I'd say a perfect read for teenagers.

Yes, this was a good read. But...
When I see how the author helped the natives in Bolivia, and the opioid addicts in Australia, i wondered that he didn't think of helping the Palestinians in his own country.

It was difficult for me to like the protagonist and his fellow boys who went on this jungle trip. They seemed like privileged white boys who just wanted to play around... "Go see an Indian village!"... But I got really pissed off when they had to be cruel to animals:
P.66-7:
"we asked if the moral of the story was that we should have a dog along as Jaguar bait.
'don't laugh,' Karl said. 'she can come along with us, eat a lot of the fresh game that we'll soon be hunting. She'll get stronger and turn into a beautiful, lively dog.' as if anxious to demonstrate his point, he began tossing bones to 'flaca,' angrily driving off any of the other dogs that tried to snatch one of the bones away, and the dog did perk up a bit.
it wasn't difficult to talk the Rancher into selling her. karl fastened a rope around her neck. 'no, no, sweetheart, you aren't going to go running back home,' he said to her. 'I'll keep her on a leash for a few days until she gets used to me, and then she'll follow along on her own.'
Kevin snapped a few profiles of the newest member of our party, and we set out again.
The damned dog slowed us down terribly. she refused to keep Pace with us, and every once in awhile she'd lie down and wouldn't budge. Karl tried everything. First he sweet-talked her, promising better things to come. Then he cursed her, threatened her, kicked her, and beat her with a flimsy branch.
we had a good steep climb ahead, and the dog was determined not to move an inch. Karl dragged her cruelly over every root, dry branch, or rock in her path until Kevin took pity on the poor animal. He untied her, picked her up, and draped her across his shoulders, two legs hanging down on each side of his neck, like a lamb...."
P.84-5:
"At noon Karl noticed a gathering of dark clouds on the horizon. before long a heavy rain was pouring down on us. Determined, WE marched on, drenched to the Bone.
Flaca, who was being dragged by the rope around her neck, rebelled. Her legs went out from under her, and she laid down. Karl's shouting and kicking did no good. he dragged her a long way over the muddy ground. She didn't let out a whimper. finally he got really mad, took the rope from around her neck, and shouted, 'you don't want to come? Fine, have it your way. Just stay here!'
we went on, looking back sadly at the poor dog, sure we would never see her again. what a bum deal she had gotten, I thought to myself. we had bought her from her poor owners, thinking she'd be better off with us, but had brought her nothing but hardship. Now we were abandoning her to her fate. Alone in the jungle she would die of cold and hunger. I looked back again. Flaca was stretched out in the mud, watching us apathetically, as if resigned to the end that would soon be hers."
( )

This is an interesting read because it's a vivid description of how to avoid going into the jungle with a bully. ( Yossi) ( )

I was occasionally on the edge of my seat taking this, particularly when I had settled into the book. It seemed to improve once he was on his own. Interesting to read this gave a really good feel for the jungle in Bolivia, the dangers there and the awesome nature of it. How Yossi coped with being alone in this is interesting and of course will make readers wonder how they would cope. ( )

A riveting tale of adventure, hope, and ultimately defying death in the Peruvian Amazon. This is the true story of Yossi Ghinsberg as he sets out on an Amazon exploration adventure with 3 others and ends up on his own trying to survive for the next 3 weeks. I kept putting myself in his situation and quite frankly it scared the crap out of me. I have no desire to see the movie as I don't think it could come close to what I was imagining him going through while reading this. A nice piece of work...recommended for all. ( )