A Test of Will: One Man's Extraordinary Story of Survival »

On the night of April 9, 1997, Warren Macdonald, a fit and experienced bushwalker, set out to climb Mount Bowen on Hinchinbrook Island, an unspoiled tropical paradise off the Australian coast. These would be his last steps as a fully intact human being: a freak rock fall pinned him for two days alone under a one-ton boulder, resulting in a double leg amputation. A Test of Will is a story both tragic and inspiring, conveying the horror of what happened and the extraordinary spirit that helped Macdonald survive a seemingly impossible ordeal.

Publishers Weekly

Macdonald's love of nature is so palpable it'll make readers want to head for the nearest national park. And even after losing both legs, the man still has no regrets. An Australian house painter, Macdonald set off in April 1997 to climb the isolated peak of Queensland's Mount Bowen. Along the way he met Geert van Keulen, who, although a much less experienced hiker, agreed to come along. One night when Macdonald crept out to relieve his bladder, the creek bed underneath gave way, and he found himself trapped under a massive boulder that, no matter how hard the panicked Geert pushed against it, would not budge. Geert left for help, leaving Macdonald in searing agony, worried the rushing water would rise and drown him. After a helicopter finally arrived and rescued him, Macdonald had both his gangrenous legs cut off above the knee, and his description of his harrowing rehabilitation is almost more painful than the depiction of what he went through under the boulder. Although this isn't the most artful of stories (Geert's additions add nothing), it's a powerful tale of nature's beauty and ferocity. (Aug.) FYI: Macdonald's account is similar to Aron Ralston's Between a Rock and a Hard Place, which Atria is publishing in September (a review will appear in Forecasts, Aug. 2). Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.