High: Stories of Survival from Everest and K2 (Adrenaline Books) [Paperback]

Clint Willis (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 23, 1998

In this pioneering anthology, Clint Willis presents 75 years of great writing -- from Neil O'Dell to Jon Krakauer -- on the fabled peaks. Here are stories of two British expeditions to Everest in the 1920s; a piece on the 1939 K2 attempt that claimed four climbers' lives; a firsthand account by the Sherpa who reached the summit of Everest in 1953 with Edmund Hillary; the story of the first successful American assault on K2 in 1978; a British photographer's view of the calamitous 1996 storm on Everest; and many more -- a cornucopia of mountaineering thrills for adventurous readers.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Editor Clint Willis collects some of mountaineering's finest writing in these tales from storied expeditions to grails like Everest and K2. Included are classic accounts of early American attempts on K2, by consensus the most daunting and ruthless peak to summit. Frank Smythe's telling of his 1933 attempt and Charles Houston and Robert Bates's from 1938 typify the wooly-knickered bravado of pre-war climbing. As counterpoint, Willis serves up Galen Rowell's sad and unadorned journal from the tempestuous 1975 failed expedition.

But there are other angles as well. Tucked in the middle of High is a gem told by an Everest widow, Maria Coffey, who traveled to the base of the mountain that took her husband and his partner: "I could pick out the ridge where Joe and Pete were last seen. The image blurred, tears were washing down my face and collecting in the jacket collar pulled tightly around my chin." In a collection of writing that soars it is a moving--and grounding--reminder of mountaineering's risks. --Tipton Blish

From School Library Journal

YA-A collection of excerpts from mostly real-life experiences that will leave even the most jaded armchair adventurers gasping for air and thoroughly waterlogged. Both titles depict humans at their most physically challenged in environments that they sought out but for which they were not necessarily completely prepared. High features Jon Krakauer, David Roberts, and Chris Bonington. An excerpt from Matt Dickinson's The Other Side of Everest is also included. A touching narrative is taken from Maria Coffey's Fragile Edge, in which the author recounts her visit to Tibet to find some closure over the death of her sweetheart, who disappeared from Everest's Northeast Ridge. Many of the writers in Rough Water describe such dire straits out on the open sea that one wonders how they ever survived to tell their tale. Memorable moments from maritime literature include a selection from F. A. Worsley's Shackleton's Boat Journey, in which the South Pole explorer and his men rowed 14 days across 800 miles of some of the earth's most treacherous seas in a small boat. Another classic excerpt depicting a heartless captain is taken from Richard Henry Dana, Jr.'s Two Years before the Mast. Readers who still have not gotten enough of the Titanic stories will be intrigued by yet another viewpoint from The Loss of the S. S. Titanic. And there's more. Bibliographies lead readers to the rest of the stories.
Cynthia J. Rieben, W. T. Woodson High School, Fairfax, VA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Balliett & Fitzgerald Inc. / Thunder's Mouth Press; 1st edition (December 23, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1560252006
• ISBN-13: 978-1560252009
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #812,316 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #31 in Books > Travel > Asia > Pakistan

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I can see why they call it the Adrenaline series., October 5, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: High: Stories of Survival from Everest and K2 (Adrenaline Books) (Paperback)

You should read this book if you like stories that you never know whats going to happen at the end, it really gets you thinking. If you like climbing this book is for you, its almost like it inspires you to go and be a pioneer of Everest, it has mixed stories not only concentrating on the climbers but the well known sherpas of the Himalyas, who are are the real heroes of climbing, the stories will make you think about respect for nature, for nature's fury can suprise any of us, at any time.

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Once you start, you can't stop., March 9, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: High: Stories of Survival from Everest and K2 (Adrenaline Books) (Paperback)

Willis has selected well-written and exhilarating stories and assembled them in the fashion of a great short-story anthology. This book takes the reader through the entire range of human emotions, showing humans at their very best--as well as their worst. You might, at times, wonder why these people put their lives on the line, but you won't wonder why you bought this book.

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Unputtdownable, March 20, 2000

By 

saliero (NSW Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: High: Stories of Survival from Everest and K2 (Adrenaline Books) (Paperback)

Even if you have never been anywhere near a mountain, this is aterrific book. Actually, I did put it down....had to when I got towork, or occasionally to turn the light out at night. The short story format makes it an excellent companion volume for dipping into.

I found some of the K2 stories especially 'breath-taking' and the edge-of-the-seat drama present everywhere. I agree with the review that says the piece by widow Maria Coffey is a gem - another perspective on the mountain climbing experience.

I also liked the older, more historical tales, contrasting some of the worls views about climbing with more modern attitudes evident in some of the newer books, especially now focussing on the commercial aspects of climbing especially Everest.

Am I alone in thinking that mountain climbing to the point of summiting used to be a more collective, comradely pursuit, and now it is 'everyone for themself' ? I know there is a lot of bunk that could be said - and I don't hold that the class-ridden older (especially Bristish) school of mountaineering in the days of Mallory et al was some kind of 'golden age'. But on the other hand, there was something in the spirit of the times then lacking now...and the difference is not just money. The old Siege-like expeditions required vast amounts of sponsorship....but it was aimed at the collective effort, whereas now it is anyone who can stump up $65 000 of their own wealth.

I might be wrong, but I think there is something different now. Not being an expert, I'm interested to continue exploring this. This volume is a good place to start reflecting on some of those issues.