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Miscalculated Risks

Miscalculated Risks

Attacked, Crippled, Paralyzed, Drowning, Unconscious and Freezing in The Wild (Just Not All at Once)
by Michael Cooper
Non-Fiction - Adventure
302 Pages
Reviewed on 03/25/2026
Buy on Amazon

Author Biography

A wilderness adventurer, mountaineer and backcountry navigator, Michael Cooper has explored over 8,000 miles of wild country—including places where nobody in recorded history had gone before. His memoir chronicling his many near-fatal expeditions—Miscalculated Risks: Attacked, Crippled, Paralyzed, Drowning, Unconscious and Freezing in The Wild (Just Not All at Once)— is the 2026 Readers' Favorite Gold Medal Winner in the Non-Fiction - Adventure genre, Winner of the American Writing Awards for Best New (Debut) Nonfiction, and Winner of the Literary Global Book Awards for Narrative Nonfiction. Miscalculated Risks was also selected as a Finalist for the Foreword INDIES' Adventure, Sports & Recreation Book of the Year and nominated for the Eric Hoffer Awards' Montaigne Medal recognizing the year's "most thought-provoking books”—distinctions prompting National Today to recognize Cooper as "a leading voice in adventure literature." Miscalculated Risks has been the #1 bestseller of print books in the Sports & Recreation/Extreme Sports category since the book was launched in October, 2025 [IngramSpark Global Distribution Network].

Cooper is also widely known as a recording engineer and producer, working on projects with Academy Award-winning actor William Hurt, ABC World News anchor Barry Serafin, and Grammy-winning singer/songwriter Ashley Cleveland. A noted authority on music production and sound for film, Michael Cooper’s journalism has appeared over 500 times in eight national and international magazines. He has served as Contributing Editor for the recording industry’s preeminent magazine, Mix, since 1996. Michael Cooper lives with his wife in Central Oregon.

    Book Review

Reviewed by Kristen A. Peters for Readers' Favorite

Michael Cooper’s memoir Miscalculated Risks is a collection of survival stories pulled from forty years of trekking through the North American wilderness. This isn't some slow-burning narrative; it’s a series of high-stakes moments when things went completely wrong during backpacking, climbing, and rafting trips. Cooper walks the reader through several terrifying scenarios, including a black bear encounter, a freak accident that left him paralyzed, and a near-drowning in freezing water. Each chapter focuses on a specific mistake or "miscalculation," detailing the gear involved, the harsh environment, and the sheer physical effort it took to stay alive and get back to civilization. It is a very blunt look at the reality of being alone and injured in the middle of nowhere.

The honesty in Miscalculated Risks is what makes the memoir work so well. Michael Cooper doesn't try to sound like a legendary explorer; he sounds like a guy who is genuinely lucky to be breathing and wants to show you exactly where he tripped up. There is a lot of vulnerability here, especially when he describes the mental toll of being completely helpless in the wild. The pacing is great because the intensity of the accidents is balanced by some really thoughtful reflections on why people take these kinds of risks in the first place. The writing is grounded and real, capturing that frantic "fight or flight" energy without the Hollywood polish. It is a gripping, cautionary book that definitely stays with you after you finish it. I highly recommend this book!

Other reviews

"An outdoors adventure memoir packed with hair-raising encounters, gripping moments of life-or-death, and confrontations with nature that will leave readers on the edges of their seats. . . . Libraries seeking adventure stories of mountaineering and outdoors encounters will want to add Miscalculated Risks to their collections. . . . Nothing short of remarkable.”
—D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review

“The wilderness comes alive on the page in this (literal) trailblazer’s memoir. . . . Cooper portrays his adventures in immersive detail. His descriptions of his experiences in untouched areas are lyrical. . . . Lovers of the outdoors and armchair travelers alike will enjoy adventuring along with him. OUR VERDICT: GET IT“—Kirkus Reviews

"Brazenly honest . . . and gripping storytelling."—The SOURCE

"[Cooper's] memoir explores . . . the lure of untouched landscapes, and the human drive to test boundaries — sometimes recklessly so."—The Nugget Newspaper

“A masterpiece. Not just a chronicle of close calls but a glimpse into another age and insight into why we humans challenge ourselves with hard tasks.”—Warren C. Easley, author of The Cal Claxton Mysteries

“Harrowing and engaging.”—Jedediah S. Rogers, author of Roads in the Wilderness

“Outstanding and inspiring. A beautiful story told remarkably well.”—Courtney Purcell, author of Zion National Park: Summit Routes

Audrey

It's lyrical. Loved it.