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highly recommended |
interesting 
This is a well written book about the underside of climbing Everest. It's a sad story about the greed and lack of decency that sometimes grips mountaineering. Kodas details the story of several climbers who have died trying to summit the mountain and others who have watched them fade.
One particularly sad story reads, "Max Chaya and his Sherpa spent an hour giving David oxygen and trying to get him on his feet, until Russell radioed Max, who was weeping, and coaxed him to get a more on before his own oxygen tanks were exhausted. Max recited the Lords Prayer in French to the dying climber, then headed down. When he got back to camp, Max, who had just achieved his years-long dream of climbing the Seven Summits, wasn't in the mood to celebrate. He zipped himself into his tent and cried for two hours." (p. 303)
Unlike Krakauer's Into Thin Air, I did not find this book to be self promoting or exculpatory in any way. Just a good yet tragic read.
Fascinating and well written, however 
Mr. Kodas is a good writer and has done a very good job of telling the tales of greed and death on Mt Everest. It is hard to turn away from this tale.
However, the insertion of the stories of the author's own summit attempt, was disconcerting and leads one to believe that he has his own personal ax to grind. Additionally, the transition between the several expeditions described is somewhat confusing.
But beyond these faults, the book is a fascinating read. I would recommend this book if you have any interest in climbing or the men and women who feverishly pursue the mountain summits despite the substantial risks.
A Very Provocative Read
After reading this book I honestly have no idea of how accurate and objective it is. It is one newspaper writer's account of the increasing immorality of Mount Everest's climbers, guides and expeditions. I was shocked by many of the stories- it sounds as if Mt. Everest has become a wasteland of thieves, greedy profiteers,unqualified guides, selfish and sometimes psychopathic climbers, opportunistic Sherpas and malfunctioning oxygen equipment. If even a fraction of what the author writes is true,it is a truly depraved situation. In addition, it sounds as if the mountain itself has become a dump of empty oxygen bottles, dead bodies and human waste. The main "immoral" climbers characterized in the book (George and Gustavo)seemed to get a disproportionate and overwhelming amount of attention which seemed strange and it left me wondering how much of this book was about anger and a failed expedition the author was a participant in. That is where this book and it's overall accuracy and objectivity come into question. I'm not certain what the truth is. I think it is an interesting read however and it has left me wanting to find out what is truly going on in the world of 8,000 meter climbing.
Its the truth! 
I have attempted the summit of Everest twice. I was a member of the 2005 and 2006 Himex expeditions based on the north side. This is the most honest depiction of the north side of Mt Everest.
I can tell you that the Discovery Channel's series called "Everest Beyond the Limit" that chronicles our summit attempt in 2006 dares not tell the true story of what goes on in on the north side of Everest. Money, greed, egos, lack of integrity, the Chinese and more money is what prevents the Discovery Channel and others from telling the truth. The truth is in this book.
When I buy a non-fiction book, I am looking for accurate accounts of what happened. I want to know the truth regardless of a particular author's writing style. This book tells the story that so many are afraid to tell.
If you cannot handle the truth about the north side of Everest and of the many low-life guides and expedition leaders, then you are not ready for the real world. If you want the truth and a real life discription of the real Everest then buy the book.
Eye opening expose
Subtitled: The Fate of Everest in an Age of Greed.
I actually listened to this in audio format. I think it had a greater impact than on me than reading it would have.
Sir Edmund Hillary conquered Everest, the highest peak in the world, in 1953. Since then climbers have flocked in droves to achieve this same lofty goal and the world has watched, fascinated with those willing to risk their lives to stand 'on top of the world.'
Michael Kodas, the author, attempted this climb in 2004. He was sponsored by the newspaper he worked for in Connecticut. This book covers so much more than his trip.
The title says it all. Hillary himself expressed disgust on the 50th anniversary of his achievement over the 'circus' that Everest has become.
Kodas exposes the underbelly of Everest. He details the many deaths on the mountain and follows one family as they search for answers. The thieving, greed and selfishness detailed are not as much as a revelation as they might have been. Numerous stories detailing rescues of climbers left for dead, passed over by many other climbers have been in the news.
Everest basecamp is home to prostitution and drugs,theft and violence.
When I finished listening to the book, I went online and viewed pictures of Everest. It is breathtaking in it's beauty. I can see why people the world over flock here to achieve their dream. However it the sheen is tarnished.
In High Crimes, Kodas presents a well researched, detailed interview of many of the key players in the Himalayas and the ugly side of the mountain.
reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
In the years following the publication of Into Thin Air, much has changed on Mount Everest. Among all the books documenting the glorious adventures in mountains around the world, and the unique perils and challenges of Mount Everest, none details how the recent infusion of wealth into the mountains is reacting with the age-old lust for glory to draw crime to the highest places on the planet, how a mountain's ability to reduce climbers to their essential selves is revealing villains as well as heroes, greed as well as selflessness. The change is caused both by a tremendous boom in traffic to the world's mountains and a new class of parasitic and predatory adventurer. Some of the stories included in the book are the tragic story of Nils Antezana, a climber who died on Everest after he was abandoned by his guide, and the author's own summit story, as he participated in the Connecticut Everest Expedition, which would never have followed George Dijjmarescu and Lhakpa Sherpa to the Himalaya had news of the couple's climb with the Romanian team the previous year made it to the United States. But as they neared the frigid peril of Everest, the charming couple turned increasingly hostile. Women on the team held little power and were instead threatened, stalked, and harassed before a final assault. Those that tried to stand against the violence, theft and intimidation found the worst of the peril they encountered on Everest had followed them home to Connecticut. Beatings, thefts, drugs, prostitution, coercion, threats, and abandonment on the highest slopes of Everest and other mountains have become the rule rather than the exception, and Kodas describes many of these experiences and explores the larger issues these stories raise with thriller-like intensity.
high crimes, crimes, high
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