Into Thin Air
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Book Summary Information
Reader: Jon KrakauerEdition: Music CD
Format: Audiobook
Published: 1998-04-06
ISBN: 0553455893
Publisher: Random House Audio
Book Reviews of Into Thin Air
Book Review: It's a Book you can Learn to Despise the Author
Summary: 2 Stars
Even though the title of the review is what it is, the book does has some interesting tidbits about high altitude mountaineering. For non climbers and arm-chair adventurers it would satisfy you, as the author writes well. You'll learn some intrinsic details, enough to keep the "how and what" types occupied. For this the book gets it's two stars -- good writing and technical details (like the effects of high altitude sickness).
But what makes this book really hard to stomach though, and how a reader can learn to despise the author, is how critical the author is about those in the expedition. Usually I like to know the "real story" in adventure disasters, to know the interpersonal reactions (like the character chemistry in the Scott South Pole Expedition), yet I draw the line at common decency. The Japanese woman climber, he complained about what she carried, claiming it helped to contribute in her death. That cold. Then in the end of the book the author tells of how he tries to cope with the tragedy, and the death of the very people he was critical over. It comes off self-serving, and after the meat puppetry, even put on. Guess the author tries to cope with some anger and denial, which means he didn't recover enough after the tragedy to write the book without it, and would explain how upsetting a read this book can be.
Get the book if you like mountaining stories. Get it for some history (some tidbits about the IMAX expedition in the book). But don't get it if you have a heart, you'll be wanting to tear pages out of the book as he pokes the dead in the eyes.
Summary of Into Thin Air
Into Thin Air is a riveting first-hand account of a catastrophic expedition up Mount Everest. In March 1996, Outside magazine sent veteran journalist and seasoned climber Jon Krakauer on an expedition led by celebrated Everest guide Rob Hall. Despite the expertise of Hall and the other leaders, by the end of summit day eight people were dead. Krakauer's book is at once the story of the ill-fated adventure and an analysis of the factors leading up to its tragic end. Written within months of the events it chronicles, Into Thin Air clearly evokes the majestic Everest landscape. As the journey up the mountain progresses, Krakauer puts it in context by recalling the triumphs and perils of other Everest trips throughout history. The author's own anguish over what happened on the mountain is palpable as he leads readers to ponder timeless questions.Into Thin Air is the definitive, personal account of the deadliest season in the history of Mount Everest--told by acclaimed journalist, and bestselling author of Into the Wild and Eiger Dreams, Jon Krakauer. On assignment for Outside magazine, Krakauer, an accomplished climber, went to the Himalayas to report on the growing commercialization of the planet's highest mountain. Even though one climber in four dies attempting to reach the summit of Everest, business is booming as guides take the rich and the adventurous up the mountain for a fee of $65,000. Krakauer examines what it is about Everest that has compelled so many people--including himself--to throw caution to the wind and willingly subject themselves to so much danger, hardship, and expense.
When Jon Krakauer reached the summit of Mount 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 depletion. As he turned to begin the perilous descent from 29,028 feet (roughly the cruising altitude of an Airbus jetliner), twenty other climbers were still pushing doggedly to the top, unaware that the sky had begun to roil with clouds.
Into Thin Air is the definitive account of the deadliest season in the history of Everest by the acclaimed Outside journalist and author of the bestselling Into the Wild. Taking the reader step-by-step from Katmandu to the mountain's deadly pinnacle, Krakauer has us shaking on the edge of our seat. Beyond the terrors of this account, however, he also peers deeply into the myth of the world's tallest mountain. What is it about Everest that has compelled so many people -- including himself -- to throw caution to the wind, ignore the concerns of loved ones, and willingly subject themselves to such risk, hardship, and expense?
Written with emotional clarity and supported by unimpeachable reporting, Krakauer's eyewitness account of what happened on the roof of the world is a singular achievement.
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