Starlight and Storm
by Gaston Rébuffat
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"One of the great climbers of all time . . . who has discovered through the medium of mountains the true perspective of living." --Sir John Hunt, author of The Conquest of Everest Known for his lyrical writing and his ability to convey not only the dangers of mountaineering but the pure exaltation of the climb, Gaston Rébuffat is among the most well-known and revered Alpinists of all time. He rose to international prominence in 1950 as one of the four principal stalwarts in the first ascent show more of Annapurna, the highest mountain climbed at that time. Yet his finest feat as a mountaineer was to be the first man to climb all six of the legendary great north faces of the Alps--the Grandes Jorasses, the Piz Badile, the Dru, the Matterhorn, the Cima Grande di Lava-redo, and the Eiger. With this elegant book, first published in 1954, Gaston Rébuffat transformed mountain writing. His insistence on seeing a climb as an act of harmonious communion with the mountain, not a battle waged against it, seemed radical at the time, though Rébuffat's aesthetic has since won the day. Through storms, avalanches, rock fall, unplanned bivouacs, and even the deaths of companions, we follow the Chamonix guide to the altar of his communion, on dark, icy walls that struck terror into the hearts of Europe's finest mountaineers. Nor are these deft narratives mere recitations of dangers faced and obstacles overcome, for Rébuffat pays as keen attention to the joys of comradeship won on these faces as he does to the climbs themselves. In our own day of corporate sponsorships, online expeditions, and eco-vacations, the purity of Rébuffat's vision of the Alps as (in the epithet of the title of another of his books) an "enchanted garden" shines forth in prose as fresh and stylish as any ever lavished on mountaineering. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
Rebuffat's love of the mountains really shines through in "Starlight and Storm" as he almost gleefully describes some of his adventures bivouacking in the Alps in snowstorms. His efforts to give credit to those who climbed routes before him give the opening paragraphs of each chapter a sort of "name-droppy" feel, but once you get past those words, the descriptions of the climbs are spectacular. Definitely a book that will make you want to hit the slopes to feel the same joy that Rebuffat feels when he climbs.
Wilfrid Noyce and Sir John Hunt
Gaston Rébuffat estava destinat a ser el més cèlebre i representatiu guia alpí del seu temps. Des del 1946, any en que ingressà a la companyia de Chamonix, fins als nostres dies, aquest gran professional ha simbolitzat durant un període que abraça prop de quatre dècades la imatge del guia perfecte: sensible i enèrgic alhora; però, sobretot, la imatge d'un home pregonament enamorat de la seva bellíssima professió.
Mar 12, 2025Catalan
GG-2
Oct 24, 2020Catalan
Título: Estrelles i tempestats. Sis cares nord
Editorial: Centre Excursionista de Catalunya
Año de publicación: 1982
Encuadernación: Encuadernación de tapa dura
Editorial: Centre Excursionista de Catalunya
Año de publicación: 1982
Encuadernación: Encuadernación de tapa dura
Sep 29, 2021 (Edited)Catalan
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Author Information
22 Works 380 Members
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Notable Lists
Series
Belongs to Publisher Series
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Starlight and Storm
- Original title
- Etoiles et tempêtes
- People/Characters
- Gaston Rébuffat
- Original language
- French
Classifications
- Genres
- Sports and Leisure, Nonfiction, Travel, Biography & Memoir
- DDC/MDS
- 796.52 — Arts & recreation Recreation, sports, and performing arts Sports Outdoor leisure Walking and exploring by kind of terrain
- LCC
- GV199.44 .A4 .R42 — Geography, Anthropology and Recreation Recreation. Leisure Recreation. Leisure Outdoor life. Outdoor recreation Hiking. Pedestrian tours
- BISAC
Statistics
- Members
- 155
- Popularity
- 210,637
- Reviews
- 5
- Rating
- (3.50)
- Languages
- English, Finnish, French, Spanish
- Media
- Paper
- ISBNs
- 14
- ASINs
- 4
