By Amanda Ripley

Why did New Orleans struggle to evacuate during Katrina, yet Morgan Stanley successfully saved its World Trade Center employees? Why do some people freeze up when disaster strikes while others obtain clarity? Ripley, a longtime journalist on the "disaster beat," interviews scientists and military specialists, terrorists and hostages, seasoned survivors and victims' families. Making herself a guinea pig, she visits a firefighters' "burn tower," endures a simulated plane explosion, takes a crash course with a racecar driver, and has her brain examined by a trauma psychiatrist. Ripley stresses that few people respond intelligently in a crisis—and public safety officials often ignore the realities of human behavior—but knowing how you will actually react under intense stress may be your key to survival. Fortunately, with education and repetition, we can retrain our instincts so that we can act pragmatically. With engrossing reporting, fluid storytelling, and colorful characterizations, Ripley provides a potentially lifesaving handbook. —Suzanne Krause

By Maria Coffey

Mountaineers pushing themselves to face enormous dangers; white-water kayakers making split-second decisions that could mean life or death. Extreme athletes seek challenges most of us would consider suicidal, and Coffey provides insight into the minds of those athletes who try to touch God through their adventures. Coffey takes an in-depth look at human spirituality and those who experience moments of transcendence in times of acute stress. This is not a book packed with scientific research, but anyone willing to make a few leaps of faith and consider mystical ideas will find it an interesting read. —Jeffrey Portnoy

By Kathryn Harrison

In 1984, the Gilley family ceased to exist. Eighteen-year-old Billy murdered his parents and youngest sister, sparing only 16-year-old Jody. Novelist and memoirist Kathryn Harrison debriefs both siblings in an attempt to comprehend Billy's actions and Jody's resilience (she is now a thriving adult). The book serves as a palimpsest that also probes Harrison's relationship with her own twisted parents. These fraught inquiries produce a "bloody fairy tale" in which rationales and unconscious motives are weighed alongside forensic evidence, all in an attempt to understand how one can emerge from familial horror intact but transformed. —Kaja Perina

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