The Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook

Penn Jillette's experience as a theater performer (Penn & Teller, magicians) stands him in good stead as he gives an energetic and emphatic reading of a list of possible travel disasters with accompanying do's and don'ts. Though some (abduction by an alien) are intended to be comical, others (hostage situation, hotel fire) are all too possible. A wealth of information is related in a husky voice that commands attention. Stereo sound effects loudly divide each section. General advice on packing, getting a good seat on an airplane, or foiling thieves (put your laptop in a diaper bag, carry an inexpensive "mugging wallet") is included. The final section has several helpful phrases in five languages; you could pick out the most useful. Remembering just a few of these tips could save your life. You might want to pack the print version. J.B.G. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine

July 2, 2001
You've just leapt off a building and, noticing a Dumpster below, you thank your stars that you've spent several hours listening to this cassette, and you can now land in said Dumpster without breaking your back. Although it is rather unlikely that you will ever use any of the material presented in the book—how to perform a tracheotomy, or bring a plane in for an emergency landing—these things do happen every once in a while. To someone, somewhere—maybe. So it couldn't hurt to bone up on some skills, right? Though neither written nor read in a humorous manner, the book nevertheless amuses in a strange way; the decision to group numerous bizarre crises into two hours of tape, not to mention some of the particularly far-fetched scenarios ("How to Leap from a Motorcycle to a Car" or "How to Escape from Killer Bees") often exceed our expectations of absurdity. You can imagine needing to know CPR some day, but how many of us will have the opportunity to wrestle free from an alligator? As a man who has seemingly leapt into Dumpsters and jumped into moving vehicles (or had a stunt double perform these things), Reynolds seems a wise choice for a reader. Unfortunately, his presentation is flat and unenthusiastic, and it sounds like he's reading the material for the first time. Misplaced emphases render several passages difficult to understand. However, Reynolds's familiar voice, combined with the offbeat material, affords some camp appeal in the tradition of outdated high school safety films. Based on the Chronicle paperback.