This tragic true story touches on many events; too numerous to mention here. I found the arrogance, and cluelessness of some of the individuals inolved in the ascent to be appalling. The professional climbers should have known better. The commercialization of Everest is another tragedy in and of itself. At the end of the book I was amazed that anyone survived. At the same time, I wonder how hard it must have been for the author to sort through all the misery, and suffering, and write such a riveting book. My heart goes out to the families that were forever changed by these experiences. ( )

Climbing Everest had to be an obsession, a pretty strong one. Even with all the difficulties and pain the climbers went through, they kept pressing on. I wondered what they would do once they reached the top. There wasn't much description of what they saw from this pinnacle. In fact once Krakauer made it, he merely 'tagged the base' and turned around. Krakauer did cover the feelings well .. he lets you into his head; describing his impressions of the other climbers and the Sherpas. When the storm blew up and snuffed the life from several struggling to descend. I thought was it worth it? I guess I'll never understand why anyone would want to suffer like that with frostbite and hypoxia. I would have wanted to stay on top longer, or had more to say about being up there. All-in-all this book had me hooked, as far as wondering what happened to those who lost their lives. Knowing that several didn't make it back alive, had me feeling anixous for them and the moves they made. It was like knowing something bad would happen to them, but unable to stop them before it was too late. I feel sympathy for Krakauer, and the survior's guilt he endures. ( )

This was a pretty good book, but it is not one that I would let my child read. It was a little confusing with all the character names to memorize, but the themes from the book are very important. This book talks about the struggle of men to achieve their goals, and is really a good classic novel. Overall, this was a really good book. ( )

This is a book I have a pattern with: purchase, read, giveaway, rinse, repeat. I think this is the fourth or fifth copy I've had & the fourth or fifth time I've read it. I love this book. Krakauer's a great writer & the story is tragic on a grand scale.

I have very clear memories of when these awful events happened. I was working a graphic design job in a warehouse that looked out over a parking lot by Lake Union in Seattle. I had a little radio & would listen to NPR all day & that's where I heard the coverage of the people lost on the mountain & the attempts to rescue them & then the death toll. I remember it raining a lot during that time, but it was Seattle so it rained a lot all of the time. A friend of mine had a rock climbing housemate who knew Scott Fischer, one of the guides who died. The whole thing was heartbreaking & seemed so unnecessary.

Jon Krakauer was on Everest with Rob Hall's group as a journalist for Outside Magazine - to summit Everest & to write about the relatively new practice of commercial guided climbs on Everest. Like all of his books, Krakauer includes a fair amount of history - of mountain climbing, adventuring, & of Everest. He was one of the few people from the group that climbed that day that walked away alive & this book is definitely a survivor's meditation. There is a fair amount of controversy surrounding all of this - who did what when, who should've done what but didn't, who wanted to save his own ass more, who should never have been on the mountain. At the end of the day, though, I love this book - a tragedy that happens inch-by-inch as one decision after another adds up to disaster. ( )

I could not put this book down and finished it during Easter break in 3 days. The author was able to describe personalities and facts in a most fascinating plot, all the while making clear that this had really happened. This is one on the most captivating non-fiction books that I know. I would recommend it to everyone, hiking, climbing or not. (Bea) ( )