need to go back and revisit. I thoroughly enjoyed this one.

very good

I found the story very entertaining and informative. It's not a user manual or a total fiction story,but a melding that is informative and entertaining. I will now have to search for more of his books. Donald Corren is an amazing story teller.

Very Informational

A great plethora of information on survival aspects (food, water, health. firearms, etc) written in a story format.

Don't let that stop you from listening to it though, there is a loose and minimal overall story - but that's OK. I skipped a few chapters/topics because I didn't want to hear about the molecule cell structure (nor do I care).

I listened to a few chapters twice because I thought it was a great wealth of practical experience and training tips. I took notes even in a few chapters.

Overall: Worth the read and worth your time. It just needs to be moved out of fiction and put into non-fiction.

Not Dystopian Fiction

Any additional comments?

This isn't a dystopian novel, but rather a guide to point the average joe in the right direction as to how to prep for certain apocalyptic scenarios. It's written like it was pitched as a television series for the Discovery channel. Sheridan introduces in a few paragraphs some end of the world scenario and then discusses the key skill one would need to have in order to likely survive the situation in question -- family trapped after an Earthquake (weightlifting skills), zombies (shooting skills), friend injured by a band of marauders (wilderness medicine), et al. -- in the form of discussing the training that he actually did (did weights with an Olympian, took a shooting course in Alabama, underwent wilderness paramedic training in New Hampshire) et al., in a first person narrative that flows pretty well. Lots of pop science and interesting tidbits that makes this a pretty interesting read, but not as captivating as a good end of the world novel or as informative as something out of a good preppers website.

a good listen<br />

this book contains a lifetime of research on surviv living and all around usefull information with somewhat of a story included.
a worthwhile listen even if you are not a prepper.

meh

good information. not very entertaining. while I do see potential if he ever decides to write a work of fiction it will be very good.