Last Christmas, the mother of a friend of mine and I were discussing books we had recently read while I was trying to find a new read for myself. He started the discussion on The Gift of Fear, one of his recent readings. I remember her telling me that the book was about all these previous case studies of violent crimes and how the people (mostly women) involved [as victims] they were able to use their sixth sense to get out or avoid situations altogether. She sounded very interesting and she was very excited to go to the nearest bookstore to pick up a copy.

The Gift of Fear, a nonfiction bestseller written by Gavin de Becker, was published in 1997 and has since captured audiences young and old around the world. De Becker, a security specialist who has worked for major organizations including the United States Supreme Court Police, the United States Marshals Service, the Defense Intelligence Agency and the Central Intelligence Agency, uses his years of study and analysis of violent crime to point out warning signs. and self-defense mechanisms that have been instilled in us.

The book itself describes a variety of situations we can find ourselves in at any point in our lives; the way home alone; the termination of an employee; the stranger in the elevator De Becker analyzes the impact that our own intuition has on us to predict whether or not these types of situations can turn violent. It’s interesting to see, as de Becker points out, that in our adult lives, we have the same intuitive behaviors as a child or an older person, but as adults, we try to rationalize with ourselves, talk to ourselves about scared thoughts and feelings. , and convince us that we live in a world where violent crime could not happen to us. De Becker discusses this in great detail in his book and also delves into what to do in situations where you haven’t listened to your intuition and how to get out of life-threatening scenarios. It is a fascinating and sobering examination of an extremely important but easily and often overlooked margin of life.

I think the most interesting thing that Becker points out is that we all have the ability to commit violent crimes, so by looking at ourselves and trying to empathize with the bad guy, we can better predict the outcome of the situation and how to best handle it in the act. He points out that empathy is key to survival first; then other steps follow.

I highly recommend this book for its interesting content and easy-to-read style. Additionally, it won several awards and has been endorsed by Amazon and Oprah as great reads and great pieces to add to any self-defense collection. It will surely make you feel stronger, safer and more confident to face many potentially threatening situations.