Mud, Sweat, and Tears: The Autobiography Author: Bear Grylls | Language: English | ISBN:
B0068M2HLE | Format: EPUB
Mud, Sweat, and Tears: The Autobiography Description
“Bear Grylls is a veritable superhero….The former UK Special Forces paratrooper has braved the world’s harshest environments.”
—Hampton Sides, Outside Magazine
“Bear Grylls is one tough, crazy dude.”
—Washington Post
Already a #1 London Sunday Times Bestseller, Mud, Sweat, and Tears is the adrenaline-fueled autobiography of the mega-popular star of the hit survival series Man Vs. Wild, adventurer Bear Grylls. A former British Special Forces commando, a man who has always sought the ultimate in dangerous challenges, Bear’s true story reads like an outdoors action and adventure novel. But Bear’s story is true—full of breathtaking escapes and remarkable exploits that would make any Jack London or H. Ryder Haggard hero proud.
- File Size: 11661 KB
- Print Length: 445 pages
- Page Numbers Source ISBN: B00G4GWXIQ
- Publisher: William Morrow; Reprint edition (May 1, 2012)
- Sold by: HarperCollins Publishers
- Language: English
- ASIN: B0068M2HLE
- Text-to-Speech: Enabled
X-Ray:
- Lending: Not Enabled
- Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #20,557 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
- #6
in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Nonfiction > Travel > Specialty Travel > Adventure - #13
in Books > Sports & Outdoors > Survival Skills - #14
in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Nonfiction > Sports > Outdoors & Nature > Hiking & Camping > Instructional
- #6
in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Nonfiction > Travel > Specialty Travel > Adventure - #13
in Books > Sports & Outdoors > Survival Skills - #14
in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Nonfiction > Sports > Outdoors & Nature > Hiking & Camping > Instructional
While I have not been a big fan of Bear Grylls' tv shows(for mostly superficial reasons), his name is so big in survival and outdoor education circles that I figured that I owed it to myself to check out this autobiography.
I am so glad that I did!
From the very beginning, the storytelling drew me in. The portrayal of the lives and often heroic actions of his ancestors warmed my heart in a way that few authors manage. Even better than the storytelling was Bear's insight into the attitudes and principles of these people and the explanations of how this history and these stories affected him and helped to shape him into the person that he is now.
The book continues with numerous personal stories of adventure in it's many forms.
This book and it's stories contain fantastic life lessons about:
-Courage
-Honor
-Perseverance
-Dealing with difficulty and fear
-Patience
-Learning from difficulty and mistakes
-Hope
-Self-respect
-Knowing your limitations
-Pushing yourself to your limits
-Love
-Value of family
This book was written in the first person and has a very conversational and warm style. When the author reveals personal information about his thoughts, fears, etc during a particular story, it feels like he is letting you in on a little secret. It was obvious that the book was professionally edited. Unfortunately, the kindle formatting left a little to be desired. The TOC is properly linked, but you cannot access the TOC direct from the "Go To..." menu. This would be inexcusable in a reference book, but for this autobiography, I doubt many people will be trying to repeatedly reference the TOC.
Bear Grylls reminds us that there is a beautiful wildness to life, that adventure is where you find it, and that being prepared is essential for survival on the edge. The book reads more like an adventure story than your usual biography and is a fast-paced romp from one crazy scenario to another. Bear takes us through his childhood antics, with a humorous glimpse of his family life and time at Eton. It is not really laugh-out-loud funny, but it definitely makes you smile as you read about his escapades. His enthusiasm and zest for life are contagious. Bear always comes across as humbly grateful for his experiences, rather than being boastful of his natural abilities. In fact, he has a habit of downplaying his talents, giving thanks to God for getting him through sticky situations.
It's clear how his early life influenced his love for the outdoors and adventure and how his father, in particular, was instrumental in encouraging him to follow this love. It's inspiring to read his story, both as a parent and as a traveler through your own life. There is never a sense of being lectured to at all, but his story is so filled with anecdotes about success through hard work, balanced with risk-taking, that you get swept along and yearn to jump into your own life with both feet and instil that quality in others.
The chapters that dealt with his SAS training were pretty intense. I had no idea that the training was as rigorous as it is! You must have to be incredibly driven and fit to succeed in that environment. And then he went to climb Everest! Bear talks about his successes and failures and doesn't hold back from how he felt at the time, often barely scraping by on the skin of his teeth.
Mud, Sweat, and Tears: The Autobiography Preview
Link
Please Wait...