Into Thin Air - Jon Krakauer

[goodreads]

Title: Into Thin Air
Author: Jon Krakauer
Genre: Memoir
Rating: 4/5
# pages: 319
Date read: January, 2013

When Jon Krakauer reached the summit of Mt. 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 his long, dangerous descent from 29,028 feet, twenty other climbers were still pushing doggedly toward the top. No one had noticed that the sky had begun to fill with clouds. Six hours later and 3,000 feet lower, in 70-knot winds and blinding snow, Krakauer collapsed in his tent, freezing, hallucinating from exhaustion and hypoxia, but safe. The following morning, he learned that six of his fellow climbers hadn't made it back to their camp and were desperately struggling for their lives. When the storm finally passed, five of them would be dead, and the sixth so horribly frostbitten that his right hand would have to be amputated.

Into Thin Air is the definitive account of the deadliest season in the history of Everest.

Fascinating book! Not one you read in one sitting though, as it's full of names and details to remember. But it never became dry, and I found myself thinking about it even when away from it - that's usually a good sign.

I know nothing about climbing, but reading about Jon Krakauer's experiences I can tell that it takes a very special mentality to subject oneself to that kind of hardship for the sake of... of what? In the case of Mt. Everest, it seems to be for the sake of a high risk of failure, 15 minutes top on the summit (if you make it that far) and an ever-present risk of hypothermia, frostbite, and even death. Of course I can understand the accomplishment of being able to say "Done that!", but for me, personally, it wouldn't be worth it.

That said, though I wouldn't do it myself, it's still fascinating for me to read about! I love living life vicariously through others, and in that regard, the book was spot on!