The Climb: Tragic Ambitions on Everest
- Book Review,
by Anatoli Boukreev, G. Weston DeWalt
Amazon.com
The Climb is Russian mountaineer Anatoli Boukreev's account of the harrowing May 1996 Mount Everest attempt, a tragedy that resulted in the deaths of eight people. The book is also Boukreev's rebuttal to accusations from fellow climber and author Jon Krakauer, who, in his bestselling memoir, Into Thin Air, suggests that Boukreev forfeited the safety of his clients to achieve his own climbing goals. Investigative writer and Climb coauthor G. Weston DeWalt uses taped statements from the surviving climbers and translated interviews from Boukreev to piece together the events and prove to the reader that Boukreev's role was heroic, not opportunistic. Boukreev refers to the actions of expedition leader Scott Fischer throughout the ascent, implying that factors other than the fierce snowstorm may have caused this disaster. This new account sparks debate among both mountaineers and those who have followed the story through the media and Krakauer's book. Readers can decide for themselves whether Boukreev presents a laudable defense or merely assuages his own bruised ego.
From Library Journal
This is a first-person account of the tragic climbing experience in May 1996 on Mount Everest that left eight hikers dead and several others struggling to stay alive. Boukreev, a top-rated high-altitude climber originally from the Soviet Union, uses notes and memories recorded only five days after the tragic events to tell what happened on the world's highest mountain. He writes partly in response to other best-selling accounts (e.g., Jon Krakauer's Into Thin Air, LJ 1/97). From the first chapter, as members of the ill-fated group meet and organize for the climb, to the last chapter, which raises questions still unanswered, a detailed, day-by-day description of this chilling tale is given. Fast-paced and easy to read, Boukreev's story of adventure and survival will remain in the reader's memory long after the book is finished. Recommended for public libraries.-?Stephanie Papa, Baltimore Cty. Circuit Court Law Lib.Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
The New York Times Book Review, Michael Parfit
The Climb ... is a breath of brisk, sometimes bitter clarity.... It reads like an investigator's report, using uneven devices.... The result is raw but powerful.
From AudioFile
By now you've probably heard about the extreme risks of going up into thin air, thanks to several accounts by Jon Krakauer and numerous documentaries, including an IMAX production. Anatoli Boukreev was a climbing guide for the American expedition that lost its leader, Scott Fisher, on the May 1996 attempt to summit Mt. Everest. Four others died trying to descend from the summit that fateful day in May, but Boukreev used his extensive high-altitude expertise and unbelievable physical strength to work at 24,000+ feet without supplemental oxygen to save all the clients of the Fisher group. Although James engages vocal emotion to capture the terror of unstable crevasses, relentless wind, frostbite and oxygen-starved struggles to walk, he fails to employ a distinct Russian accent for the passages that represent Boukreev's recollections, making it difficult to keep track of which climber is relating events. J.E.G. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine
From Kirkus Reviews
Mountain guide Boukreev tells his version of the events of the May 1996 Mt. Everest disaster, in which five climbers died, in an effort to clear his name of damning allegations made in Jon Krakauer's bestselling Into Thin Air. Boukreev is well known in climbing circles as a good, tough, experienced guide, not especially personable or given to pampering the clients, but utterly reliable, especially in tight situations. So it came as a shock when Krakauer called into question Boukreev's behavior on that fateful day: Why had the guide raced down the mountain before his clients? Was it because he was improperly dressed and climbing without supplemental oxygen? Was it true he ``cut and ran'' when needed most, as charged by a Boukreev client whom Krakauer quotes? Boukreev provides a detailed history of his team's expedition (the book is told as an alternating duet, with Boukreev doing the play-by-play and investigative filmmaker DeWalt handling long swaths of color commentary), of the things that went right on the climb and the many that went wrong, as well as a minute examination of his climbing philosophy. And he successfully parries Krakauer's accusations: He was appropriately dressed and has photos to prove it; he climbs without supplemental oxygen because he feels it makes him stronger, not weaker, especially in situations where oxygen runs out; and, indeed, oxygen was fast running out for his clients, which is why he hurried down, with the consent of his team's leader, to be prepared to ferry tanks back up if needed. Not that the book is without its own glitches, such as inconsistency (``You can receive a lot more information observing the clients' external appearance'' and ``Appearances meant nothing''). Such a pall of anger and defensiveness hangs over Boukreev's account that only those with a personal interest in his reputation will find much solace in his story. -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
Review
"Raw but powerful...[Boukreev] took action. He chose danger, and he saved lives." --The New York Times Book Review
"One of the most amazing rescues in mountaineering history, performed single-handedly a few hours after climbing Everest without oxygen by a man some describe as the Tiger Woods of Himalayan climbing." --Wall Street Journal
"[The Climb] has a ring of authenticity that challenges the slickly written Into Thin Air...Compelling" --Minneapolis Star Tribune
Review
"Raw but powerful...[Boukreev] took action. He chose danger, and he saved lives." --The New York Times Book Review
"One of the most amazing rescues in mountaineering history, performed single-handedly a few hours after climbing Everest without oxygen by a man some describe as the Tiger Woods of Himalayan climbing." --Wall Street Journal
"[The Climb] has a ring of authenticity that challenges the slickly written Into Thin Air...Compelling" --Minneapolis Star Tribune
Book Description
As the climbers of the 1996 Mt. Everest disaster vanished into thin air, one man had the courage to bring them down alive...
On May 10, 1996, two commercial expeditions headed by expert leaders attempted to scale the world's largest peak. But things went terribly wrong. Crowded conditions, bad judgement, and a bitter storm stopped many climbers in their tracks. Others were left for dead, or stranded on the frigid mountain. Anatoli Boukreev, head climbing guide for the Mountain Madness expedition, stepped into the heart of the storm and brought three of his clients down alive. Here is his amazing story-of an expedition fated for disaster, of the blind ambition that drives people to attempt such dangerous ventures, and of a modern-day hero, who risked his own life to save others..
From the Publisher
This newest edition of the bestselling account of the 1996 Everest disaster now includes never before published transcripts of the climbers' debriefing from the Everest base camp. This new material is a must for all followers of the Everest story and includes the climbers first reactions to events.
About the Author
Anatoli Boukreev was one of the world's foremost high-altitude mountaineers, arguably the finest of his generation. He had summited eleven of the world's 8,000 meter peaks without the use of supplementary oxygen, some of them, including Mount Everest, multiple times. In all, he attempted twenty-one times he was successful. Born in Russia where he received the Master of Sports with Honors, Boukreev had made his home in Kazakhstan where in 1998 the President of that Republic awarded him posthumously the "Erligi Ushin" Medal for his contributions to high-altitude mountaineering and for his personal courage.
G. Weston Dewalt is a writer and investigative filmmaker who specializes in human rights issues, the confluence of humankind and the environment, and biography. His film Genbaku shi: Killed by the Atomic Bomb compelled the U.S. Department of Defense to acknowledge that American POWs had been killed during the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. He divides his time between Santa Fe, New Mexico, and London.
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