Lost in the Valley of Death audiobook

Calling this book, a male version of Eat, Pray, “Loathe” is annoying. This work of narrative nonfiction is a far cry, in more ways than one, from a privileged woman taking a year off to find herself. Frankly, the comparison does Lost in the Valley a disservice.Justin Alexander Shetler was many things: from a young age a seriously trained survivalist, band front man, minor Instagram star, successful entrepreneur with a luxe lifestyle and finally a seeker pushing himself to asceticism. Always, he was a traveler searching for a connection to the mystical universe in an effort to become whole which led to his disappearance in the remote and dangerous Parvati Valley in India. A deeply affecting account that will resonate with me for a long time to come.

The Parvati Valley has earned its own nicknames: the Valley of Shadows, the Valley of Death. It is a place where every moment exists on a knife edge, where a wrong turn tips a vehicle over an unbarriered cliff edge, a wrong step pitches a traveler into a churning maelstrom of a river, a wrong turn sends a hiker to ranges unknown. Since the early 1990s, dozens of international backpackers have vanished without a trace while traveling in and around the Parvati Valley, an average of one every year, earning this tiny, remote sliver of the subcontinent a dark reputation as India’s Bermuda Triangle. The circumstances of each disappearance are different — the tourist’s country of origin; villages visited or paths walked; last known location — yet eerily similar. All feature a spirited backpacker seeking an off-the-beaten-track adventure, a collection of anecdotes from fellow travelers relating the backpacker’s final days, a family’s anguished search, and thousands of unanswered questions. I absolutely loved Harley Rustad’s last narrative nonfiction tale — Big Lonely Doug:The Story of One of Canada’s Last Great Trees — so I was excited to read his latest: Lost in the Valley of Death: A Story of Obsession and Danger in the Himalayas. And while Rustad brings the same eye for detail, background, and narrative tension to this story of Justin Alexander Shetler — a thirty-five-year old American backpacker with an incredible life story, a large social media presence, and who mysteriously disappeared in the Indian Himalayas — I’m left feeling, somehow, that the story of the tree was ultimately more interesting and relatable. This is still an intriguing story, well told, that asks interesting questions about what a meaningful life looks like. (Note: I read an ARC through NetGalley and passages quoted may not be in their final forms.)Over time, Shetler’s stories began to acquire their own near-mythological quality. There was the time he carried the injured toddler in Nepal, running for hours — some who have heard the story say days — to take her to the nearest clinic; there was the time he went into the wilderness in Idaho, or, as some recall in Montana, with nothing more than a knife and emerged weeks later wearing buckskin clothing; there was the time he was beaten up, or possibly even stabbed, in Bangkok while trying to save a young woman from harassment. Shortly after quitting his job, he found himself at a Los Angeles restaurant talking with Jonathon Goldsmith, the actor who was appearing on television commercials as “The Most Interesting Man in the World” for a long-running advertising campaign of Dos Equis beer, who remarked, “I think you might actually be the most interesting man in the world.” Shetler illegally climbed the most famous bridges in the United States, he became a Buddhist monk in Thailand, and he crossed snow-covered Himalayas in flip-flops. It was all part of a story that Shetler wanted to build, a story that, as he saw it, was just beginning.This passage doesn’t even reference Shetler’s unconventional childhood (that saw him attending a wilderness survival academy instead of high school), his time fronting the alt rock band Punchface, or the three years he worked with a tech startup and travelled the globe on a luxury budget. Approaching his mid-thirties, Shetler decided to leave his high-paying job, give away the majority of his worldly goods, and embark on a quest for deeper meaning (which he believed could only be attained ascetically as the heroes had in the books he grew up reading). Shetler spent the next couple of years vagabonding across the United States, South America, and Asia — boosting his social media following with beautiful pictures and enviable adventures — and by the time he found India calling to him irresistibly, Shetler was on the horns of a dilemma: Should he continue to focus on growing his ego-boosting online presence or was it time to give himself over to a sadhu, an Indian holy man, who could teach him to entirely free himself from his ego by learning to let go of the world. When Shetler decided to accompany one such sadhu on a dangerous trek to a holy lake, his last post to social media was: These Babas are said to have magical powers from decades of ancient yoga practice. But. I really don’t know what to expect. I’ve never done yoga, and his style is extreme — based on the grotesque swellings on his joints. But I want to see the world through his eyes, which are essentially 5000 years old, an ancient spiritual path. I’m going to put my heart into it and see what happens. My back is in bad shape, (broken when I was 19) and even with daily soaks in hot springs, this cave/mountain life has recently put me in a state of constant discomfort. I’m sadly inflexible, and I can’t even sit still for a few minutes without pain. Maybe Baba Life will be good for me. I should return mid September or so.If I’m not back by then, don’t look for me. ;) And as it turned out, that was Shetler’s last ever social media post. So, how seriously were his friends and family to take that final thought, “If I’m not back by then, don’t look for me”? How to interpret the wink? Was he joking or saying goodbye?Rustad went to India (several times) in search of those answers, and this book is filled with his conversations with the people who knew Shetler, as well as long passages from Shetler’s own writings. Rustad quotes freely from famed literature set in India and fills in the history of the area: many foreigners have contracted “India Syndrome” in this magic-filled valley at the foot of the Himalayas and disappeared into mountain caves to live undetected; sometimes for decades. This is also one of the remote settings of India’s illegal cannabis cultivation (the hash produced here is apparently world-renowned) and the hills are filled with black marketeers, thieves, and fake holy men. As we get to learn more and more about Shetler and his quixotic nature, there is certainly narrative tension in wanting to know what Rustad learns of the backpacker's fate. Despite all of the crazy antics in Shetler’s life, I really did find the story of Big Lonely Doug to be somehow richer, but it’s not really Rustad’s fault that I wasn’t completely wowed — Rustad set out on his own journey without knowing what he would ultimately find and he presents the results in a narrative that is consistently interesting and well-written.

I had the honour of blurbing this book. Here's what I wrote:"Justin Alexander Shetler went to India in search of adventure and authenticity and never came back. Was his disappearance the result of a crime, an accident, or a profound spiritual transformation? This mystery beats at the heart of Harley Rustad’s gripping and propulsive book, which is part travelogue, part pilgrim’s quest, part detective story. With empathy and reportorial rigour, Rustad traces the origins and evolution of Shetler’s desire to live a bold, meaningful life—and to share that life, post by post, with a growing online following. The result is the classic hero’s journey updated for a hectic, hyperconnected world: think Into the Wild meets Eat Pray Love, only set in the Himalayan foothills in the age of hashtags."

Expertly investigated and brilliantly written by Canadian magazine editor and writer Harley Rustad, this was without a doubt one of the best works of nonfiction I’ve ever read. I was immersed from the beginning and held captive until the end while Rustad skilfully revived the story of Justin Alexander Shetler’s disappearance through his chilling prose in this electrifying book. This story felt deeply personal at times, as I reflected back upon my own solo spiritual journey throughout the Himalayas a few years back, and while engaging with those parts of the book, I felt the hairs on my arms standing at full attention and my breath caught at the back of my throat unwilling to flow, as I thought about what could have been as mine and Shetler’s paths became intertwined. I especially resonated with the stories of both Australian Ryan Chambers and Irishman Jonathan Spollen, both of whom disappeared in Rishikesh, where I spent a significant amount of my travels in India. It was interesting to read about travellers succumbing to “India syndrome”, which I’m sure cast somewhat of a spell over me while I was there, as I walked barefoot in my white cotton kurta, a red bracelet threaded around my wrist, and my mala beads looped around my fingers, shoulders pinned back, walking with pride. I, no doubt also had a yoga branded tote bag filled with a copy of Paramahansa Yogananda's Autobiography of a Yogi accompanied by several of Osho’s meditations. While describing the scenery of Shetler’s last journey, Rustad’s writing is wildly exotic, vividly descriptive, and has the power to take readers on a richly atmospheric expedition to the Parvati Valley and beyond. "The valley is remote, isolated, and dramatically picturesque. Surrounded by such natural beauty and peace, it is easy to imagine that if one follows the bumpy road that follows the holy river, some fragment of higher understanding or meaning will emerge within reach."I was surprised by how informative and well studied Justin’s backstory was, with Harley having interviewed dozens to collect his data to provide the reader with an incredible amount of insight and knowledge into Shetler’s upbringing, training, and travels. Lost in the Valley of death is a story that will stay with readers long after they have read the final sentence. Bravo to Harley Rustad and thank you to Penguin Random House Canada and NetGalley for the ARC. Avocado Diaries

Although I really loved this book (the writing, story and research were on point) I did not love Justin Alexander who the story was about. He seemed fake and I have to agree with the author that “Justin‘s desire to live a life of legend and grand experiences led to slight bends in the truth as he presented his story online.”I will add that I did NOT like the comparisons of Justin to Christopher McCandless at all; having read a lot about Chris, I really didn’t think their spiritual journeys were alike at all. Chris wasn’t trying to attract social media followers and get more likes as it seemed Justin was out to do.

Thank you to NEtGalley for providing me with an eARC of this novel!Stories where people up and disappear into the wild or wilderness or what have you always intrigue me, and LOST IN THE VALLEY OF DEATH by Harley Rustad fits that bill. It is the story of Justin Alexander Shetler, a traveller and adventurer who was looking for meaning in his life, and who disappeared in the Parvati Valley in India while on a spiritual trek. Rustad tells his story as well as a broader examination of a desire seen in other Westerners who go to India in search of themselves and spiritual awakening. I liked slowly peeling away the many layers of Shetler's story, and a story that very easily could have been about a Western gaze and misconception about the 'Mystical' East is a bit more than that. Though don't get me wrong, there is still a bit of that, though I think Rustad doesn't glamorize it too much. At the heart of it this book is about a person who is trying to find himself after going through a massive amount of trauma, and how trying to find oneself can be life altering. I liked the history of the Parvati Valley, as well as the history of Westerners going to India and exploring for their own self discovery (and the fallout and consequences of that). And I also liked that Rustad doesn't strive to speculate or answer what happened to Shetler. Perhaps he was the victim of foul play, perhaps the victim of an accident, or perhaps he did, indeed, find a new life. It's an interesting read.

This book's premise promises a thrill: the disappearance of a young American - a wilderness expert with a bevy of all the social media-documented accouterments of a modern traveler - in India's remote Parvati Valley. The valley, pressed up against the Himalayas, is remote and dramatically picturesque, known for its holy sites and its holy men (called sadhus), its mountains and winding trails. It's also known for the availability of black hash - and for its mysteriously disappearing foreign tourists. From the book:"It’s not the deaths that make the Parvati Valley unusual, it’s the disappearances into forest or mountain or valley with little trace. And there are more accounts than those noted in police registries and written into headlines that make the news, shared as stories and desperate pleas from family members posted on online message boards and travel forums with scattered details. Communication with loved ones and friends ends abruptly, with a final letter, phone call, or email before blinking out, leaving faint trails for heartsick families to follow...Some people believe that the disappearances are the result of the valley’s isolation. Far from help, tourists are prime targets of opportunistic robbery and murder. In 2000, two hikers from Germany were shot while camping, and one lost his life. In another attack that year, a couple and the woman’s fourteen-year-old son were attacked while camping between Kheerganga and Mantalai Lake. Their bodies were thrown into a gorge. The woman, María Ángeles Girones from Spain, and the boy died, but the man, Martin Young from the United Kingdom, miraculously survived. 'I think it was completely random,' Young told the BBC while recovering in a hospital in Delhi. 'I don’t think they picked on us in particular. But it was premeditated, certainly premeditated because the attack and our pleas for mercy as they were beating us just increased the assault. And the motive was simple robbery.'In 2007, an Israeli backpacker, Dror Sheck, was hiking with a group of friends around Kheerganga when they noticed he had lagged behind the group and was out of sight. When they went looking for him, they 'found him bleeding, lying on a small path. Next to him was a knife stained with blood and the leaves next to him had blood on them too.''"Crime seems to be a la mode right now. The premise of this book seems to promise something along those lines - the fast-paced, lush prose of the narrative crime nonfiction in vogue (something along the lines of Michelle MacNamara's I'll Be Gone in the Dark).This book does not really deliver on this promise. The most suspenseful elements, including the passage above, have already been published online; the actual tragedy occupies the last third of the book, with limited information actually shared. Conclusions are hinted at, but never even offered with concreteness. Instead, Rustad falls back on soaring metaphor-laden poignancy. Poetry is an excellent enhancement, but not a substitute for truth. I was disappointed in this regard, although in some ways, this is perhaps a kinder way to approach the topic. Justin Shetler was not just a plot point; he was a human being, and perhaps his family deserves far more than to his disappearance sensationalized.In truth, though, Rustad was never really writing a whodunnit or even a story about a disappearance. He was writing about the lost: the people who wander, looking for meaning, always certain that if they disconnect a little bit more, if they push themselves further, if they just - just - just - they'll find something: the meaning of life, enlightenment, fulfillment. Of course it's self-indulgent, as many reviewers have pointed out. Justin Shetler was a young white man who had the world at his fingertips; all his wounds, and he had many, can't undo the inherent privilege of his life. Where Rustad succeeds very well is that he doesn't hold Justin's quest up as some pinnacle, or even as something that made him so very special and different. He holds him up as a mirror, tries to dig at something essential in all of us: what are we looking for? Some people go to India - a neat bit of Orientalism, that - but one needn't go to the extreme to feel the need to twinge of a search. Rustad has a great flair for narrative writing and nature writing especially. I felt a little let down by the thin veneer of the crime angle. Instead, I thought the overwhelming interest of the book was the Western cultural pursuit of self-actualization, and its falseness and its elusiveness, its entanglement with social media and the mythology of the exotic Other, from India to Native American spirituality. Some topics were covered with what felt like pseudo-scientific writing (see: "India Syndrome"), and some of those same topics left me with a bad taste in my mouth. What a lovely privilege it is, to dive into the "exotic" to seek enlightenment! But Rustad is deeply aware of the inherent contradictions, privilege, and to some degree, egoism, involved with the topics he explores. He handles them deftly: presents them with empathy but always with awareness. He treats Justin and his family with the same gentle humanity. It would be easy to look at Justin and condemn his contradictions - his privilege, his social media fronting, his true kindness and his shallowness; instead, reading, I felt sadness for him and his wounds, a credit to Rustad's writing and dedication to understanding a whole person.This is, at its heart, a philosophical book, disguised as a travel and crime narrative. If society is currently consumed by pursuit of Authenticity Documented on Social Media, of Type II fun, of some "back to nature" ethic, it's worth asking why. I think it reveals something about what we're actually seeking to find.

** spoiler alert ** There are several layers to this book. First, it is a biography of Justin Alexander Shetler, the book’s main subject. It’s a bit tough to capture his essence. He is a young man who didn’t quite fit in with conventional society but felt at home in the nature and wilderness. He eventually entered the Parvati Valley in northern India in order to find some form of enlightenment and peace but ended up disappearing in September 2016. The Parvati Valley is known as a place where foreigners disappear, some willingly while others are victims of accidents or foul play. Some are drawn to the area’s pull and take on the life style of Hindu holy people and seek self isolation in caves.It’s the area’s spiritual draw that forms the second layer of the book. The author goes into great detail on the spiritual pull India has on people, particularly the areas close to the Himalayas. He describes this pull as the “India Syndrome”, which can cause some one seeking their form of enlightenment that they give up their former way of life.Third, the book is part adventure/travelogue as it describes Justin’s journeys into the Valley and his many associations with fellow travelers and Hindu holy men, one of whom he accompanies on a pilgrimage just prior to his disappearance. In addition, the author does a good job describing the valley, river, mountains, and villages where Justin spent time.Finally, a part of the book reads like a true crime narrative. While there is no official closure to Justin’s disappearance, there is evidence that a he may be a victim of crime. The author did a great job of introducing the reader to Justin. You learn of his struggles, pain, and need to find himself. Among his greatest fears was to live a life “unlived”. He constantly sought adventure and fulfillment in simplicity, living in caves for weeks. His social media platforms are still active so you can put a face to the person I. The book.

I don’t think the purpose of this book was to inspire travel to India, but now I want to go there 😂

More than true crime, I am fascinated by true mysteries. A murder, we know what happened and are just trying to imagine *who*. A disappearance could be anything. Justin Alexander Shetler was an experienced survivalist who thrived on the razor's edge. He often intentionally made life harder for himself, just for the challenge of it all. Like so many thousands of others seeking a spiritual epiphany, he headed to the Himalayas on a vision quest of sorts. He, like dozens of others in the Parvati Valley, disappeared. There are a myriad of possible causes, perhaps more than any other disappearance I've heard of, and the author does a fantastic job of introducing new dangers and weaving them into the mystery. The twinkle at the end, the smallist glimmer of suspicion that Justin may still be alive, is tantalizing.

Justin Alexander disappeared into the Parvati Valley in 2016. He hasn’t been seen since. He wasn’t the first. Rustad’s account of his short life will inevitably be compared to Krakauer’s Into The Wild. Both feature young men on a quest for solitude and meaning in wilderness, and Justin seemed similar to McCandless, with one important distinction: he had a slew of Instagram followers. Rustad has done a lot of admirable groundwork here interviewing people, as well as providing a framework for why India continues to beckon Westerners. My only criticism is that some of the aspects of Justin’s life (significant childhood trauma,sexual ambiguity) felt glossed over, little more than footnotes. Despite all this, I kept turning the page.

Book #11 of 2022.A fascinating read about an American adventurer on an endless search for enlightenment and the meaning of his life, this book details the upbringing and final trek of Justin Alexander Shetler. Nearly six years after his disappearance in the Parvati Valley of the Himalayas in India, it seems many who knew him well believe there’s a possibility he’s still alive and living out his dream, a life of solitude in a remote cave where he communes with nature and practices his spirituality. What’s especially interesting is the untold number of foreign tourists who disappeared (and continue to disappear…) in the same region before Justin and the fact of all the numerous possible dangers that await these seekers, not least of all being local guru/shaman imposters who’ve been known to drug, rob and even murder some of those who brave these trails.