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plcbaker's review
4.0
Well written and interesting, even with my limited knowledge of climbing. I wish he'd brought up the ethical questions earlier and discussed further.
dana_naylor's review
adventurous
informative
medium-paced
3.0
Book tells of 2018 climbing accident in Alaska that left one climber paralyzed. Interesting addition to climbing literature with meditation on rescues available now via improved communication and the risk/reward calculation in climbs and possible consequences.
A few things really bothered me though….snark early in book about McDonald’s coffee lawsuit that shows both author and editor don’t know facts of case, which makes me question accuracy of all author’s reporting: “anathema to Americans used to suing fast-food chains over the temperature of their coffee.” (p16) And towards end where author says, “I tell him I’d never be able to handle what he’d dealt with thus far.” (p226). Interjection makes me want to wallop author. There isn’t an option….other than suicide. Keep editorializing to thoughts on climbing.
A few things really bothered me though….snark early in book about McDonald’s coffee lawsuit that shows both author and editor don’t know facts of case, which makes me question accuracy of all author’s reporting: “anathema to Americans used to suing fast-food chains over the temperature of their coffee.” (p16) And towards end where author says, “I tell him I’d never be able to handle what he’d dealt with thus far.” (p226). Interjection makes me want to wallop author. There isn’t an option….other than suicide. Keep editorializing to thoughts on climbing.
zoe_o_'s review
adventurous
emotional
informative
reflective
tense
fast-paced
4.0
I've devoured title like Into Thin Air and No Way Down, where an intensely prepared group tackles the earth's tallest peaks in an intense live-or-die tale. But Wejchert sets his title apart by tackling a different kind of climbing disaster. One that describes the expeditions where no one died, but the injuries sustained profoundly changed the survivors' lives.
When four friends trekked into the Hidden Mountains to tackle an unnamed peak, they were well prepared and reasonably within the technical experience needed for this climb. But like every other disaster, luck holds more sway than any climber wants to admit, and one of the group takes a nasty fall.
As Wejchert describes the subsequent rescue mission, he takes the opportunity to dissect the generational divide in American climbing culture and our nearly nonexistent patchwork of search and rescue groups.
Though this is a tense and informative tale of an unfortunate 24 hour period deep in the Alaskan wilderness, it is also an argument to set up better support and search and rescue networks for the ever increasing climbing community.
*I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*
When four friends trekked into the Hidden Mountains to tackle an unnamed peak, they were well prepared and reasonably within the technical experience needed for this climb. But like every other disaster, luck holds more sway than any climber wants to admit, and one of the group takes a nasty fall.
As Wejchert describes the subsequent rescue mission, he takes the opportunity to dissect the generational divide in American climbing culture and our nearly nonexistent patchwork of search and rescue groups.
Though this is a tense and informative tale of an unfortunate 24 hour period deep in the Alaskan wilderness, it is also an argument to set up better support and search and rescue networks for the ever increasing climbing community.
*I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*