31 Books like Papillon

Marching Powder

by Rusty Young • 2003

A prison where inmates buy cells and a British smuggler leads tours for backpackers.

4.31

31k+

⛓️ Prison Memoir 🧳 Drug Smuggling 💰 Prison Economy 🏛️ Systemic Corruption 🎒 Backpacker Encounters

Marching Powder 92%

A prison where inmates buy cells and a British smuggler leads tours for backpackers.

by Rusty Young 2003

4.31

31k+ ratings

⛓️ Prison Memoir 🧳 Drug Smuggling 💰 Prison Economy 🏛️ Systemic Corruption 🎒 Backpacker Encounters

Education of a Felon

by Edward Bunker • 1999

A career criminal's brutal education behind bars, and how literature gave him a way out.

4.14

2k+

⛓️ Prison Memoir 💰 Career Criminal 🔪 Prison Survival 🔄 Recidivism 🧒 Juvenile Injustice

Education of a Felon 92%

A career criminal's brutal education behind bars, and how literature gave him a way out.

by Edward Bunker 1999

4.14

2k+ ratings

⛓️ Prison Memoir 💰 Career Criminal 🔪 Prison Survival 🔄 Recidivism 🧒 Juvenile Injustice

The Long Walk

by Slavomir Rawicz • 1956

Seven prisoners escape a Soviet gulag. Four thousand miles later, four reach India.

4.24

22k+

🏚️ Soviet Gulags 🔓 Prison Escapes 🏕️ Survival Narratives 🥶 Cold War History 🥾 Trekking Memoirs

The Long Walk 91%

Seven prisoners escape a Soviet gulag. Four thousand miles later, four reach India.

by Slavomir Rawicz 1956

4.24

22k+ ratings

🏚️ Soviet Gulags 🔓 Prison Escapes 🏕️ Survival Narratives 🥶 Cold War History 🥾 Trekking Memoirs

L'instinct de mort

by Jacques Mesrine • 1984

From mourning a dead songbird to mastering the prison break: the gangster France could never hold.

4.31

422

🔓 Prison Escapes 📝 Criminal Memoir 🗼 French Underworld 💼 Organized Crime ⚔️ Algerian War

L'instinct de mort 91%

From mourning a dead songbird to mastering the prison break: the gangster France could never hold.

by Jacques Mesrine 1984

4.31

422 ratings

🔓 Prison Escapes 📝 Criminal Memoir 🗼 French Underworld 💼 Organized Crime ⚔️ Algerian War

Castaway

by Lucy Irvine • 1983

A visa marriage, a deserted island, a year alone. The real survival test? Each other.

3.76

871

🏝️ Castaway Narratives 🧠 Isolation Psychology 🆘 Survival Psychology 🤝 Survival Partnerships 🎒 Women Travelers

Castaway 91%

A visa marriage, a deserted island, a year alone. The real survival test? Each other.

by Lucy Irvine 1983

3.76

871 ratings

🏝️ Castaway Narratives 🧠 Isolation Psychology 🆘 Survival Psychology 🤝 Survival Partnerships 🎒 Women Travelers

Catch Me If You Can

by Frank W. Abagnale • 1980

Fake Pan Am pilot, fake doctor, fake lawyer. Real FBI manhunt. He was 19.

4.04

63k+

🎭 Con Artists 🪪 Impersonation 🖋️ Forgery 🗣️ Social Engineering ⛓️ Prison Survival

Catch Me If You Can 90%

Fake Pan Am pilot, fake doctor, fake lawyer. Real FBI manhunt. He was 19.

by Frank W. Abagnale 1980

4.04

63k+ ratings

🎭 Con Artists 🪪 Impersonation 🖋️ Forgery 🗣️ Social Engineering ⛓️ Prison Survival

The Parrot's Perch

by Karen Keilt • 2019

Forty-five days in a Brazilian torture cell. Freedom was only the beginning of the fight.

4.23

334

🏛️ Political Imprisonment 🦋 Survivor Memoirs 🩹 Trauma Recovery 🧊 Addiction Recovery 💔 Childhood Abuse

The Parrot's Perch 90%

Forty-five days in a Brazilian torture cell. Freedom was only the beginning of the fight.

by Karen Keilt 2019

4.23

334 ratings

🏛️ Political Imprisonment 🦋 Survivor Memoirs 🩹 Trauma Recovery 🧊 Addiction Recovery 💔 Childhood Abuse

Prisoner

by Jason Rezaian • 2019

544 days inside Iran's most feared prison. The crime: journalism. The lifeline: his wife.

3.88

2k+

✋ Political Imprisonment 📰 International Journalism 🧱 Solitary Confinement 🌉 Cross-Cultural Identity 🤝 Hostage Diplomacy

Prisoner 90%

544 days inside Iran's most feared prison. The crime: journalism. The lifeline: his wife.

by Jason Rezaian 2019

3.88

2k+ ratings

✋ Political Imprisonment 📰 International Journalism 🧱 Solitary Confinement 🌉 Cross-Cultural Identity 🤝 Hostage Diplomacy

Writing My Wrongs

by Shaka Senghor • 2013

He shot a man and went to prison. In solitary, he found a pen, and everything changed.

4.25

5k+

🏛️ Mass Incarceration 🔗 Prison Memoir 🕊️ Redemption Narratives 🧸 Childhood Trauma 📓 Journaling For Healing

Writing My Wrongs 90%

He shot a man and went to prison. In solitary, he found a pen, and everything changed.

by Shaka Senghor 2013

4.25

5k+ ratings

🏛️ Mass Incarceration 🔗 Prison Memoir 🕊️ Redemption Narratives 🧸 Childhood Trauma 📓 Journaling For Healing

Song of the Nightingale

by Helen Berhane • 2009

Her captors beat her until the stick broke. She still refused to recant.

4.35

173

✝️ Christian Persecution 🔥 Faith Under Fire 🇪🇷 Eritrean History 🚪 Prison Memoirs 😢 Suffering And Faith

Song of the Nightingale 90%

Her captors beat her until the stick broke. She still refused to recant.

by Helen Berhane 2009

4.35

173 ratings

✝️ Christian Persecution 🔥 Faith Under Fire 🇪🇷 Eritrean History 🚪 Prison Memoirs 😢 Suffering And Faith

The Sun Does Shine

by Anthony Ray Hinton • 2018

Arrested on a misidentification, sentenced to die, then he told the prosecutor he loved him.

4.65

83k+

⛓️ Wrongful Conviction 💀 Death Row Memoirs ⚖️ Systemic Racism 💙 Radical Forgiveness 🙏 Faith Under Duress

The Sun Does Shine 90%

Arrested on a misidentification, sentenced to die, then he told the prosecutor he loved him.

by Anthony Ray Hinton 2018

4.65

83k+ ratings

⛓️ Wrongful Conviction 💀 Death Row Memoirs ⚖️ Systemic Racism 💙 Radical Forgiveness 🙏 Faith Under Duress

Orange Is the New Black

by Piper Kerman • 2010

A decade-old drug crime. A year in federal prison. The hidden world of women doing time.

3.72

207k+

🏛️ Mass Incarceration 🔒 Prison Memoir ⚖️ Criminal Justice Reform 👩‍🦰 Women In Prison 💊 Drug War

Orange Is the New Black 89%

A decade-old drug crime. A year in federal prison. The hidden world of women doing time.

by Piper Kerman 2010

3.72

207k+ ratings

🏛️ Mass Incarceration 🔒 Prison Memoir ⚖️ Criminal Justice Reform 👩‍🦰 Women In Prison 💊 Drug War

A Marriage at Sea

by Sophie Elmhirst • 2024

When a whale sinks your boat, survival depends on who's in the raft with you.

3.81

62k+

🛟 Survival At Sea 💍 Marriage Memoir ⛵ Sailing Adventure 🕯️ Grief And Loss 📖 Literary Nonfiction

A Marriage at Sea 89%

When a whale sinks your boat, survival depends on who's in the raft with you.

by Sophie Elmhirst 2024

3.81

62k+ ratings

🛟 Survival At Sea 💍 Marriage Memoir ⛵ Sailing Adventure 🕯️ Grief And Loss 📖 Literary Nonfiction

Over the Edge

by Greg Child • 2002

Four climbers pushed their captor off a cliff to escape. Then they learned he survived.

3.78

643

🏔️ Mountain Survival 🔗 Hostage Captivity 🕌 Islamic Militancy 🇰🇬 Central Asia 🧗‍♂️ Climbing Disasters

Over the Edge 89%

Four climbers pushed their captor off a cliff to escape. Then they learned he survived.

by Greg Child 2002

3.78

643 ratings

🏔️ Mountain Survival 🔗 Hostage Captivity 🕌 Islamic Militancy 🇰🇬 Central Asia 🧗‍♂️ Climbing Disasters

Miracle in the Andes

by Nando Parrado • 2006

Sixty days trapped in the Andes. One promise. A ten-day trek without gear to find help.

4.37

27k+

📖 Survival Memoir 🏔️ Andes Plane Crash ⛏️ Extreme Survival 💪 Human Endurance ⛰️ Mountaineering Disasters

Miracle in the Andes 89%

Sixty days trapped in the Andes. One promise. A ten-day trek without gear to find help.

by Nando Parrado 2006

4.37

27k+ ratings

📖 Survival Memoir 🏔️ Andes Plane Crash ⛏️ Extreme Survival 💪 Human Endurance ⛰️ Mountaineering Disasters

Legionnaire

by Simon Murray • 1978

Bored, privileged, and nineteen, he joined the Foreign Legion to see what he was made of.

4.37

1k+

🎖️ French Foreign Legion 🪖 Military Memoirs 🇩🇿 Algerian War 🏛️ Colonial Wars 💪 Extreme Endurance

Legionnaire 89%

Bored, privileged, and nineteen, he joined the Foreign Legion to see what he was made of.

by Simon Murray 1978

4.37

1k+ ratings

🎖️ French Foreign Legion 🪖 Military Memoirs 🇩🇿 Algerian War 🏛️ Colonial Wars 💪 Extreme Endurance

Endurance

by Alfred Lansing • 1959

Ice crushed their ship. For 497 days, 28 men drifted. Escape meant 800 miles in a lifeboat.

4.46

169k+

🧊 Polar Exploration 🛟 Survival Narratives ⚓ Expedition Leadership 🏔️ Heroic Age Exploration 🌊 Marine Survival

Endurance 89%

Ice crushed their ship. For 497 days, 28 men drifted. Escape meant 800 miles in a lifeboat.

by Alfred Lansing 1959

4.46

169k+ ratings

🧊 Polar Exploration 🛟 Survival Narratives ⚓ Expedition Leadership 🏔️ Heroic Age Exploration 🌊 Marine Survival

A House in the Sky

by Amanda Lindhout • 2013

460 days in a dark room: how one woman built an escape inside her own mind.

4.28

73k+

🏚️ Captivity Memoirs 🩹 Trauma Recovery 🕊️ Trauma And Forgiveness 📰 Conflict Journalism 🌍 Women Adventurers

A House in the Sky 89%

460 days in a dark room: how one woman built an escape inside her own mind.

by Amanda Lindhout 2013

4.28

73k+ ratings

🏚️ Captivity Memoirs 🩹 Trauma Recovery 🕊️ Trauma And Forgiveness 📰 Conflict Journalism 🌍 Women Adventurers

Escape from Saddam

by Lewis Alsamari • 2007

He escaped the army, the wolves, and Saddam's Iraq. Then his family was arrested for it.

4.05

270

🏴 Life Under Dictatorship 🧳 Refugee Memoirs 🛂 Illegal Immigration 🏜️ Survival Narratives 🌍 Cultural Displacement

Escape from Saddam 89%

He escaped the army, the wolves, and Saddam's Iraq. Then his family was arrested for it.

by Lewis Alsamari 2007

4.05

270 ratings

🏴 Life Under Dictatorship 🧳 Refugee Memoirs 🛂 Illegal Immigration 🏜️ Survival Narratives 🌍 Cultural Displacement

The Desert and the Sea

by Michael Scott Moore • 2018

For 977 days, he was a bargaining chip: a journalist’s survival inside the Somali pirate economy.

3.98

3k+

🏴‍☠️ Somali Piracy ⛓️ Long-Term Captivity 💰 Pirate Economy 🧠 Psychological Survival 🧊 Dehumanization

The Desert and the Sea 89%

For 977 days, he was a bargaining chip: a journalist’s survival inside the Somali pirate economy.

by Michael Scott Moore 2018

3.98

3k+ ratings

🏴‍☠️ Somali Piracy ⛓️ Long-Term Captivity 💰 Pirate Economy 🧠 Psychological Survival 🧊 Dehumanization

Bête noire

by Éric Dupond-Moretti • 2012

In French courts, judges shield their own, experts peddle junk, and acquittals mean war.

3.80

186

🏛️ Criminal Justice ⚖️ Wrongful Conviction 🛡️ Criminal Defense 📖 Legal Memoir 🚔 Police Misconduct

Bête noire 89%

In French courts, judges shield their own, experts peddle junk, and acquittals mean war.

by Éric Dupond-Moretti 2012

3.80

186 ratings

🏛️ Criminal Justice ⚖️ Wrongful Conviction 🛡️ Criminal Defense 📖 Legal Memoir 🚔 Police Misconduct

Long Walk to Freedom

by Nelson Mandela • 1994

His 27-year imprisonment is legend. The decades of organizing that led there tell the real story.

4.36

95k+

✊ Anti-Apartheid Struggle 🇿🇦 South African History 📖 Political Memoirs 🚶 Civil Disobedience 🌄 Political Awakening

Long Walk to Freedom 89%

His 27-year imprisonment is legend. The decades of organizing that led there tell the real story.

by Nelson Mandela 1994

4.36

95k+ ratings

✊ Anti-Apartheid Struggle 🇿🇦 South African History 📖 Political Memoirs 🚶 Civil Disobedience 🌄 Political Awakening

The Wager

by David Grann • 2023

A warship wrecks. Two survivor stories collide. The empire buries the truth to protect its myth.

4.17

219k+

🚢 Maritime History 🏝️ Shipwreck Survival ⚓ Mutiny Narratives 🧠 Survival Psychology 🏛️ Institutional Collapse

The Wager 89%

A warship wrecks. Two survivor stories collide. The empire buries the truth to protect its myth.

by David Grann 2023

4.17

219k+ ratings

🚢 Maritime History 🏝️ Shipwreck Survival ⚓ Mutiny Narratives 🧠 Survival Psychology 🏛️ Institutional Collapse

Manifest Injustice

by Barry Siegel • 2013

The clemency board voted unanimously to free him. Then the governor, facing reelection, said no.

4.10

178

🚨 Wrongful Conviction 🕊️ Innocence Movement 🔬 Flawed Forensics 🏛️ Politics And Justice 🗝️ Prison Survival

Manifest Injustice 89%

The clemency board voted unanimously to free him. Then the governor, facing reelection, said no.

by Barry Siegel 2013

4.10

178 ratings

🚨 Wrongful Conviction 🕊️ Innocence Movement 🔬 Flawed Forensics 🏛️ Politics And Justice 🗝️ Prison Survival

Mawson's Will

by Lennard Bickel • 1977

He ate the dogs to live. The livers were poison, and he was still alone.

4.26

2k+

🧊 Polar Exploration 🇦🇶 Antarctic Expeditions 🏕️ Survival Narratives 🗺️ Heroic Age Of Exploration ⛰️ Expedition Disasters

Mawson's Will 89%

He ate the dogs to live. The livers were poison, and he was still alone.

by Lennard Bickel 1977

4.26

2k+ ratings

🧊 Polar Exploration 🇦🇶 Antarctic Expeditions 🏕️ Survival Narratives 🗺️ Heroic Age Of Exploration ⛰️ Expedition Disasters

The River of Doubt

by Candice Millard • 2005

An unmapped Amazon tributary, a former president, and the expedition that nearly killed him.

4.21

79k+

🌿 Amazon Exploration 💀 Expedition Histories 🆘 Survival Narratives 🏛️ Presidential Biographies ✊ Indigenous Rights

The River of Doubt 89%

An unmapped Amazon tributary, a former president, and the expedition that nearly killed him.

by Candice Millard 2005

4.21

79k+ ratings

🌿 Amazon Exploration 💀 Expedition Histories 🆘 Survival Narratives 🏛️ Presidential Biographies ✊ Indigenous Rights

My Invented Country

by Isabel Allende • 2003

When a coup forced her from Chile, nostalgia became a country she could carry on the page.

3.89

13k+

🏞️ Travel Memoir 🛅 Exile Memoir 🇨🇱 Chilean Culture ⏳ Memory And Nostalgia 🗺️ National Identity

My Invented Country 89%

When a coup forced her from Chile, nostalgia became a country she could carry on the page.

by Isabel Allende 2003

3.89

13k+ ratings

🏞️ Travel Memoir 🛅 Exile Memoir 🇨🇱 Chilean Culture ⏳ Memory And Nostalgia 🗺️ National Identity

Facing the Lion - Memoirs of a Young Girl in Nazi Europe

by Simone Arnold Liebster • 2000

Refused the Nazi salute at twelve. Reform school. Parents to camps. Then she chose to forgive.

4.72

2k+

📖 Holocaust Memoirs 🚩 Nazi Occupation 🙏 Religious Persecution 🦁 Moral Courage 🕊️ Post-War Forgiveness

Facing the Lion - Memoirs of a Young Girl in Nazi Europe Summary

Facing the Lion - Memoirs of a Young Girl in Nazi Europe 89%

Refused the Nazi salute at twelve. Reform school. Parents to camps. Then she chose to forgive.

by Simone Arnold Liebster 2000

4.72

2k+ ratings

📖 Holocaust Memoirs 🚩 Nazi Occupation 🙏 Religious Persecution 🦁 Moral Courage 🕊️ Post-War Forgiveness

Little Princes

by Conor Grennan • 2011

To impress a girl, he volunteered at a Nepali orphanage. The children were not orphans.

4.26

24k+

🪢 Child Trafficking 🌍 Humanitarian Work 🎒 Volunteering Abroad 🫂 Family Reunification ⛰️ Mountain Expeditions

Little Princes 89%

To impress a girl, he volunteered at a Nepali orphanage. The children were not orphans.

by Conor Grennan 2011

4.26

24k+ ratings

🪢 Child Trafficking 🌍 Humanitarian Work 🎒 Volunteering Abroad 🫂 Family Reunification ⛰️ Mountain Expeditions

Mars and Venus Starting Over

by John Gray • 2002

He crossed Antarctica solo to finish what Shackleton started. After 800 miles, his organs gave out.

3.85

968

🧊 Polar Exploration 🫡 Crisis Leadership 💪 Extreme Endurance 🧠 Mental Resilience 📜 Historical Obsession

Mars and Venus Starting Over 89%

He crossed Antarctica solo to finish what Shackleton started. After 800 miles, his organs gave out.

by John Gray 2002

3.85

968 ratings

🧊 Polar Exploration 🫡 Crisis Leadership 💪 Extreme Endurance 🧠 Mental Resilience 📜 Historical Obsession

Solitude

by Terry Waite • 2017

Solitude can crush or transform. A former hostage maps its extremes, from Beirut to the deathbed.

3.78

108

🧘 Solitude And Isolation 🕯️ Memoir And Reflection ⛓️ Captivity Narratives 🕵️ Espionage Psychology 🙏 Contemplative Life

Solitude 89%

Solitude can crush or transform. A former hostage maps its extremes, from Beirut to the deathbed.

by Terry Waite 2017

3.78

108 ratings

🧘 Solitude And Isolation 🕯️ Memoir And Reflection ⛓️ Captivity Narratives 🕵️ Espionage Psychology 🙏 Contemplative Life

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