Crazy for the Storm: A Memoir of Survival

wish I'd known

The story is interesting. The writing is fine. Unfortunately, I still wouldn't recommend this book to any of my friends or family. Call me a prude or whatever, but I would not have bought the book had I known about the sex and frequent use of the F word. I understand that the author was painting a picture of the lifestyle he grew up with, but I believe he could have accomplished that without the explicit crudeness. I read all 28 reviews before downloading the e-book to my nook. I now realize some reviews probably contained veiled references to the adult-themed content, but I'm new to this and didn't see through them (i.e., the person who said they stopped reading because they didn't care for "his writing style"). I wish books had content advisories like those for movies and music. This would be especially helpful for buying e-books, since you can't flip through the pages like you would when buying a hard copy at the bookstore. I suppose a lot of people don't consider sex and language a negative issue -- but for those who do, consider yourself advised.

2 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

Compelling story and well written. Two plots of the author's lif

Compelling story and well written. Two plots of the author's life - one is the relationship with his father and growing up in Malibu and the other is him as the sole survivor in a small plane crash. Each chapter goes back and forth and soon you understand how they are related, as the strength and lessons his father taught him helped Ollestad to survive. It is a quick read and positive affirmation. Enjoyed it.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Good Book

This was a very good book!!! It was so sad but also very funny at times. I enjoyed the chapters when they were in Mexico. I also thought it was neat to learn of how people acted in the 70's

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Wonderful story of survival and of a unique father-son relationship!

Incredible book. Fast read. I grew up in the 60-70's and really appreciate the work ethic, freedom, and toughness that people had back then. Today with all of the safety regulations, warning labels, and scary news stories, people are encouraged to be afraid of everything and our kids have become soft. They would never have survived through Norm Ollestad's experiences.

I would love for my sheltered, Nintendo-playing ten year old son to read this book, but some references are for adults only so he will have to wait until his teenage years to read this.

This would be an excellent Father's Day book.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

excellent memoir

When he was growing up as "The Boy Wonder", Norman Ollestad admired his FBI agent father for his daredevil lifestyle. The older Ollestad was an adrenaline junkie who threw his son into all sorts of wild escapades that often frightened the preteen, but he always dived head first into them anyway. Norman became a Southern California surfer in Malibu as well as a downhill skier. In February 1979 when he was eleven, Norman, his father, his father's girlfriend, and a Cessna pilot were flying a small plane when it crashed into the San Gabriel Mountains during a blizzard. Everyone inside except the tweener was dead. Norman, heeding his father's mantra "never to give up," began a survival test requiring endurance and fortitude that would have killed most adults, but he made it in spite of the freezing temperatures on the mountain.

Obviously the tragic plane crash and his ultimate survival are the obvious prime events, but CRAZY FOR THE STORM is much more as this memoir focuses on loving relationships especially that of a father and son and on personal courage. Readers will admire Norman Ollestad not because he survived as a tweener an ordeal when he was also grieving, but because of his belief that the brave try when they are afraid; trying when you have no trepidations does not require courage. Fans will enjoy this inspiring memoir that encourages readers to be all we can be by doing.

Harriet Klausner

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Good Read

Definitely a good read. He does jump around a little bit with dates and times. I could see how that might be hard for some too follow but it is a good book and i would recommend it.

Great book with some downs

Crazy for the Storm by Norman Ollestad is a great book on survival and a very fun experience of Norman's life as he was a young boy to his teenager life. This book shows what Norman's life had been what he did and how his father affected his life, this also explains the story of the crash that he has been through, what he did during the crash, and how he had survived. I liked this book because it was a daring book with a strong feeling to his father, he also shows his emotions towards his family. The book shows what he had been through, divorce, having a cool father, what he didn't like about his family. He explains who his mother gets in a relationship with and why it was a terrible choice; she picked a drunk that would get angry easily and does not take good responsibility. The thing I disliked about this book is that it was very bland and wasn't much of a survival story, more about his life, like an autobiography and the events that took place in his life. It only explained a little bit about his crash on the mountain. Another thing I disliked about this was that he showed a lot of negative emotions towards people, he had been abused, had his feelings hurt, and made some wrong choices. For me it was like reading about a bad experience in life. A major theme in this book is that Norman put this book so that each chapter would change from the crash back to his normal life. Each chapter had changed and you would get into what is happening, whether he was with his dad on a road trip to see his grandparents and surfing in between, then suddenly switching into the survival of the crash and what he did to get out. Something that he did was that towards the climax where he was going to be saved, the chapters were getting shorter and shorter causing the reader to read with more adrenaline and actually feeling the emotional status, the part that everything comes together and finally finishes. Towards the last parts of the book, what I didn't like was that Norman was like a mean kid, he was a bad teen that made bad choices. He always chose to be a bad person, didn't listen to his mom, gave everyone including his mom and Nick (his mom's boyfriend) a "whatever" look which shows that Norman had a really bad attitude towards his parents. This made me feel uneasy about who I was actually reading about. What I did like was that it showed what his father had done for him to become a person to hang out with all the most popular and rich kids in school during his teen years. A lot of people didn't like him and at the same time he was one of the most popular kids. At the point where he explains this is where he says that he had tan skin and looked lean that everyone would see him as a cool kid to hang out with. It showed the affect that happen because of his father, as if his father was making his future better for him. I also realized that not a lot of people like Norman in this book except his grandparents, his mom, and his dad. I didn't quite understand why nobody really liked him, Norman's father's girlfriend always gave him a mean look, Nick abused Norman many times, when they were at a village, many people gave him a dirty look. I think people should read this book for an adventure to see how the life of a troubled young boy felt and what his journey's were throughout his life and how things had affected him. It was nice to see his life but at the same time, it wasn't too necessary. Overall this book was okay, and it has it's ups and dow

This is a great book.

It never seems like anything bad will happen to you until it does. For the author of Crazy for the Storm the event he thought that would never happen had happened on February 19, 1979. It was the day after Norman Ollestad had just won his first ski championship and he had gone back home which was quite a distance away from the mountain were the ski championship had taken place, about ninety miles to be specific. He went back home because he had to play a hockey game. The award ceremony for the ski championship was a few hours after the hockey game and because Norman needed to be at the ceremony a few hours after the hockey game, Norman's father had planed to get a plane to go from the game to the ceremony The only problem was, was that there was a storm coming that day.
During the time of the story Norman Ollestad is an eleven year old boy who lives on Topanga beach in California. His mother and father are divorced and he doesn't like his stepfather. Norman's father was quite an adventurous man who never let fear get in the way of living life to the fullest; this might have had to do with the fact that he was a child actor and an F.B.I agent. Norman's mother is what you could call a stay home mother who took care of the family and took care of the house. The stepfather was a drunk, who would never say nice things to either Norman or Norman's Mother. Sandra, Norman's father's girlfriend was a crazy thirty year old woman; she always was getting into fights with Norman's father about pointless matters.
The most important part of the book was when Norman, his father, and Sandra were going to the ski award ceremony after Norman's hockey game by plane and they were caught in a storm which lead the pilot to crash into a mountain, leaving Norman and Norman's father's girlfriend Sandra, the only survivors from the immediate crash.
When Norman had woken up after the crash the only thing he could think of was the though of if his father was alright. Norman searched all over for his dad and when he found him all he saw was a man leaning over a chair lifeless. Norman Ollestad described his father in such great detail that it made you disgusted but sad at the same time. He put you in his shoes and made you feel as if his father was your loved one just leaning over the chair dead, and you could do nothing about it.
This would be a good book for anyone. If you don't like skiing, hockey, or planes. It doesn't matter, if you have a love one or even had just lost a loved one, it would make you fell better because in the end, Norman tells you that things happen for a reason and even though they maybe bad, they happened, and because of that you have to make the most of it. Take whatever you learn from the past and put it to affect in the present and in the future. Then nothing can stop you.

Hard to imagine

There is sometimes a fine line between unbelievable and unimaginable. The things this kid went through are unimaginable to most people but there's no not believing it. This is one fantastic true story.

Adapt To Survive

In "Crazy For The Storm", by Norman Ollestad, the author talks about himself as a young boy. From adventures on the beaches of California to the majestic mountains of that same state, he covers his childhood and how he survives a fatal plane crash. Throughout this piece of literature, Norman adapts to his new surroundings whether it be the nice warm and pleasant beach and tide, or the blistering cold mountains. When his mother and father get a divorce, he adapts to it and tries his best to just live as successful of a life as possible. Even when his mom finds a new guy, a total jerk he persistently adapts and lives with it. His realization of not only this situation but when he survives a plane crash teaches the reader to never give up and to adapt to your surroundings and push on no matter what the circumstances are. He craftily survives a plane crash in the Californian Mountains, and continuously talks about how if it wasn't for his father he would not be the same, great and "successful" man he is today. His father dies in the crash, which cuts Norman deep if you will, however he fights on to live another day. Never give up. Overall, this book was entertaining and a great read. The diction and word choice made it challenging enough but not too challenging by any means.

Walk in Norman Ollestad's Shoes and Experience Life and Death

Norman Ollestad takes the reader to places no one has ever been and will never experience in their lifetime. He makes it easy to picture yourself as his neighbor as you grow and mature with him through his childhood years. You yearn to hang out with him because he lived an unstructured life. As Norman narrates each chapter, the reader's imagination strikes up vivid images of the author's surroundings, feelings and fears. As one chapter ends, the next one keeps you on the edge of your chair always wondering what will happen next. Norman Ollestad's life will leave no doubt in your mind that a person's strength lies in your will to survive.

Crazy for the Storm by Norman Ollestad was an interesting book

There are things I liked about this book and parts I found way too technical. I'm not a skier or surfer and there were sections of description that were way too technical. Most likely someone who loves either of these sports would find these descriptions fascinating. I enjoyed the parts about Norman's dysfunctional family to be the most interesting, and his trip down the mountain after the plane crash was mind-boggling. This book would be a great discussion for book groups - especially if there are skiers or surfers in the group.

A Compelling Tale of Survival: A Mountain, and His Childhood

In February of 1979 a small plane crashes in the Southern California mountains. The only survivor is an 11 year-old boy. This is Ollestad's tale of growing up at Topanga Beach, surfing and skiing with his ex-FBI agent adrenaline-junkie father. His father constantly pushed him to the limits as a skier and surfer. Being raised in a broken home added to his difficulties, but the lessons he learned and the struggles he endured, ended up saving his life.

An excellent book. The chapters alternate between his childhood and the crash, forming a compelling tale, that is part thriller, with profound life lessons.

The Best Story Ever Written

When I started reading this book I had no clue what an incredible writer Norman is. Norman Ollestad takes you into the mind of an eleven year old boy and the beginging stages of puberty while taking you on this loving yet adventerous ride with his biological father who had an equally impressive past. You are taken between two different times the in young Ollestads life with his father until towards the end of the book when the two times mesh into a constant time line and you find out every thing you were waiting to findout about where the adventure had taken them. Its truely and incredible story about a boy forced by his father to be the best he could be and how he loved his father despite the resentment for the life style he was forced to live and how eventually it saved his life in the end. Truely heart wrenching. The only negative us that in some cases the jargin the author uses is not common knowledge and you just have to use your imagination to understand what he is talking about.

Pass on this one

Although the memoir had great potential, and beyond a doubt, it is thrilling and the idea of a young boy surviving a plane crash is compelling, I had a hard time with the idea of his father pushing him not just to the limits, but really, endangering his son. And the mother staying in an abusive relationship? And then the author turns around and is, for the most part, raising his son like he was? Rewrite the script, Norman. No lesson learned here. Not touching. More like, making me angry over the disregard for life.

could not put it down

fantastic ..very emotional..an amazing eleven year old..insight into a life that most of us will never live..thank you for a great read

It reads like fiction and is a terrific book. Fascination account of a boy's survival after a plane wreck and the reltionship between him and his father.

The lifestye that his father taught him enabled him to survive. But this same daring that his father showed put them i the plane in the first place.

Great to read!

This book comes across as a catharsis for the author. It appears that he is finally resolving a lot of underlying issues of his childhood. It is easy to read and reveals deep human emotions. This made great discussions in our club.

Crazy for the Storm

Norman Ollestad was eleven years old when He was in a place crash that killed his father, his father's girlfriend and the pilot, leaving him alone to climb (or slide) down the snow covered mountain to safety. In his memoir "Crazy for the Storm" Ollestad writes about his harrowing experience, and interjects it with tales of what his life was the year before and immediately following the crash. You come to learn about his relationship with his father and how that relationship helped him survive that mountain. I enjoyed to book, although I was not crazy about Ollestad's writing style.

Amazing story; good book

This book was chosen by someone in my book club and I'm so glad it was. I don't know if it's something I would have picked out myself. The survival story is awe-inspiring -- in fact, I was hoping to find pictures in the book of the actual trek Norman made as a boy. They're not there. Why? Because the book is not simply an account of a boy's journey down a treacherous mountain, but about his journey through life (or at least the first 11 years of it). At the outset, I didn't like the author's flip-flopping between the survival story and the father-son story leading up to that fateful day. However, I grew to appreciate the narrative approach and now think it was probably the best way to tell the story, given that most people are going to know the ending before reading the first sentence.

This is a good book and a great life story that will keep you thinking about your own relationships and resiliency.