I'll add this only because I've typed a list for it already. I thought In the Heart of the Sea by Nathaniel Philbrick was pretty intense, and I couldn't put it down. In the Heart of the Sea is the tragic true story of the Whaleship Essex that was struck by a sperm whale in the middle of the pacific ocean.
While the following have mostly to do with tragic tales at sea, a few of them relate in that they are survival stories (ie. surviving the desert and earthquakes). Actually it would be interesting to read Skeletons on the Sahara after reading In the Heart of the Sea.
Other titles:
Moby Dick by Herman Melville (obviously) Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Samuel Taylor Coleridge The Endurance by Caroline Alexander In the Wake of Madness by Joan Druett The Perfect Storm by Sebastian Junger Skeletons on the Sahara: A True Story of Survival by Dean King The Loss of the Ship Essex, Sunk by a Whale from the diaries of Thomas Nickerson, Owen Chase, and Others. Isaac's Storm by Eric Larson Caliban's Shore by Stephen Taylor Fatal Forcast by Mike Tougias A Crack in the Edge of the World by Simon Winchester
While the following have mostly to do with tragic tales at sea, a few of them relate in that they are survival stories (ie. surviving the desert and earthquakes). Actually it would be interesting to read Skeletons on the Sahara after reading In the Heart of the Sea.
Other titles:
Moby Dick by Herman Melville (obviously)
Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Samuel Taylor Coleridge
The Endurance by Caroline Alexander
In the Wake of Madness by Joan Druett
The Perfect Storm by Sebastian Junger
Skeletons on the Sahara: A True Story of Survival by Dean King
The Loss of the Ship Essex, Sunk by a Whale from the diaries of Thomas Nickerson, Owen Chase, and Others.
Isaac's Storm by Eric Larson
Caliban's Shore by Stephen Taylor
Fatal Forcast by Mike Tougias
A Crack in the Edge of the World by Simon Winchester