Book 13 - Into Thin Air

Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster
by Jon Krakauer

Back to good writing. Seriously, I enjoy writing books by journalists.

The first IMAX movie I ever saw was the Mt. Everest movie. Definitely a good memory, but I didn't understand at the time that this particular 1996 season at Everest was considered a disaster.

I had forgotten about this book, until I saw it on the public library E-Book catalog. I added it to my wish list, since someone else had checked it out (so cool, but there are limited copies of each book, so I have to wait for the book to become available). Finally, it popped up the other day. I love love love that the library has E-Books.

When starting this book, I didn't know what to expect. I knew nothing about the 1996 Everest expeditions, and very little about Mt. Everest itself. I learned a fair amount about climbing, Tibet and Nepal, Sherpas, and mountains. Starting with zero knowledge, that was pretty easy. Everest is an interesting enterprise, but not enticing enough for me to freeze my butt off for months to be at the top of the world (especially when other people have taken pictures!).

After finishing this book, I watched the Everest documentary on Netflix. Definitely a tame side to the story, that didn't discuss the extreme hazards and nightmares Everest provides.