Review of the audiobook - Wow!

Krakauer wrote this book less than 1 year after the ill-fated summit. His reads the audiobook, and his performance lends additional immediacy to what was already an intensely personal account. I would say that it was the most riveting audiobook that I have ever listened to. I was literally looking for excuses to drive and hear the next chapter.

I also think that the audiobook, with the author's inflection and passion, led me to a different conclusion than some reviewers about his opinions regarding blame, villains and heroes.

Boukreev - He comes across as both villain and hero by turns. It is clear that Krakauer thinks that some of his actions increased the risks to the client climbers, but he is clear that Boukreev risked his life repeatedly in rescuing stranded climbers from certain death.

The guides Hall, Harris and Fischer - They come off as human, not invulnerable to the harsh conditions of cold and hypoxia of the ascent. While the book points to mistakes they made, it also makes clear that no amount of character or will can prevent such mistakes in this environment.

The author as climber - I did not feel he was too gentle in his self-criticism. He makes it clear that he is haunted by his personal failings on the mountain that day.


In summary, this is an intense, highly personal account of human beings at and beyond the limits of human endurance. I mentioned that I was listening to it to a colleague, and he was immediately discussing it with me in animated detail, even though he read it over 5 years ago. This book is like that. It will stay with you long after you put it down.

Enjoyable

Krakauer does a very decent job of recounting this tragedy. I thought that he resisted extremely well the temptation of finger pointing. It is obvious that the storm in itself is not the cause of the deaths. It is a combination of greed, fame, unpreparedness, inadequate planning and erratic decision-making. Only the leader of the South African Team (Woodall) comes out as a villain and from what I read elsewhere, it is well deserved. Even Boukreev gets a fair account, both sides of the coin being shown. Krakauer does not make a final judgment on this and lets the reader decide. The debate will go on.
Krakauer may embellish some of the facts and his own actions, but he does not hide his guilt, the fact that he made critical mistakes (re Harris).

What I personally enjoy is not so much the macabre side (people on the edge of death, and consciously or not playing with their lives). It is the capacity of human beings to go beyond exhaustion, what made Weathers rise from the dead and walk to safety, what made Fisher, Harris, Hansen and others go on and on only supported by willpower, despite the lack of sleep, food, the intense cold, the wind, etc. The way Hansen collapsed after the summit is extremely revealing on how the mind can drive the body.

The only weakness of the book is that I got several times lost among the many characters/climbers involved. But this may also be due to my generally fast reading pace.

Que libro!

5 stars is short for this book, after reading It makes you feel quite dizzy, about how death can close so fast up there on a mountain, all of a sudden.

Nothing that an outsider expectator may say can change or diminish what is related here, about what happened on the spring of 96 at the top of World.

But I want to leave two messages, first for Beck Weathers, if you ever read this lines, I really would be proud for that, you define the term for endurance and principles. In my opinion Americans like you founded your country, and might stay at the TOP of United States too!!, I hope some day I could give you a hug personally, I never seen a survivor treated that bad!! ... Sorry.

The other message is for Jon Krakauer, as an Ecuadorian Climber, and as a human I must say, forget that guilty feeling, after what you survived up there, you must thank God that you are still alive! just to remind you this: you did a great job up there and writing this unvaluable book. Astounding research, and a survivor hug too!

And for both of you, if you ever came to Ecuador give me a call with pleasure I can show you part of my amazing country.

Congratulations

Francisco

What a book, translated to spanish = Que libro!