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Liked It “I have read all of Krakauer's books !! They are superlative!! So is this one...” see full review » see other reviews » |
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“This is (mostly) a collection of Krakauer's previously-published magazine stories about Mountain Climbing. The articles focus on unusual mountain climbers and particular climbing locations. The last story is Krakauer's personal experience climbing the Devil's Thumb in Alaska.
Jane V wrote this review 11 days ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
”“I have read all of Krakauer's books !! They are superlative!! So is this one...”
msquarea wrote this review Friday, November 13 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Chapters 5-6 are the best and deal with Denali and Talkeetna.”
Nadine wrote this review Tuesday, November 10 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“The personal experiences of the author gives more background into the fascination he has in his later best seller, Into Thin Air. Hard to listen to without stopping and getting into the outdoors.”
Scott C wrote this review Monday, August 17 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“In true Jon Krakauer fashion his writing was easy writing and easy reading. Kept you on your toes. He does entertain and motivate you to climb a mountain. It was a very good book. I can't wait for his new book to come out! ”
Memizuki wrote this review Thursday, August 6 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Great snapshots of individual adventures.”
Jess M wrote this review Wednesday, July 29 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Krakauer is the master of the adventure genre. This collection of essays is a great read.”
Jeff L wrote this review Thursday, March 12 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“I bought this book for my 11 year old son and figured that I'd better read it as well, being someone who is captivated by the mountains and by those who pursue the extreme danger of cutting edge mountaineering. Anyway, since most of the chapters are Krakauer magazine articles from the 80's, there is a dated quality to them. For example, climbers are often described as 'clothed in neon lycra'. Still many of the stories are fascinating, and I believe that last one (which I just finished) is timeless in the way in which it addresses the extremes to which the drive to climb can take a person, particularly a young, somewhat troubled, wildly ambitious 23 year old.
Johnnie B wrote this review Sunday, November 30 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Worth reading for sure, though I'm not sure if it will be a lasting book. His later books have a much better chance of that.”2 of 2 members found this review helpful“This is a good book. I'd resisted reading it for some time; I had really enjoyed Krakauer's other books, especially "Into Thin Air," and mistakenly believed this book was a story of one expedition in the Pacific Northwest. It is, in fact, a collection of stories. Some were more captivating to me than others, but Krakauer always does a great job of describing the exhiliration and hardships of mountaineering. I was particularly absorbed in the story of Krakauer's own attempt to climb the Devil's Thumb in Alaska as a young man. He had alluded to his own backstory in his book "Into the Wild," and reading it here really helped me to understand the affinity Krakauer felt for Christopher McCandless, the subject of that book. What I'm left with here, as I have been after numerous readings of "Into Thin Air," is the amazement I feel at the fact that anyone, ever, attempts something like Everest, K2 or Denali...when the near-universal reaction to actually reaching the summit seems to be a vague disbelief, severe pain and mental dullness, and a quick desire to rush back to base camp.”
StL wrote this review Friday, August 1 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
