Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster
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- ISBN13: 9780307475251
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
Product Description
When Jon Krakauer reached the summit of Mt. Everest in the early afternoon of May 10, 1996, he hadn’t slept in fifty-seven hours and was reeling from the brain-altering effects of oxygen reduction. As he turned to start his long, treacherous descent from 29,028 feet, twenty additional climbers were still pushing doggedly toward the top. No one had noticed that the sky had begun to fill with clouds. Six hours later and 3,000 feet lower, in 70-knot winds and blinding snow, Krakauer collapsed in his tent, freezing, hallucinating from exhaustion and hypoxia, but safe. The following morning, he learned that six of his fellow climbers hadn’t made it back to their camp and were desperately struggling for their lives. When the storm finally passed, five of them would be dead, and the sixth so horribly frostbitten that his right hand would have to be amputated.
Into Thin Air is the definitive account of the deadliest season in the history of Everest by the acclaimed journalist and leader of the bestseller Into the Wild. On assignment for Outside Magazine to report on the growing commercialization of the mountain, Krakauer, an accomplished climber, went to the Himalayas as a client of Rob Hall, the most respected high-altitude guide in the world. A rangy, thirty-five-year-ancient New Zealander, Hall had summited Everest four times between 1990 and 1995 and had led thirty-nine climbers to the top. Ascending the mountain in close proximity to Hall’s team was a guided expedition led by Scott Fischer, a forty-year-ancient American with legendary might and drive who had climbed the peak lacking supplemental oxygen in 1994. But neither Hall nor Fischer survived the rogue storm that struck in May 1996.
Krakauer examines what it is about Everest that has compelled so many people — including himself — to throw caution to the wind, snub the concerns of loved ones, and willingly theme themselves to such risk, hardship, and expense. Written with emotional clarity and supported by his unimpeachable reporting, Krakauer’s eyewitness account of what happened on the roof of the world is a singular achievement.
Into the Wild is available on audio, read by actor Campbell Scott.
From the Hardcover edition.Amazon.com Review
A bank of clouds was assembling on the not-so-distant horizon, but journalist-mountaineer Jon Krakauer, standing on the summit of Mt. Everest, saw nothing that “suggested that a murderous storm was impact down.” He was incorrect. The storm, which claimed five lives and left countless more–including Krakauer’s–in guilt-ridden disarray, would also provide the impetus for Into Thin Air, Krakauer’s epic account of the May 1996 disaster. With more than 250 black-and-white photographs taken by various expedition members and an enlightening new postscript by the leader, the Illustrated Edition shows readers what this tragic climb looked like and potentially provides closure for Krakauer and his detractors.
“I have no doubt that Boukreev’s intentions were excellent on summit day,” writes Krakauer in a postscript dated August 1998. “What disturbs me, though, was Boukreev’s refusal to acknowledge the possibility that he made even a single poor choice. Never did he indicate that perhaps it wasn’t the best choice to climb lacking gas or go down yet to be of his clients.” As usual, Krakauer supports his points with persistent research and a excellent dose of humility. But rather than continue the heated discourse that has raged since Into Thin Air’s denouncement of guide Boukreev, Krakauer’s tone is conciliatory; he points most of his criticism at G. Weston De Walt, who coauthored The Climb, Boukreev’s version of events. And in a touching conclusion, Krakauer recounts his last conversation with the late Boukreev, in which the two weathered climbers agreed to disagree about certain points. Krakauer had fantastic hopes to patch things up with Boukreev, but the Russian later died in a avalanche on another Himalayan peak, Annapurna I. Krakauer further buries the ice axe by donating his share of royalties from sales of The Illustrated Edition to the Everest ‘96 Memorial Fund, which aids various environmental and humanitarian charities. –Rob McDonald
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I can’t help but falling asleep when I read this book! I had to read it for an English project, and I just couldn’t take in the info. This book isn’t worth the paper it was made with.
Reader’s Rating: 1 / 5
I chose to write this review the morning after I made a most courageous attempt of my life- to read a 400-page book about people trying to climb a really high mountain, and how people died attempting it. Right that it is no ordinary mountain- it is the highest geological point on this planet. Still it nags me to just reflect about how a person “in his right mind” can write a very thick documentary about mountaineering, or what he claims himself as an “odd, immutable aspect of my personality,” and what nearly brought he and his female house-mate apart. It is evident that Krakrauer does not really reflect of treacherous mountaineering activities as odd; if he did, he would not have written a book about it and advertises it to the entire reading public.
As for the book itself, I have learned, after boldly fighting my copious attempts place the book down and never pick it up again, that at least the first few hundred pages of this book are the most life-threateningly dull materials I have encountered in my life. Details after details- every single sentences everybody had said, regardless how inconsequential and content-less, such as “hi Pete, how are you doing this morning?” goes in the book. Also included in plenty, word for word, are downright indecent maledictions, taken in various forms of “Jesus f**king Christ! My feet really hurt!”). Since everything the leader place in a book is supposedly what he reflect is vital, we can conclude that the main concern of the leader is not to tell us what lessons he learned from his extrodinary experience; his main concern is how to turn a 10-page travel log into something that is 40 times thicker, and sells.
So why does over 95% of persons who read this book gave it so high a rating? The answer is probably that, feeling terribly bored with life, Kraukaur has establish many allies in our modern, over-industrialized society. Since most people who read this book are from this society, they tend to be bored with life themselves and would therefore feel sympathy for the leader
Similarly, since people who would spend 6 hours a day writing reviews on Amazon.com about books they’ve read are probably among persons who are most bored with life, it justifies the overwhelmingly high rating of Krakauer’s manifest on Amazon.com.
Reader’s Rating: 1 / 5
As a requirement for a class we were forced to read this fine piece of literature. Now while forced to read books maybe its the fact that you are required to turn each page for a grade, which could take away from the I am sure, utter page turning action of it all but maybe we establish it hard because it was not well written. It was to some extent obvious this wasn’t meant to be a book. It was meant to be an article. A nice three to four page article. We reflect that the extension an article to a book brought in several facts that were not only unnecessary but we are sure offensive to the family tree members of persons that died.
Describing each climber’s death, such as the man that died while going to the bathroom, while appealing to read at the time; Consideration of people’s feelings afterwards leaves us thinking that it really wasn’t needed. Especially when a man with a wife and family tree passed away when Krakauer thought he was safe and told his wife the man was fine.
The book wasn’t all terrible but; there were the occasional well written informational part. But explaining how Yasuko died while begging for Beidlemans help puts the reader in an odd spot. Although being the only book either of us has ever read about climbing Everest it really gives us a excellent thought that we don’t.
Our favorite unnecessary detail was the small fact about the transvestite reporter; it brought tears to our eyes, smiles to our mouths and made us willingly turn the next page. All in all we both suggest stopping after that detail and maybe taking a hike and reading a qualified piece of literature as a replacement for and not wasting your time. Maybe like a block Palahniuk book as a replacement for, suggested fight club and invisible monsters which is really exciting. Or an awesome classic such as Catcher in the Rye which really has character development and contains not only controversial subjects but has an brilliant tale line.
The End
Reader’s Rating: 1 / 5
Jon Krakauer isnt worth the blood in his veins.
Reader’s Rating: 1 / 5
Well…beggining ongoing off slowly…the end was ok but it wasn’t really my kind of book I don’t recomend it unless your an insomniac and need something to bore you to sleep.
Reader’s Rating: 1 / 5