Eiger Dreams: Ventures Among Men and Mountains
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- ISBN13: 9781599216102
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
Product Description
In this collection, Krakauer writes of mountains from the memorable perspective of one who has himself struggled with solo madness to scale Alaska’s notorious Devil’s Thumb.
No matter what the actual temperature may be, several pages into Eiger Dreams you will start to shiver. Middle through you will buy a new appreciation for your fingers, toes, and the fact that you still have a nose. And by the end of this collection, you’ll define some commonly used phrases in an entirely different way. The understated “catch some air” and the whimsical “log some flight time” are climbers’ euphemisms for falling, while “crater” refers to what happens when you log some flight time all the way to the ground. “Summiting,” the term for reaching the top of a mountain, seems nearly colorless in comparison. The various heroes, risk-takers, incompetents, and individualists Krakauer captures are more than colorful, whether they summit or not. The leader is more interested in exploring the addiction of risk–the intensity of effort–than mere triumph. There’s the mythical minimalist climber, John Gill, whose fame “rests entirely on assents less than thirty feet high,” and the Burgess brothers–freewheeling, free-floating English twins who seem to make all the right decisions when it counts, and hence most regularly fail to reach the top. Of course, they are alive. Over these and additional talented climbers hangs a malignant, endlessly creative scenery–its foehn winds can make people crazy and its avalanches do far worse. Eiger Dreams is an adrenaline fest for the weary, an overdue examination of a stylish, courageous subculture. As one of the heroes Krakauer outlines says of his occupation, “It’s sort of like having fun, only different.”
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i rated it this because jon krakauer really writes the tale terrible. if he had written it in a more fasonable way it could of been better
Reader’s Rating: 2 / 5
I read this book with a mixture of awe and revulsion. There’s no denying that Krakauer is a excellent writer, and that the events and people of which he writes are appealing. But the fact of the matter remains is that the “past-time” that these people have devoted–and in some cases sacrificed–their lives is an brilliant example of man’s propensity to forsake reason and logic in the pursuit of illusory goals. To devote oneself to climbing mountains for the sake of thrills and notarity ultimately serves no useful purpose, and simply gratifies the ego of the climber. Sadly, the mindset of the mountain climber resembles that of the gallant soldier of yore who with nonsensical and misguided idealism would willingly shirk all concern for self for the sake of some ultimately pointless objective. Were these people to come to the rational conclusion it should not be man’s place to conquer everything on this planet (and subsequently turn that which is conquered into a gigantic playground) and that one can attain much greater and sincere rewards by revering the mountain from a distance, they’d have my undying respect. But as it stands, I have no sympathy for these people whatsoever.
Reader’s Rating: 3 / 5
In my humble opinion this book is not in the class of Krakauer’s additional two books. The tales were, undoubtable exciting (I especially liked the K2 account), but it didn’t reach the height of Into thin Air or the depth and discovery of Into the Wild. Well worth the money, but not reasonably as hair-raising.
Reader’s Rating: 3 / 5
Jon has, in deatail described the mt Everest disaster. it has stirred me and made me reflect about the presousness of life when it hangs in the balanc
Reader’s Rating: 5 / 5
Count me in as another Jon Krakauer fan….
Reader’s Rating: 5 / 5