{"product_id":"save-our-souls-the-true-story-of-a-castaway-family-treachery-and-murder-isbn-9780063338067","title":"Save Our Souls: The True Story of a Castaway Family, Treachery, and Murder","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eINTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eFrom the bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Taking of Jemima Boone\u003c\/i\u003e, the unbelievable true story of a real-life Swiss Family Robinson (and their dog) who faced sharks, a terrifying shipwreck, and betrayal in this gripping survival adventure.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOn December 10, 1887, a shark fishing boat disappeared. In this work of narrative nonfiction, the Walkers were on board—the ship’s captain Frederick, his wife Elizabeth, their three teenage sons, and their dog—along with the ship’s crew. The family had spotted a promising fishing location when a terrible storm arose, splitting their vessel in two and leaving those onboard adrift on the perilous sea.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhen the castaways awoke the next morning, they discovered they had been washed ashore on a deserted island inhabited by a large but ragged and emaciated man who introduced himself as Hans. Hans appeared to have been there for a while and could quickly educate the Walkers and their crew on the island’s resources. But Hans had a secret . . . and as the Walker family gradually came to learn more, what seemed like a stroke of luck to have the mysterious man’s assistance became something ominous, something darker.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLike David Grann and Stacy Schiff, Matthew Pearl unveils one of the most incredible yet little-known historical true stories from 19th-century maritime history, and the only known instance of an actual family of castaways. \u003ci\u003eSave Our Souls\u003c\/i\u003e asks us to consider who we might become if we found ourselves trapped on a deserted island.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eA True Story of Survival at Sea:\u003c\/b\u003e Follow the Walker family—a captain, his wife, three teenage sons, and their dog—as they fight for their lives after a violent storm destroys their ship in the middle of the Pacific.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eMarooned with a Stranger:\u003c\/b\u003e Their hope seems answered when they meet Hans, the island's only other inhabitant. But as the days turn into weeks, they realize the greatest danger might not be the island itself.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eA Lost Chapter of History:\u003c\/b\u003e Based on meticulous research, this is the only known instance of an entire family of castaways, a gripping tale of resilience and betrayal lost to time until now.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eFamily Against the Elements:\u003c\/b\u003e Faced with sharks, starvation, and dwindling hope, the Walkers must rely on their wits and one another to endure the ultimate test of family bonds.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e | \u003cp\u003e“Written with the compelling narrative and literary flair of a work of fiction.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eMinneapolis Star Tribune\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"What’s remarkable about \u003cem\u003eSave Our Souls\u003c\/em\u003e is how Pearl manages to center the deeply fascinating story of the Walkers while also making time to explore the broader context of the world in which they travelled. Readers are treated to an array of engrossing tangents and compelling anecdotes that reveal an environment rife with lies, betrayals, and lawlessness . . . . Pearl provides a fitting tribute to the Walkers and their astonishing era, one that’s appropriately attuned to both its inspiring virtues and its appalling vices.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eWBUR\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"An incredibly suspenseful and entertaining read . . . . Matthew Pearl’s able hand is very much on display as he is one of our finest researchers, and his mastery of historical fiction drives this account through like a suspense novel.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBookreporter\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A rousing history. . . . Pearl paces the account like a thriller. . . .This real-life \u003cem\u003eSwiss Family Robinson\u003c\/em\u003e will keep readers up all night.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"\u003cem\u003eSave Our Souls\u003c\/em\u003e is a story, not a study. The distinction is vital. You get to know these people and their relationships with each other. You live and die with every near-rescue that isn’t. Most important, you keep turning the page.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBoston Globe\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Pearl . . . takes readers on a rollicking adventure through the 19th-century Pacific with a page-turning historical true-crime narrative reminiscent of the works of David Grann or Nathaniel Philbrick.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eWBUR.org\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"\u003cem\u003eSave Our Souls\u003c\/em\u003e is part history, part murder mystery, part sea-going adventure—entirely captivating.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eNew York Journal of Books\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"I’m a sucker for Big Boat Books like David Grann’s \u003cem\u003eThe Wager\u003c\/em\u003e and Erik Larson’s \u003cem\u003eDead Wake\u003c\/em\u003e, so Matthew Pearl’s new work of narrative nonfiction is right up my slipway. In the winter of 1887, an entire family of five, their dog, and two dozen crew members disappeared when their shark fishing boat was blown off course by a storm near Hawaii. What follows is a much darker version of \u003cem\u003eSwiss Family Robinson \u003c\/em\u003ewhen the shipwreck survivors encounter a stranded psychopath.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eAdam Morgan, Esquire\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Pearl unfolds this tale with suspense. . . . His telling is notable both for its uncanny parallels to the apocryphal Swiss Family Robinson story that predated it and because the real-life shipwreck of Captain Frederick Walker, his wife and their sons was more dire than Disney’s idyllic fantasy. Pearl renders clear connections to the fictional story while writing a real-life adventure full of deceit, villainy and murderous plotting. . . . As grounded in the 19th century as it is, Pearl’s take on the story of the castaways of the Wandering Minstrel also feels apt for our present moment—more\u003cem\u003e Lord of the Flies\u003c\/em\u003e than\u003cem\u003e Swiss Family Robinson\u003c\/em\u003e.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eLos Angeles Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A genuine \u003cem\u003eSwiss Family Robinson \u003c\/em\u003eadventure, but darker. . . . A realistic castaway account.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“This dramatic story of good and evil pits the power of teamwork and family against ruthless ambition and selfishness. An illuminating chronicle of perseverance and survival on a barren island, \u003cem\u003eSave Our Souls\u003c\/em\u003e brings history to life.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"A staggering account of a family castaway on a deserted island and confronted by a mysterious man who first appears to be their salvation, before a more difficult truth emerges. Pearl works in the vein of David Grann and consistently produces first-rate nonfiction.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eLiterary Hub, \"Most Anticipated Books of the Year\"\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“You are a castaway on a coral atoll, and you find a Man Friday—only he turns out to be a convicted murderer—oh, what a story! Matthew Pearl tells it, this dark tale of the 1887 wreck of the \u003cem\u003eWandering Minstrel \u003c\/em\u003ewith flair and aplomb: transfixingly brilliant.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eSimon Winchester, New York Times bestselling author of Knowing What We Know\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Harper","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44890754482405,"sku":"NP9780063338067","price":30.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780063338067.jpg?v=1730234016","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/es\/products\/save-our-souls-the-true-story-of-a-castaway-family-treachery-and-murder-isbn-9780063338067","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}