Follow the Water, Ellen Cochrane
Follow the Water, Ellen Cochrane
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Follow the Water
The Unbelievable True Story of a Teenager's Survival in the Amazon

Author: Ellen Cochrane

Narrator: Aimee Lilly

Unabridged: 4 hr 18 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Oasis Audio

Published: 03/17/2026

Synopsis

A captivating and incredible true story about a girl who fell out of a plane over the Amazon—and walked out of the jungle eleven days later, perfect for fans of Hatchet and graduates of the I Survived series.On Christmas Eve 1971, seventeen-year-old Juliane Koepcke and her mother boarded a plane in Lima, Peru, bound for their home at the Panguana Research station deep in the Amazon. Twenty minutes from landing, the plane was struck by lightning, and Juliane hurtled two miles down through the rainforest canopy, crashing on the jungle floor.

She woke up the next day with a broken collarbone, missing her glasses and one shoe, but incredibly, miraculously, alive. Pulling on every bit of knowledge her rainforest-studying parents imparted to her, she journeyed through the danger-filled jungle for eleven days. She was the sole survivor.

Follow the Water is a powerful and unforgettable true story of survival against all odds. 

About The Author

Ellen Cochrane writes immersive nonfiction for young readers that trusts their intelligence and their emotions. Her debut, Follow the Water, tells the true story of 17-year-old Juliane Koepcke’s survival in the Amazon. It’s an adventure that reads like a thriller and teaches how science lives in the world: weather, rivers, canopy, and the choices that keep us alive.A longtime middle-school teacher of English, English learners, Spanish, and Russian, Ellen brings classroom clarity and compassion to complex topics. She studied science writing at Johns Hopkins, is a certified California Naturalist, and previously wrote a syndicated column exploring the natural world. As a teen exchange student she lived in Lima, Peru, and traveled the same route into the jungle that frames Juliane’s story.A portion of proceeds from Follow the Water supports the Panguana Foundation, Juliane Koepcke's Amazon research station.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Melanie on March 20, 2026

Many people may remember the story of the rugby team and assorted other passengers who crashed into the Andes Mtns in 1972, likely due to the movie Alive that played up the cannibalism forced on some of them in order to survive, but doubtful that as many heard the amazing story of Juliane Koepcke, t......more

Goodreads review by Books_the_Magical_Fruit on March 16, 2026

Cochrane relates the miraculous true story of an amazing girl who defied all odds by not only surviving a plane crash, but dragging herself through the Amazon for eleven days until she reached people who could help her. Juliane Koepcke, 17 years old at the time, split her time between school in Lima......more

Goodreads review by Mark on December 02, 2025

What worked: The story is told using present-tense verbs, so readers will feel like the events are happening right then. The book opens with background information describing Julianne’s formative years. This section is important as it shows where she acquired most of her survival knowledge. “Normal”......more

Goodreads review by The Page Ladies on March 18, 2026

I’ve officially found the ultimate survival mode inspiration, and suddenly, my DIY projects don't feel quite so high-stakes! 🌿✈️ I read Follow the Water by Ellen Cochrane, and my jaw is still on the floor. Imagine it’s Christmas Eve, 1971. You’re seventeen, your plane is struck by lightning, and you......more

Goodreads review by Zach on February 25, 2026

4 stars for a young reader, 3 stars for me. This is a story of a teen girl who was the only survivor of a large airplane crash. Luckily she was probably the best equipped for survival out of everyone on board, despite losing a shoe and wearing only a torn minidress and one sandal! She had grown up i......more

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