Banner in the Sky (Paperback)

~ James Ramsey Ullman (Author) "Most of the boys of the village were tall, broad and strongly built..." (more)
Key Phrases: old red flannel shirt, boot nails, southeast ridge, Captain Winter, Frau Matt, Rudi Matt (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

The Citadel

It stands unconquered, the last great summit of the Alps. Only one man has ever dared to approach the top, and that man died in his pursuit. He was Josef Matt, Rudi Matt's father.

At sixteen, Rudi is determined to pay tribute to the man he never knew, and complete the quest that claimed his father's life. And so, taking his father's red shirt as a flag, he heads off to face the earth's most challenging peak. But before Rudi can reach the top, he must pass through the forbidden Fortress, the gaping chasm in the high reaches of teh Citadel where his father met his end. Rudi has followed Josef's footsteps as far as they will take him. Now he must search deep within himself to find the strength for the final ascent to the summit--to plant his banner in the sky.

His father died while trying to climb Switzerland’s greatest mountain—the Citadel—and young Rudi knows he must make the assault himself. ‘Based upon the author’s personal experiences, with details from the original ascent of the Matterhorn, the story has authenticity, atmosphere, and excitement.’ —BL.

1955 Newbery Honor Book
Notable Children's Books of 1954 (ALA)

Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: HarperTeen (April 15, 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0064470482
• ISBN-13: 978-0064470483
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (98 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #252,078 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Loved it as a kid, love it even more now., August 28, 2005

By	Nina M. Osier (Augusta, ME USA) - See all my reviews

Sixteen-year-old Rudi Matt works as a hotel dishwasher in the 19th Century Swiss village of Kurtal. Every day of his life he's stared up at the Citadel, the one remaining unclimbed peak in the Alps. Fifteen years ago three men tried that climb. One, the hotel cook who is Rudi's boss, came back crippled. Two were carried down dead: Guide Josef Matt, Rudi's father, and his "herr" or client, a great English mountaineer.

Rudi understands why his mother forbids him to follow his father's profession, even though her brother - Rudi's Uncle Franz - is one of Kurtal's most successful guides. Rudi will learn the hotel business, first in Kurtal and later in Zurich. His mother has already given one man to the Citadel and its fabled demons. She won't risk giving another. But Rudi can't help himself. He has to climb. When he meets another famous English mountaineer, Captain John Winter - and proves his strength and skill by saving Winter's life - it's only a matter of time. The Citadel waits to be climbed, and Josef Matt's son knows he's the man who must climb it.

This is another re-read for me, a book I loved in girlhood and find myself loving even more many years later. BANNER IN THE SKY started me reading mountaineering books despite my personal hatred for both heights and cold weather, and I've savored many such tales - some true life, some fictional - since then. This remains my personal favorite in the latter category. It's smoothly yet colorfully written, and anyone whose youthful dreams a careful parent couldn't share is sure to experience Rudi's coming of age right along with him.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Unclimbable Peak, April 13, 2005

A Kid's Review

A Banner in the Sky is an adventure about a kid named Rudi who tries to climb the greatest mountain in the world. His father, who was the greatest mountaineer even attempted to climb it 15 years before him but failed and died. Rudi's father died when Rudi was very young so, Rudi didn't have any feelings for the death.

This book was the best book I've ever read. Every page was fulled with excitement, and interesting events. I never wanted to put this book down it was so good. I read it as fast as I can and finished it in one day.

This book reminded me of a few things. The mountain that Rudi climbed was like present day Mt.Everest. Also this book reminded me about when my aunt died I was very imature and young and I didn't understand her death; kind of like how Rudi's father died and he didn't understand his death.

The setting of the book took place in multiply places. The main setting was on the mountain. Mr.Ullman used great description to describe the mountain. I good picture the mountain so clearly in my mind. The book also took place in the town under the mountain. The town contained a hotel for tourists, many mountaineer shops, and houses for the people living there. The people living in the town got all their money form the tourist. There was only one main character in Banner in the Sky. The main character is Rudi. Rudi has a lot of heart and courage. The mountaineers said that he was to small to climb and he would never be like his father but he never listened to them and climbed the greatest mountain of all time. Banner in the Sky has one Newberry award and it also been a movie. James Ramsey Ullman was born in NYC in 1907. He is a write, world traveler, and a mountaineer. He was on the 1st voyage on Mt.Everest. I would recommend this book to kids over 5th grade that can read long books.
Banner in the Sky is a great book. I could read it several times. This book shows the courage of a boy on a voyage that no man can do; climbing the unclimbable mountain.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Story of Courage, December 17, 2004

A Kid's Review

I gave this book, Banner in the Sky, five stars because it was very absorbing and suspenseful. I liked this book because it showed how much a little boy was dedicated to climbing a mountain. He wanted to climb the mountain because his father wanted to prove it could be done, and in the process he died. What made me read faster and faster was that at every time I turned the page questions kept popping in my head. The questions were, "Will he listen to his mother or will he not?", "If he doesn't listen to his mother will his surprise acquaintance help him?", and, last but not least, "If he doesn't listen to his mother will he succeed?" My heart was beating faster and faster by the second as I read. It's a book you won't want to put down until you read from cover to cover.