Society of the Snow cover art

Society of the Snow

The Definitive Account of the World’s Greatest Survival Story

 Preview
Try Premium Plus free
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Society of the Snow

By: Pablo Vierci, Jennie Erikson - translator
Narrated by: Elliot Fitzpatrick
Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
Cancel

About this listen

 NOW A MAJOR NETFLIX FILM

It was 13 October 1972. Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571, carrying a team of young rugby players, their families and friends, took off for the very last time. A deadly miscalculation saw F571 crash directly into the Andean mountains to devastating consequences: the body of the plane broke violently into two, its floor torn to smithereens; seats flew out of the air taking passengers with them. In the weeks that followed, the remaining people who were on board - the society of the snow - emerged to fight a dire, gruelling battle for survival.

Waiting for a rescue team that didn't arrive, the survivors became fewer and fewer in numbers. Stranded alone on a glacier, they had to face brutal temperatures, lethal avalanches and the loss of friends and family with no access to supplies, food or water. In order to survive, they had to do the unthinkable . . . It wasn't until seventy-two days later that they were able to reach safety.

Alarmingly gritty, moving and powerfully told, journalist Pablo Vierci recounts the unsettling stories of the sixteen survivors in intimate detail. Drawing on exclusive interviews, Society of the Snow delves into the tragedy of the crash and how it radically redefined the rest of the survivors' lives. Ultimately, however, the book is a touching testament to the strength of faith, friendship, and the resilience of the human spirit.©2023 Pablo Vierci and Jennie Erikson (P)2023 Hachette Audio UK Adventurers, Explorers & Survival Engineering Survival Aviation

Listeners also enjoyed...

 Alive cover art
Out of the Silence cover art
True Crime Case Histories: Massive 15-Book Collection cover art
When I Fell from the Sky cover art
Unmasking Lucy Letby cover art
Into the Wild cover art
Touching the Void cover art
The Great Mortality cover art
Alone cover art
Manhunt cover art
Five Families cover art
Twelve from Hell cover art
Inside Wakefield Prison cover art
Until I Kill You cover art
Wicked Beyond Belief cover art
The Six Wives of Henry VIII cover art

Critic reviews

[Society of the Snow] is an epic and deeply moving film (Guillermo del Toro)
All stars
Most relevant  
What stood out for me was just how different each of the survivors felt about what they had been through and how it subsequently affected their lives. Their willingness to share candidly has given me such an insight into how different we all are and to appreciate that tragedy affects everyone differently. I hugely appreciate gaining this perspective

Utterly compelling

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Can't recommend this enough to anyone interested in more than the headlines concerning the Andes crash, outstandingly researched and presented.

outstanding work

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
This is an incredibly powerful story with so many unbelievable details that it seems unreal yet it happened. Fascinating .

The horror

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I think this has to be the most harrowingly detailed account of the survivors and of the people who died in the plane crash of the rugby team and some of their family members in the Andes in 1972 which was the basis of the movie Alive 30 yrs ago!
This is the story of the people who lived and tragically some who died on the top of a mountain in the Andes by the people who survived who have now told of their 72 days of sheer hell on the ice and snowy mountain top they crashed into inc an avalanche which occurred 11 days into their ordeal some survived after 3 days and nights trapped under the snow to be rescued by their friends and to continue what is a story of bravery courage and the sheer will to get home and the choices that had to be made to stay alive till rescue came thanks to the bravest 2 young men who walked in conditions most of us could never imagine even in nightmares! Listening I was horrified saddened and aghast at the suffering of the dying and those who would survive physically mentally beyond exhaustion! It is amazing that some human beings possess such strength to stay alive the part of this story most focus on is the decision to eat the dead to stay alive for me they had no choice would any of us succumb to this whilst freezing terrified never being able to sleep deeply but dozing only exhausted and losing half your body weight and trying to breath air so thin some could barely stand up and 11 days in learning through their cobbled together radio the search had been called off? Stay alive long enough to create a plan to get out meant they had to eat what was there thank goodness most of us will never know such hell! This story reminded me of the Donner party who got trapped in the Sierra mountains in the 1800’s which I recommend the book The Indifferent Stars Above who resorted to cannibalism to survive and also to murdering some to eat! Would these lads have resorted to this if the bodies ran out? They have no answers as rescue came before that unimaginable choice but the thought had come to many because as they were to find out again and again there is always worse on to come!
This group bonded so deeply through their suffering and they became friends for eternity for those who survived and for those who sadly died they shared a deep love for each other and as a group did all they could to help each other survive only 16 of 45 did 😢 It is a true story of the sheer will to survive I found heartbreaking and overwhelmingly uplifting for these young men got through a hell made of ice survived and made their life’s good after though their suffering did not end at rescue! I’d highly recommend this book the only slight negative is the narrator for me has a very matter of fact voice no difference in character voices and just lacked a strength in tone to go with the weight and gravity of the story! It is not easy to listen too but as it comes from those who lived it for the first time this is the true account from 16 of the bravest souls I’ve ever read about of this tragic and deeply sad event! The movie is coming to Netflix on Jan 04 2024!

Society of the Snow

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
For anyone who has ever been intrigued by this true story, you will enjoy this listen.

A sad but intriguing listen.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Downloaded this after watching the new Netflix movie of the same name. This book is a must go-to as the next step for anyone who became fascinated by this story. I binged through this audiobook somewhat embarrassingly quickly. An account from all 16 survivors and so much more. And at points incredibly and unexpectedly emotional.

A story that draws you in the more you listen

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.