Alive: The Story of the Andes Survivors

The 1974 nonfiction book was written by British author Piers Paul Read. It is based on his extensive interviews with the survivors of the 1972 Andes flight disaster.

The book documents the horrific crash of Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 in the Andes mountains in October 1972. The plane was carrying a rugby team, the Old Christians Club, who were forced to survive 72 days in the freezing wilderness.

Yes, Read explicitly details how the survivors resorted to cannibalism to stay alive after their meager rations ran out. The book explains the agonizing moral decision the men faced and how they ultimately justified eating the frozen bodies of deceased passengers.

Yes, the book was adapted into a 1993 feature film directed by Frank Marshall. A more recent documentary featuring exclusive survivor interviews, titled Society of the Snow, was also released on Netflix in 2023.