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4.01 AVERAGE
4.01 AVERAGE
adventurous
informative
slow-paced
The writing was lovely and I really enjoyed the autobiographical sections about the author’s time climbing mountains. The rest of it, however, I found very dull. It seemed to me that he was attempting to generate and enforce a narrative of the history of mountaineering that seemed a little bit spurious. Honestly, I also think nature writing isn’t really for me.
"Wonderful writing: consistently observant, restrained, informative and enlightening: a masterful performance."
Enjoyed this sort of history, sort of travelogue, sort of philosophising about the obsession with mountains.
I like mountains but I doubt that I will ever throw my life at one: too much sense? too much fear? not enough obsession/passion? Also, not enough skill.
Mountains of the Mind isn't quite as gripping as a discrete tale of adventure on the big mountains (aka The Vertical Limit; Touching the Void etc) but a more academic and introspective approach; an attempt to answer ,"Why?" with more than Mallory's, "Because it is there." Or, rather, an attempt to draw out why "because it is there" is a perfectly good answer.
I like mountains but I doubt that I will ever throw my life at one: too much sense? too much fear? not enough obsession/passion? Also, not enough skill.
Mountains of the Mind isn't quite as gripping as a discrete tale of adventure on the big mountains (aka The Vertical Limit; Touching the Void etc) but a more academic and introspective approach; an attempt to answer ,"Why?" with more than Mallory's, "Because it is there." Or, rather, an attempt to draw out why "because it is there" is a perfectly good answer.
adventurous
informative
medium-paced
Truly wonderful writing - Macfarlane explores the draw the high places have for some people in a kind of quasi-history of the activity of mountaineering interspersed with personal reminiscences and culminating in a detailed account of Mallory’s expeditions to Everest (including his ill-fated final expedition). Macfarlane is clearly passionate about his subject and has an ear for a well-turned phrase. One of those non-fiction books which transcends its subject.
the previous macfarlane’s book, underland, shook me to the core so i was kind of.. delaying the experience of reading another one. finally chose his debut, about mountains and mountaineering, the opposite of the underland stuff. in a lot of ways, it is a much simpler book than that one, but it is still so well, so vividly written. it was both informative (educational) and fascinating (fun). the chapter about the everest and george mallory was very good.
i read it as a physical book, in the summer, in a lot of very pretty places - nowhere near mountains, not even a hill though.
adventurous
reflective
slow-paced
Very pleasantly surprised to find that Macfarlane named Simon Schama's [b:Landscape and Memory|21071|Landscape and Memory|Simon Schama|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1408553215l/21071._SX50_.jpg|22258], one of my favourite books, as an inspiration for this one.
adventurous
informative
inspiring
slow-paced
adventurous
informative
inspiring
medium-paced