Into Thin Air

Into Thin Air : A Personal Account of the Mount Everest Disaster
by Jon Krakauer
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Paperback - 360 pages (May 1998)
Anchor Books; ISBN: 0385492081

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Into Thin Air is a riveting first-hand account of a catastrophic expedition up Mount Everest. In March 1996, Outside magazine sent veteran journalist and seasoned climber Jon Krakauer on an expedition led by celebrated Everest guide Rob Hall. Despite the expertise of Hall and the other leaders, by the end of summit day eight people were dead. Krakauer's book is at once the story of the ill-fated adventure and an analysis of the factors leading up to its tragic end. Written within months of the events it chronicles, Into Thin Air clearly evokes the majestic Everest landscape. As the journey up the mountain progresses, Krakauer puts it in context by recalling the triumphs and perils of other Everest trips throughout history. The author's own anguish over what happened on the mountain is palpable as he leads readers to ponder timeless questions. --This text refers to the hardcover edition of this title.

A reader from Tallahassee, FL , 06/23/98
Not just for the outdoorsman
I've never climbed a mountain, and know nothing about surviving in harsh climes, but that didn't dampen my zeal for this great story. Even though I'd seen several documentaries on climbing, and specifically on Mt. Everest expeditions, I was riveted. Jon Krakauer paints a vivid picture of what it's like to live in constant danger, and the cost of underestimating Mother Nature. Anyone who thinks climbing the world's tallest mountains is somehow adventurous or romantic, or just a neat thing to experience, ought to read this book. It gave me new respect for those who make climbing a way of life, and made me equally concerned for amateurs who are paying for an experience they might not live to tell about.

A reader from Delaware, USA , 06/22/98
A long magazine article about stupid human climbing tricks.
If this book serves any purpose it will stop people from taking the foolish risks these people did in the name of . . . um. . . I don't know. Professional guides take $25,000 to lead people to the summit of Everest where the oxygen is low, the winds high and common sense absent. What a waste of human life there is in this book. If you want to read adventure that examines the human condition try Joseph Conrad or Jack London. I recommend you spare yourself this indulgent, overgrown magazine article about supposedly intelligent people who climb to 28,000 feet and find out why there is no sign of life way up there. --This text refers to the hardcover edition of this title.

A reader from Cambria, California , 06/21/98
An armchair adventure that will leave you gasping for breath
Krakauer's book, Into Thin Air, will leave you alternately holding your breath and gasping for air as you read his vivid account of a climb to the summit of Mt. Everest and the even more perilous descent. When he reached the summit on May 10, 1996, he hadn't slept for days, had eaten very little, and found his descent delayed as he waited for a stream of climbers who crowded the route to pass. Concerned about his decreasing supply of oxygen, he asked a fellow climber to turn his off while they waited. In a high altituded induced confusion, his partner turned the oxygen full on and in ten minutes it was gone. Vision dimmed, head reeling and feeling as though he was suffocating, Krakauer tackled the dreadful descent. He never noticed the building storm that would soon hit the mountain, taking more lives in one day than ever before in the history of Mt. Everest expeditions. This book is alternately chilling and thrilling -- a testimony to human endurance and perservance, as well as to the power of nature. You'll feel as if you've actually climed Everest when you close the covers of this "can't put down" account of Everest's deadliest season ever. I read it cover to cover in one day.

Elizabeth (fatblakcat@aol.com) from Hong Kong at the moment , 06/21/98
a head check for would-be mountain climbers
Read this book if you even think you want to climb a mountain. krakauer does an excellent job of putting you, cold and miserable, on a mountain top amidst a tragedy. believe all the hype, its a good book. an interesting addition to the narrative, which i have yet to decide whether i like or not, is the interjection of the author's extreme personal guilt towards the whole situation. it adds to the story by humanizing it, but doesn't seem to fit somehow. and personal opinions are tradtionally left out of works by journalists for the sake of objectivity. i listened to the audio version of this book, which i dont suggest because you will hjave a hard time keeping all of the characters straight. i also listened to it while driving and ended up with a several hundred dollar speeding ticket because i was paying more attention to the story than my 85 mile an hour speed on the turnpike. a good read. --This text refers to the hardcover edition of this title.

A reader from Minnesota , 06/18/98
I give it a 7 out of 10.
I knew most of the story before reading the book. I learned little that was new to me. We are just in the post-Titanic months, and we are thirsting for life-death adventure. We enjoy reading about people who see the face of death and tremble. It is definitely a catharsis for the author. It is his cleansing.

jimcnall@apcc.com from St. Louis, Missouri, USA , 06/18/98
Thoughtful, emotional account of Everest disaster
The title of this book captures a key theme of this eye-witness account of the 1996 Everest disaster that killed a dozen climbers. The desperate need for air, the danger of remaining in the Death Zone above 25,000 feet, pervade this narrative. Krakauer's telling of the after-effects of the disaster on the "survivors" is bound to strike a chord in anyone who has suffered a disaster. I came away from this mountain with a greater respect for and fear of Mount Everest.

Andy O'Bryan (aobryan@aol.com) from Oriskany, NY , 06/17/98
I Needed A Scorecard
Into Thin Air put me on Everest for 2 weeks and had me living vicariously through the harrowing lives of Jon Krakauer, et al. While it was a very compelling story impossible to put down, filled with raw danger at every turn, it was not without its flaws as I look back. For instance, if he was so out of it half the time above 26,000 ft., how could Mr. Krakauer's memory serve him so well with such vivid detail? Also, while I'm sure it must have been necessary to the story to a degree, I just could not keep track of the constant parade of new characters being introduced--all the way to the last page! Most of these he would go from a first name to a last name basis with no warning. I needed a scorecard to follow who was dying, freezing, suffering from PACE or just throwing up. Page after page of misery in this book ensures the reader to thank their maker for what they have. Perhaps that was the story's most satisfying quality.

Kmcmurph@hit.net from Kansas, USA , 06/17/98
A breathtaking account of how far people can push themselves
In his gripping account of an unavoidable disaster on the worlds tallest peak, Krakauer hauntingly goes back to the mountain in words and pictures. Written with such sensitivity and detail, I felt as if I ascended the mountain with the ill fated expedition. Krakauer reflects on why people push themselves so hard in the quest for a summit and how common sense goes out the window at high altitude. A must read for anyone who watches the documentaries and wonders, "what is Everest really like?"