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3.88 AVERAGE
3.88 AVERAGE
it’s all little articles that the author has written over time and i really like how they focus on all the different parts of climbing and mountaineering all with the main idea of the obsession with climbing and mountaineering despite how dangerous they are
Krakauer is an excellent writer, this just wasn’t compelling enough for me. I had a hard time finishing it. Maybe if I’d read it at a different time in my life it would have held my attention more. I learned some fascinating things, but it was a lot like what I’d imagine feeling while reading a text book on the history of rock climbing/climbers.
Krakauer is the consummate storyteller and this memoir/history of climbing and all its participants and variants is full of stories. Stories that defy death and those that weren't as lucky. These are the stories of those who pioneered, shaped, and defined the love of mountains.
i really like this author. I like the way he writes and i like the stories he tells. its as simple as that. i never thought about this subject and have learned so much and this topic blows my mind.
I'm a sucker for Krakauer's writing and will read anything he's done. My favorite is when he writes about mountaineering and climbing. I don't do any of that myself, mind you, but I'm fascinated about the topic and reading other's life and death experiences doing it. Eiger Dreams is no different. Granted, it's a collection of shorter essays/articles about all different topics related to climbing, so it's not one big story like some of his other works. Just like any short story collection, some are better than others. The writing is consistently amazing throughout, but what some of the entries focused on didn't interest me as much. The ones centered around specific people: Gill, The Flyboys of Talkeetna, and the Burgess Boys, didn't interest me as much and I found my attention flagging. My favorites by far among the bunch were Eiger Dreams, Valdez Ice, A Bad Summer on K2, and The Devil's Thumb, because they involved climbing specific mountains, their dangers and the climber's personal triumphs and losses. The other stories were fascinating as well, because they involved other aspects of climbing and mountains that aren't often covered.
If you're looking to jump into Krakauer but don't want to commit to a full novel, this might be a great place to start. The stories are only about 20 pages or so in length and can easily been completed in one sitting. This is also great for those who want to dabble in mountaineering literature. If you want to be transported to some of the world's most dangerous peaks and into the minds of those who climb them, Eiger Dreams is the way to go.
If you're looking to jump into Krakauer but don't want to commit to a full novel, this might be a great place to start. The stories are only about 20 pages or so in length and can easily been completed in one sitting. This is also great for those who want to dabble in mountaineering literature. If you want to be transported to some of the world's most dangerous peaks and into the minds of those who climb them, Eiger Dreams is the way to go.
Weirdly unsatisfying to read these as a whole, which was a bit of a letdown. "Club Denali" is good, and "Devil's Thumb" is GREAT, but Krakauer wisely repurposed it for Into the Wild. "Devil's Thumb" got me in the mood for more Krakauer though.
Krakauer has a way of writing that pulls you into the experience. Perhaps the combination of journalist and crazy climber makes this possible. This book is a series of short stories about different climbing adventures (all true) from ice-flow vertical climbs (up frozen waterfalls with a pickax) to bouldering. Really interesting.
This is a book by a man about men (almost exclusively men) conquering mountains, but climbing is cool I guess.
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
tense
medium-paced