The phrase ‘survival of the fittest’ conjures an image of the most cutthroat individuals rising to the top. But Stefan Klein, author of the international bestseller The Science of Happiness, makes the startling assertion that the key to achieving lasting personal and societal success lies in helping others. Klein argues that altruism is in fact our defining characteristic: natural selection favoured those early humans who cooperated in groups. With their survival more assured, our altruistic ancestors were free to devote brainpower to developing intelligence, language, and culture — our very humanity. As Klein puts it, ‘We humans became first the friendliest and then the most intelligent apes.’ To build his persuasive case for how altruistic behaviour made us human — and why it pays to get along — Klein brings together an extraordinary array of material: current research on genetics and the brain, economics, social psychology, behavioural and anthropological experiments, history, and modern culture. Ultimately, his groundbreaking findings lead him to a vexing question: if we’re really hard-wired to act for one another’s benefit, why aren’t we all getting along? Klein believes we’ve learned to mistrust our generous instincts because success is so often attributed to selfish ambition. In Survival of the Nicest, he invites us to rethink what it means to be the ‘fittest’ as he shows how caring for others can protect us from loneliness and depression, make us happier and healthier, reward us economically, and even extend our lives.

The man who accomplished one of the most remarkable feats of survival in history finally tells the story of the event that made worldwide news. This inspiring story shows what sheer determination can achieve against impossible odds. When Peter DeLeo set out one Sunday morning on a sightseeing and photography trip over the central Sierra Nevada mountains in California, he had no idea that he would soon be fighting for his life with the odds stacked very much against him. DeLeo’s single-engine plane encountered turbulence, and he and his two passengers crashed in the mountains. All three survived the accident but sustained multiple injuries. DeLeo had broken ribs, a shattered ankle, and a badly damaged shoulder. After assessing their situation, they decided that the passengers should remain with the plane while DeLeo would hike out to bring back help. It was already winter; he left the limited emergency supplies with the plane’s passengers; and he was hampered by his injuries, but DeLeo was determined to get help. He found or improvised shelter at night, carefully warmed himself during the daytime, drank from small pools of melted snow and ice, and slowly but steadily made his way toward civilization. Suffering from exhaustion and on the verge of collapse, he found a hot spring that provided him with temporary warmth and insects to eat. Injuries, dehydration, malnutrition, and a two-day blizzard slowed him, and a rockslide nearly killed him just as he glimpsed the valley and highway that he so desperately sought, but DeLeo’s courage saw him through. Meanwhile, Civil Air Patrol planes searched fruitlessly for the lost plane and for survivors; twice, DeLeo frantically tried to signal the search planes, but to no avail. When DeLeo finally reached a highway, he found it almost impossible to convince the authorities that he was the lost pilot who had been all but given up for dead. His astonishing survival, one of the most remarkable feats of endurance on record, made national and even international news. Now, for the first time, Peter DeLeo tells his remarkable story in gripping detail. His amazing saga is destined to become a classic.

Hatchet meets Lost in this modern-day adventure tale of one girl's reawakening Jane is on a plane on her way home to Montclair, New Jersey, from a mental hospital. She is about to kill herself. Just before she can swallow a lethal dose of pills, the plane hits turbulence and everything goes black. Jane wakes up amidst piles of wreckage and charred bodies on a snowy mountaintop. There is only one other survivor: a boy named Paul, who inspires Jane to want to fight for her life for the first time. Jane and Paul scale icy slopes and huddle together for warmth at night, forging an intense emotional bond. But the wilderness is a vast and lethal force, and only one of them will survive.

After being sexually assaulted at a party, Mara started experiencing paranoia and delusional thoughts which resulted in a public psychotic episode freshman year. Now a senior in high school, Mara feels like an outcast who would rather keep to herself than risk being judged. However, the only way she'll graduate is if she can pass her least favorite class: public speaking. Mara is ready to publicly reclaim her own story—but will she find acceptance this time around?

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The instant classic about why some ideas thrive, why others die, and how to make your ideas stick. “Anyone interested in influencing others—to buy, to vote, to learn, to diet, to give to charity or to start a revolution—can learn from this book.”—The Washington Post Mark Twain once observed, “A lie can get halfway around the world before the truth can even get its boots on.” His observation rings true: Urban legends, conspiracy theories, and bogus news stories circulate effortlessly. Meanwhile, people with important ideas—entrepreneurs, teachers, politicians, and journalists—struggle to make them “stick.” In Made to Stick, Chip and Dan Heath reveal the anatomy of ideas that stick and explain ways to make ideas stickier, such as applying the human scale principle, using the Velcro Theory of Memory, and creating curiosity gaps. Along the way, we discover that sticky messages of all kinds—from the infamous “kidney theft ring” hoax to a coach’s lessons on sportsmanship to a vision for a new product at Sony—draw their power from the same six traits. Made to Stick will transform the way you communicate. It’s a fast-paced tour of success stories (and failures): the Nobel Prize-winning scientist who drank a glass of bacteria to prove a point about stomach ulcers; the charities who make use of the Mother Teresa Effect; the elementary-school teacher whose simulation actually prevented racial prejudice. Provocative, eye-opening, and often surprisingly funny, Made to Stick shows us the vital principles of winning ideas—and tells us how we can apply these rules to making our own messages stick.

You’re alone in the forest on a fine autumn day with nothing but a multitool. You’re stuck there for a week. Should you be more worried about finding a source of uncontaminated water or about a bear that might be in the area? Neither, says Les Stroud. The bear will most likely avoid you, and dehydration will affect you faster than parasites in untreated water. Your bigger worry should be shelter—the daytime might be nice, but it’s likely going to be cold at night. And that’s just the beginning. The concept of Survivorman is simple: left in a remote location, Les must survive for seven days on his own without food, water or equipment. Now, he shares his expert knowledge in Survive!, a fully illustrated guide based on his experiences on six continents and filled with field-tested advice. Many books on survival are culled from Second World War–era training techniques that are out-of-date or just plain wrong. Survive! debunks these dated myths, exploring basic and advanced tactics that show you how to cope in any survival situation. Brought to life with Les’s own anecdotes and the tales of others, Survive! is the perfect manual for anyone -- from beginner to armchair traveller to seasoned explorer -- who wants to meet nature’s dangers with confidence. As Les writes, “If you believe you can make it through the bad times, and you are not intimidated by the forces of nature, you will markedly increase your chances of survival.” SURVIVE! includes detailed information on the following: preparing for survival, mentally and physically fire-making techniques basic survival kit components finding, collecting and making water sources of food types of shelter

A splendid book . . . I can’t think of anyone I know who wouldn’t benefit from reading it' - Marcus Berkmann, Daily Mail 'A brilliant, brilliant book' - Chris Evans, Virgin Radio Now including a new chapter on coping with a pandemic. What is the connection between crawling through a jungle and your ‘to do’ list? What can ejecting out of a stealth bomber teach you about the getting through a pandemic? What can surviving in extreme situations teach us about surviving everyday life? John Hudson, Chief Survival Instructor to the British Military, knows what it takes to survive. Combining first-hand experience with twenty years of studying the choices people have made under the most extreme pressure, How to Survive is a lifetime’s worth of wisdom about how to apply the principles of survival to everyday life. The cornerstone of military survival (surviving anything) is understanding the relationship between effort, hope and goals – a mindset that can be transposed anytime, anywhere. In How to Survive you will learn how this template for survival can be applied to any situation in your everyday life. Through gripping first-hand accounts of near disaster and survival stories from across the extreme world you will learn that by following these principles you can develop the mindset that will allow you to make better decisions under pressure, which are as equally applicable to first dates and presentations as to climbing Everest and getting lost at sea. 'When it comes to survival and getting out of trouble, listen to this man. John is the real deal' - Levison Wood