REVIEW: How to Drag a Body and Other Safety Tips You Hope to Never Need by Judith Matloff
Book Reviews / C+ Reviewsautobiography / journalist / non-fiction / survivalNo Comments
As we have seen with the recent COVID-19 pandemic, disaster preparedness is not a luxury.
Everyone from Louis Pasteur to the Girl Scouts has championed the motto “Be Prepared”—but what does that mean in today’s constantly changing world? In this age of anxiety, when reports of mass shootings, political unrest, the threat of nuclear war, devastating natural disasters, and digital attacks dominate the news and are transforming our lives, we yearn for some control. We want to make sensible decisions to help keep us on track when everything seems to be going off the rails. We want to be ready—to the best of our abilities—for the worst that can happen.
As a seasoned war correspondent with more than thirty years of experience working in crisis zones and a pioneering safety consultant, Judith Matloff knows about personal security and risk management. In How to Drag a Body and Other Safety Tips You Hope to Never Need, she shares her tried-and-true methods to help you confidently handle whatever challenges comes your way.
Learn how to:
Perform emergency first aid. Create a bunker. Keep yourself safe when traveling. Keep yourself safe from online hacks and dozens of other invaluable tips to stay safe in any circumstances
Blending humorous stories and anecdotes with serious advice, Matloff explains how to remain upright in stampedes, avoid bank fraud, prevent sexual assault, stay clean in a shelter, and even be emotionally prepared for loss. From cyber security, active shooter situations, and travel, to natural disasters and emotional resilience, she shares tips that will give even the most anxious person a sense of control over life’s unpredictable perils. Unfortunately, we can’t anticipate all the crises of our lives. But with How to Drag a Body and Other Safety Tips You Hope to Never Need, you’ll find the skills and confidence you need to weather an emergency.The book includes 38-42 black-and-white illustrations.
Review
This is not a prepper, living off the land and off the grid, aiming to survive a nuclear holocaust kind of book. I didn’t learn how to hunt game, can veggies, or set up tripwires around the old homestead. Instead, journalist Matloff mixes stories of her years covering news stories in some less salubrious areas of the world that convinced her that she needed to get serious about surviving drunk teenagers with assault rifles at international checkpoints and also drunk and also gun totting thugs musing about dragging her and her fellow female correspondent off into the bushes. Some of the things she covers and situations she attempts to prepare readers for will be triggering – very triggering.
The advice runs the gamut from detailed (dealing with tear gas at protests) to maddeningly vague (if you don’t know about some new bit of computer tech, maybe you know a teenager who would). Some is very practical – advice on what to pack in a to-go bag, the number of people you should attend a protest meeting with, how long certain foods should last if stored properly, and working on putting authority in your voice as you confront someone invading your personal space. Some is good advice but not as useful – internet security tips or asking your doctor to pre-prescribe a vast array of medicines to take on overseas trips.
Though the illustrations are not helpful, there is a wealth of resources listed at the end. It is the kind of stuff you hope you’ll never need – how to act in a live shooter situation, staunch bleeding, fend off a rapist – but just having read about possible situations and ways to survive them might increase your confidence and skill set enough to make it out alive. C+
~Jayne
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