Picked by Evan - September 13th 2016 Meeting
When Jon Krakauer reached the summit of Mt. Everest in the early
afternoon of May 10,1996, he hadn't slept in fifty-seven hours and was
reeling from the brain-altering effects of oxygen depletion. As he
turned to begin the perilous descent from 29,028 feet (roughly the
cruising altitude of a commercial airliner), twenty other climbers were
still pushing doggedly to the top, unaware that the sky had begun to
roil with clouds...
Into Thin Air is the definitive
account of the deadliest season in the history of Everest by the
acclaimed Outside journalist and author of the bestselling Into the
Wild. Taking the reader step by step from Katmandu to the mountain's
deadly pinnacle, Krakauer has his readers shaking on the edge of their
seat. Beyond the terrors of this account, however, he also peers deeply
into the myth of the world's tallest mountain. What is is about Everest
that has compelled so many poeple--including himself--to throw caution
to the wind, ignore the concerns of loved ones, and willingly subject
themselves to such risk, hardship, and expense?
Written with
emotional clarity and supported by his unimpeachable reporting,
Krakauer's eyewitness account of what happened on the roof of the world
is a singular achievement.
