Bernadette McDonald (1)

In this case, the whole is less than the sum of the parts. There are surely amazing stories here, but McDonald covers so much ground that they seem unremarkable and forgettable.

> “Communist time was so nice for us because we didn’t have to work...Two months with the painting jobs and it was enough; then we can go for six months to the Himalaya.” Together with university professors, doctors, and engineers, Krzysztof painted towers and smokestacks—and climbed. “I painted almost the show more whole of Silesia ...the Katowice steelworks, mines, buildings, conveyor belts, chimneys of heat-generating plants, water towers ...from Trzebnia to Zabrze,” he claimed. “Time had no value back then. We did what we wanted: we met at the mountaineers’ club, we dreamt, we made plans, and then set out to the mountains! As grown-ups, we were at a permanent party, having quit our professions, not knowing that in a few years’ time capitalism would also come to us.”

> This exuberance of creative expression wasn’t limited to climbers. There was an abundance of artists and writers who thrived creatively during those severely repressed years in Poland. The censorship industry, rather than stifle, seemed to actually stimulate the artistic community. Like the climbers, artists became stronger through oppression; their most creative work came out of the darkest days. When repression collapsed, they collapsed too. They had no idea how to communicate without being rebels.

> Leszek attributed Poland’s great record in the mountains to a much more banal reason: sheer numbers. “There was a veritable army of climbers,” he said. “It was inevitable that some would rise to the top.” He pointed out that, for more than a decade, there were 10 to 15 Polish expeditions mounted each year to the Himalaya. Those climbers who rose to the top became famous, but there were hundreds more who didn’t, despite their phenomenal climbs.

> Each of these stars had his or her own idée fixe. For Wanda it was to be the first woman to wear the Himalayan Crown; for Jurek it was Lhotse’s South Face; for Andrzej and Krzysztof it was all about winter climbs; and for Voytek it was the West Face of K2.

> As each of the Himalayan powerhouses—Britain, Poland, Slovenia, and Russia—improved their standards of living and economic situations, fewer of their climbers were willing to commit themselves to the mountains. It would entail a vow of poverty, no longer much in fashion. show less

An interesting anthology of climbing stories. Focussed more on mountaineering (esp. Himalayan mountaineering) but rock and ice climbing are also represented. It's a big book with a ton of excellent B&W photography in it - has a bit of a "coffee table" feel to it as a result, but still a very good read.

For those of us who only knew his climbing achievements, this biography very neatly fills in all the gaps.
I wonderful depiction of a man from whom we should learn.

Excellent review of food, wine and outdoor activity opportunities in the Okanagan.