Ruthless River

A honeymoon trip backpacking around the world turned into a nightmare for a young couple in 1973. Holly and Fitz were in it for the adventure of a lifetime but, instead, barely survived 26 days of being stranded on a raft in an offshoot of a Bolivian river, after taking a wrong turn. This segment of their odyssey began with an attempt to leave a remote town by plane for another destination. Instead, the plane crashed. The events following are not to be believed and their survival is a miracle. It's a great story of young love, faith, perseverance, the kindness of strangers and sheer luck. I did find the book a bit tedious as Holly described in minutiae their daily activities on the raft. A bit like Groundhog Day but much more interesting. Their happenstance rescue by natives in a boat is nothing short of a miracle. After they recovered and returned home, six months later they were off in continuation of their trip of a lifetime. Every March 16, the day they were rescued, they honor it with a recreation of the first meal they were served after their rescue.