melatonin1mg's review
4.0
“Taking responsibility for Pasang—stranded without an axe, on the deadliest pitch of K2, on a moonless night, without a rope, beneath crumbling seracs—wasn’t rational. But Chhiring never doubted that it was the right thing to do. Sonam , the Buddhist concept of virtue, is nonnegotiable, particularly on K2, so near a goddess who could influence his next reincarnation. She was watching and expected him to show compassion. He expected it of himself.”
Great storytelling and insight into the inner lives of Sherpa climbers and high-altitude porters.
Great storytelling and insight into the inner lives of Sherpa climbers and high-altitude porters.
bookishwendy's review
4.0
I'm a sucker for mountaineering books. The best by far is [b:Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster|1898|Into Thin Air A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster|Jon Krakauer|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1388181915s/1898.jpg|1816662], but others such as the history-packed [b:Into the Silence: The Great War, Mallory, and the Conquest of Everest|11602442|Into the Silence The Great War, Mallory, and the Conquest of Everest|Wade Davis|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1390769552s/11602442.jpg|16544751] and this much slimmer volume Buried in the Sky don't pull their emotional punches, either.
K2 is the popular name of the mountain that is is "shorter than Everest, but much harder" (according to the t-shirt of one of this book's climbers). It's also called The Savage Mountain because 1 in 4 people who attempt it die trying, in contrast to 1 in every 100 who attempt Everest. As much as I love the outdoors, I don't see myself ever tackling an 8000 meter mountain. But I will read the hell out of them.
At first I expected Buried in the Sky to be basically an extended Outside Magazine article, but it's unique in that it focuses on the sherpas and high-altitude porters who are often--and initially were in the 2008 disaster--ignored or discounted. Along with the expected sufferings of high altitude exertion and extreme climate, there's an interesting undercurrent of complex culture clash among the ambitious/entitled Western climbers, the highly experienced Nepali sherpas brought to K2 for their Everest accomplishments, and the local Pakistani high altitude crews who have less altitude experience, much know the local environs better. This sounds like a recipe for disaster--and it is--but also seeds some unexpected heroism.
This one won the Banff Mountain Book Award, the National Outdoor Book Award an others...and it's easy to see why. My main criticism is that it feels short, and perhaps doesn't delve as deeply into difficult questions the way Krauker does in Into Thin Air. But it's very well researched, has helpful (if somewhat spoiler-y) graphics, and is gripping to boot.
Next up (in the near-ish future, that is) in the mountaineering line-up is [b:Annapurna: A Woman's Place|306659|Annapurna A Woman's Place|Arlene Blum|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1328746346s/306659.jpg|297640].
K2 is the popular name of the mountain that is is "shorter than Everest, but much harder" (according to the t-shirt of one of this book's climbers). It's also called The Savage Mountain because 1 in 4 people who attempt it die trying, in contrast to 1 in every 100 who attempt Everest. As much as I love the outdoors, I don't see myself ever tackling an 8000 meter mountain. But I will read the hell out of them.
At first I expected Buried in the Sky to be basically an extended Outside Magazine article, but it's unique in that it focuses on the sherpas and high-altitude porters who are often--and initially were in the 2008 disaster--ignored or discounted. Along with the expected sufferings of high altitude exertion and extreme climate, there's an interesting undercurrent of complex culture clash among the ambitious/entitled Western climbers, the highly experienced Nepali sherpas brought to K2 for their Everest accomplishments, and the local Pakistani high altitude crews who have less altitude experience, much know the local environs better. This sounds like a recipe for disaster--and it is--but also seeds some unexpected heroism.
This one won the Banff Mountain Book Award, the National Outdoor Book Award an others...and it's easy to see why. My main criticism is that it feels short, and perhaps doesn't delve as deeply into difficult questions the way Krauker does in Into Thin Air. But it's very well researched, has helpful (if somewhat spoiler-y) graphics, and is gripping to boot.
Next up (in the near-ish future, that is) in the mountaineering line-up is [b:Annapurna: A Woman's Place|306659|Annapurna A Woman's Place|Arlene Blum|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1328746346s/306659.jpg|297640].
juliannef's review against another edition
2.0
A compelling read, yet it felt incomplete, full of conjecture and scattered.
jritter4's review
4.0
This is an astoundingly good piece of research and journalism. I think it speaks volumes that Padoan and Zuckerman committed their efforts to researching the underrepresented group that makes climbing mountains possible, but the group that suffers the most consequences. A good look into why the countries' governments will never limit who can climb their mountains and endanger their people. I also read it as a plea to stop, regardless.
siobhanward's review
informative
fast-paced
4.0
I've read a fair amount about Everest, but very little about K2. I really enjoyed this story and learning more about K2. This book was well-researched and seemed to have been told in a very respectful way. One thing that was a bit eerie was the early-book discussion about people in Kathmandu waiting for "the big one" - this book was published three years before the massive 2015 earthquake. Definitely a bit eerie to see it predicted by locals.
Further to that, this book was just well-written and interesting. There was less focus on the interpersonal drama than there often is in other, similar accounts, which I appreciated. I'm sure this is because there is just less drama in general than the 1996 Everest disaster, and the fact that the authors of this book were far less involved with the event than authors writing about the 1996 event.
Anyway, all that to say, this was an interesting read for anyone interested in mountaineering, Sherpa climbers, and K2. It's certainly one of my favourites that I've read on the topic.
Further to that, this book was just well-written and interesting. There was less focus on the interpersonal drama than there often is in other, similar accounts, which I appreciated. I'm sure this is because there is just less drama in general than the 1996 Everest disaster, and the fact that the authors of this book were far less involved with the event than authors writing about the 1996 event.
Anyway, all that to say, this was an interesting read for anyone interested in mountaineering, Sherpa climbers, and K2. It's certainly one of my favourites that I've read on the topic.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
rebeccamac55's review
adventurous
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
5.0
timeywimeybooks's review
3.0
Enjoyable, gave quite a bit of Sherpa history and information. Disappointing that he books ends at 60% and it's all footnotes from there.