Tales from the Steep: John Long's Favorite Climbing Literature [Paperback]

David Craig (Author), Geoff Tabin (Author), John Long (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1993

From the Eiger's notorious North Face, to Maurice Herzog's timeless epic on Annapurna, to a stirring rescue on the small crag by literary critic and novelist Al Alvarez, Tales From The Steep will introduce non-climbers to the sheer arena of those "...playing on the frontiers of life and death ...searching for the freedom which is the ultimate need of our natures." Here are stories "...that had to be told," where the difference between epic achievement and disaster can depend on the breadth of a single knot. Chosen for both literary merit and authenticity, the stories in Tales From The Steep are required reading for anyone who apprediates classic adventures.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Long, a recognized rock climber of the 1970s and early 1980s, here collects recent accounts by climbers. Three of the 20 pieces are excerpts from mountaineering books published between 1950 and 1969. The rest are from climbers' magazines and similar sources. The accounts reflect the attitudes of climbers of the most recent generation. Most contributions are reports of particular climbs, some of which ended disastrously. A few touch on common topics, such as the bush pilots who ferry climbers to Denali and the tense atmosphere as climbers of two different generations attempt a climb together. Humor surfaces occasionally. The language in which the material is written opens an additional window into the special male climbing world of 20 years ago. For large climbing collections.
- Paula M. Strain, MLS, Rockville, Md.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Authors include: Royal Robbins, Lionel Terray, Chuck Pratt, Geoff Tabin, Greg Child, Tom Patey, Joe Simpson, John Long, Heinrich Harrer, Jon Krakauer, Reinhard Karl, W.E. Bowman, and others.

Product Details

• Paperback: 184 pages
• Publisher: ICS Books (June 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0934802920
• ISBN-13: 978-0934802925
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #443,624 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Average collection, October 30, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Tales from the Steep: John Long's Favorite Climbing Literature (Paperback)

Another anthology of John Long's favorite climbing literature. This compendium includes excerpts from books and articles from climbing magazines. Some of the material is repeated from his other collections. His essay, `The Green Arch', seems to be in all his books as a matter of course. If you're a fan of climbing literature, you'll probably have a lot of the selections included from the original source, I did. However, Long did turn me on works that are out-of-print and/or hard to find in their original form. For this reason this anthology is a worthy addition to anyone's bookshelf.

0 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great book that inspires and calms at the same time., January 31, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Tales from the Steep: John Long's Favorite Climbing Literature (Paperback)

The collection of factual and fictional stories captures the essence of mountains and of the people who try to climb them. It contains electric stories of survival and breathtaking introspectives that indirectly try to answer the question of why people risk their lives to reach the top. Its an excellent book for a panoramic view of the mountain climbing world