Wonderful book, written very matter-of-factly

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	• High Adventure: The True Story of the First Ascent of Everest Edmund Hillary Oxford University Press, USA, 2003 - 272 pages average customer review:based on 8 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

A cracking good yarn!

The funny thing is that people probably eschew this book, thinking it's written in "old fashioned" terminology or it's "just another summit book."

Nothing could be further from the truth. Hillary's enthusiasm for mountain climbing punctuates every page (literally; I don't think there's a page in the book that lacks an exclamation point). He talks about the technicalities of climbing with ease and in accessible language, and he regards the mountains as beings in their own right, worthy of respect and awe.

In addition, the edition of the book I read, despite being a paperback, was illustrated not only with line drawings reminiscent of Arthur Ransome's books, but with simple maps and diagrams showing exactly where the various glaciers are or the path through the Khombu icefall (not nearly as simple as later books/authors make it seem!). These diagrams add even more personality to an already-fascinating book, and give the reader a real sense of what these explorers faced.

This is an enthralling book that goes along at a great pace and it was definitely over too soon. Give it a try: it's worth at least a dozen of the whiny 70's mountaineering books!

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I'm On Top Of The World!

HIGH ADVENTURE is Sir Edmund Hillary's engaging and somewhat self-effacing account of the first recorded successful Everest ascent in 1953.

An earlier reviewer describes Hillary as "a bigot," I suppose because he describes the Sherpas he worked with as "coolies." Of course, HIGH ADVENTURE was written in 1955, when attitudes were much different. And Hillary, far from being self-aggrandizing, seems to shun the spotlight.

Certainly, Hillary makes fairly little of his pre-Everest climbs, although they undoubtedly made him a splendid mountaineer. His lyrical voice for settings and experiences is fine, though never as poetical as Peter Matthiessen in THE SNOW LEOPARD, who traversed much of the same ground.

One of the shortcomings of this book is the lack of an Afterword in the new edition. One has to wonder what Hillary thinks of Everest's now chintzy, clockworked guided climbs. For a view from today's polluted top of the mountain read Jon Ktrakauer's INTO THIN AIR.

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Wonderful book, written very matter-of-factly

(I read the hard-cover edition which is not in stock at Amazon at the time of writing this.)

The outcome of the adventure - the first successful summit climb of Everest - is a well-known fact. However, Hillary's telling of the story makes a gripping tale, well worth reading. Sometimes the matter-of-fact narration makes you think those climbs and hazards were really easy. A look at the black and white photos (in the paperback edition I have, these are separate plates) of the ice walls and crevasses dispels such fantasies! Even following well-trodden routes up the Everest is no mean task; it is awe-inspiring to read about the route-finders' story in first person.

The book talks about not only the actual climb of Everest, but events leading up to it for the previous two years. Some of these are amazing feats of strength and courage, and give an understanding of the spirit of the original pioneers. For instance, Hillary and his friend ford various rivers in full monsoon strength - they not only ford it once, but ferry across terrified porters with massive loads, multiple times. They spend days together fording such rivers and helping porters across with their luggage. All this only to reach the foothills of the Himalayas, this is only the precursor to the actual climbing. Then almost as an aside, Hillary talks about rafting down a river and being caught in a whirlpool.

The tone of the book remains light and easy. Hillary describes reaching the summit as a moment of quiet satisfaction, nothing over-dramatized. The story talks for itself I guess, there's no need for adding drama to it.

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Armchair Mountaineer Loves It

This is Hillary's engaging first person account of his Everest Summit.

Overall impression: The first and latter chapters are by far the best. The second and third chapters contain surveying narratives which didn't engage me all that much. I read the book in two days whenever I had a moment to read it... I had it with me at all times because I was dying to read the next page. Great book.

What I loved about it: By the time you get to the final two chapters, you feel like you are summitting with them. I knew they would make it, of course, but while you are reading you have this suspention of reality and there are moments where you just don't see how they can possibly make it. The description of what he was thinking in these unchartered regions kept me glued! Also, the description and map of the Khumbu icefall left my jaw dropped. These were very brave men!

What I didn't like about it: The descriptions of the treks between the camps on everest (back and forth, back and forth) tended to blend together. I felt like he could have cut some of that narrative (i.e. going back for more supplies, checking on people, etc..)

Conclusion: You won't regret buying the book. I can't help but think his goal was to include everything he could remember just to get it documented, even if some of the information doesn't necessarily advance the story you were expecting to read. It's 70% thrill and 30% redundancy or extranias information. Still a great book.

Here is one thing that nags me though. THE BIG QUESTION: Hillary was competitive. He admits he was happyt to hear that the Swiss team did not summit. He was not assigned to be the first of his team to summit, yet he does not tell us he was dissapointed by that decision! C'mon! He MUST have been. Also, when the first team failed, he didn't admit that a part of him was happy that he had his shot to be the first! That seems like normal human behavior and also fitting with his previous comments. The fact that he didn't talk about his emotions during those events tells me he doesn't want to come off as a bad sport.

Add the book the your library!

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Exciting mountaineering tale

It seems to me that Hillary's account of his Everest summit is honestly written. I found his writing style engaging, not because it was good, per say, but because it seemed to be a normal guy saying what he felt needed to be said. His style and opinions were very 1950's, and I don't think he meant any harm to anyone, sherpas and whatnot. I liked it. The fact that Hillary never saw a mountain until he was 16 makes me think I have a shot at Everest someday...

reviews: page 1, 2

Fear lives among Everest's mighty ice-fluted faces and howls across its razor-sharp crags. Gnawing at reason and enslaving minds, it has killed many and defeated countless others. But in 1953, Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay stared into its dark eye and did not waver. On May 29, they pushed spent bodies and aching lungs past the achievable to pursue the impossible. At a terminal altitude of 29,028 feet, they stood triumphant atop the highest peak in the world.
With nimble words and a straightforward style, New Zealand mountaineering legend Hillary recollects the bravery and frustration, the agony and glory that marked his Everest odyssey. From the 1951 expedition that led to the discovery of the Southern Route, through the grueling Himalayan training of 1952, and on to the successful 1953 expedition led by Colonel John Hunt, Hillary conveys in precise language the mountain's unforgiving conditions. In explicit detail he recalls an Everest where chaotic icefalls force costly detours, unstable snow ledges promise to avalanche at the slightest misstep, and brutal weather shifts from pulse-stopping cold to fiendish heat in mere minutes.
In defiance of these torturous conditions, Hillary remains enthusiastic and never hesitates in his quest for the summit. Despite the enormity of his and Norgay's achievement, he regards himself, Norgay, and the other members of his expedition as hardworking men, not heroes. And while he never would have reached the top without practiced skill and technical competence, his thrilling memoir speaks first to his admiration of the human drive to explore, to understand, to risk, and to conquer.

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