5 stars for The Climb: Tragic Ambitions on Everest by Anatoli Boukreev and G. Weston DeWalt.
There are fourteen 8,000-meter (26,240 feet) peaks in the world; eight of them are within Nepal or extend into its territory. By the spring of 1996, Anatoli Nikoliavich Boukreev of Kazakhstan has summited seven of the world's fourteen mountains over 8,000 meters in elevation - some of them in fact more than once - and he has climbed all of those without the use of supplementary oxygen.
In 1996, Anatoli Boukreev, renowned for his power and strength as a high-altitude climber is hired by Scott Fischer to join his Mountain Madness expedition as a head climbing guide. Accepting the role, Boukreev takes on the challenge, his first large-scale commercial expedition to lead clients to the top of Mount Everest. The Climb: Tragic Ambitions on Everest is his story on the events leading to the tragedy and its aftermath.
As with most - I am no exception - who have read Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer, I am drawn into the open and ongoing debate between the authors; the Krakauer-Boukreev controversy. I am equally if not more, curious about the Russian guide, Boukreev's side of the story. Having read Into Thin Air, a book written on the receiving end of an Adventure Consultants expedition client, I find myself ready and eager to find out more on the unfolding tragedy as seen through the eyes of this highly experienced high-altitude guide.
Because I choose to read Into Thin Air over The Climb first, I am both worried and mindful about starting off the latter - almost immediately after I have finished with reading the former - with a biased opinion in the first place.
Often, it is human nature that we do not see things as they are, we see things as we are. Also, perspectives can cause two people to look at the same thing and see two totally different things. With these in mind, I do my utmost to wipe the slant clean; to start afresh with reading The Climb as it is plainly presented.
As I read along, I realise how naive I have been in even thinking of starting anew because in reading The Climb, I find myself reliving the nightmare of the same 1996 Mount Everest disaster. Only this time, the personal account coming from Boukreev is a hundred times, no, scratch that, a thousand times more heart-rending. By the time I finish reading The Rescue Transcript and The Last Attempt, I feel as if my heart has been torn out of my chest.
In The Rescue Transcript, Boukreev describes how he single-handedly performs what the majority agrees, one of the most remarkable rescues in Himalayan history a few hours after climbing Everest without oxygen, and why he makes not one but several solo forays late into the night to rescue three near-death people who are lost in a blizzard. By his actions and sheer willpower, Boukreev has proved himself to be a man of great courage and worthiness.
In the chapters that follow, Boukreev's account is filled with much pain and sorrows and helplessness as he takes it his personal failure to save his expedition leader and friend, Scott Fischer, as well as Yasuko Namba, an Adventure Consultants expedition climber-client who is not even under his charge.
For all I have read in The Climb, Anatoli Boukreev has never come across as defensive, and certainly not aggressive, if we are to agree that his book is written in response to the other book, Into Thin Air. Throughout the narration, Boukreev comes across as a very down-to-earth man; no illusions or pretensions; practical and realistic. Every single action he takes on that fateful day is based on more than twenty years of high-altitude climbing experience and undertaken in the best interests of his clients, period.
True, some of the Mountain Madness expedition clients, especially those who have summited, suffer from frostbite, but none of them suffers the loss of extremities; any damage that require amputation. Barring the expedition leader, Scott Fischer, not a single one of the clients died. More so, the three lost clients, by the hands of Boukreev, have narrowly escaped death.
All told, The Climb is simply a channel for Boukreev to lay down his story on the 1996 Everest tragedy; a very basic truthful account detailing the reasons behind each of his actions in view of the various issues involving people, equipment, bottled oxygen and most of all, time.
Having finished reading The Climb, I am wordlessly glad to have bought it in conjunction with Into Thin Air. Frankly speaking, initially I am skeptical of buying and reading an Everest related book co-written by one who has not even climbed any 8,000-meter peak before. But as I travel alongside the other author, Boukreev, in his Everest expedition, I realise that my initial doubts are all but unfounded.
In my opinion, this Chinese proverb “当局则迷,旁观则清” (dang ju ze mi, pang guan ze qing) does well to apply here. Translated, it means he who is the participant is trapped within and unable to see beyond what is, instead he who is the spectator watching from the sideline is able to see things clearly and objectively. And this is exactly how co-author DeWalt has performed in his writing of The Climb; he is not confined by any pre-set notion that it is the climbing guide's responsibility to use supplementary oxygen and thus, is able to see beyond what is and understands a man (Boukreev) from another culture.
Now, the overall picture is very much clearer; sharper in definition and brighter in colours. What I have initially believed to be a balanced assessment of the events and people as written in my last book review now appears to be showcased judgements amidst half-truths. Often, it is not what is said but what is not said that is indicative of the truth. And what of truth? The truth is, readers can decide for themselves the veracity of the story after considering all available evidence, especially those critical to an understanding of the 1996 Mount Everest disaster.
Last of all, I just want to say that I agree with co-author DeWalt that Anatoli Boukreev will be remembered as a high-altitude mountaineer with power and strength, and surely a man of great courage.
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin; 2 paperback edition
Publication date: 16 Jul 1999
*** Favourite quote ***
Mountains have the power to call us into their realms and there, left forever, are our friends whose great souls were longing for the heights. Do not forget the mountaineers who have not returned from the summits.
~ The Climb: Tragic Ambitions on Everest
Anatoli Boukreev
*** Quote ***
Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth.
~ Marcus Aurelius
@}--->>--->>-----
As the climbers of the 1996 Mt. Everest disaster vanished into thin air, one man had the courage to bring them down alive...
On May 10, 1996, two commercial expeditions headed by expert leaders attempted to scale the world's largest peak. But things went terribly wrong. Crowded conditions, bad judgement, and a bitter storm stopped many climbers in their tracks. Others were left for dead, or stranded on the frigid mountain. Anatoli Boukreev, head climbing guide for the Mountain Madness expedition, stepped into the heart of the storm and brought three of his clients down alive. Here is his amazing story-of an expedition fated for disaster, of the blind ambition that drives people to attempt such dangerous ventures, and of a modern-day hero, who risked his own life to save others..
*Blurb from Goodreads*
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