|
K2: Triumph and Tragedy | 
 enlarge | Author: Jim Curran
Publisher: Mariner Books
Category: Book
List Price: $15.00
Buy Used: $1.45
You Save: $13.55 (90%)
New (16) Used (54) Collectible (1) from $1.45
Rating:  26 reviews
Sales Rank: 181275
Media: Paperback
Pages: 224
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 8 x 5.8 x 0.5
ISBN: 0395485908
Dewey Decimal Number: 796.522095491
UPC: 046442485906
EAN: 9780395485903
ASIN: 0395485908
Publication Date: February 3, 1989
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
| |
| Also Available In:
|
| Similar Items:
|
| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com
Before the 1996 Everest disaster made that mountain synonymous with tragedy at 8,000 meters, there was K2. More technical in most routes than Everest, the world's second-highest peak is considered the ultimate achievement by many mountaineers. In 1986 K2 claimed the lives of 13 climbers in nine different parties attempting its summit. Author Jim Curran was on the mountain during the ordeal, and through narrative and photographs, Curran documents the sagas of success, failure, and tragedy in a fateful year that captured the world's attention. Alongside the terror of avalanches, crevasses, and horrific storms are stories of bravery and the indomitable human spirit.
Product Description
K2, "the savage mountain", is the second-highest peak in the world - and the most difficult to cllimb. In 1986, it was the site of both dazzling triumph and great loss as twenty-seven men and women reached the top but thirteen died trying. Tto this day it ramains the single greatest tragedy in the history of mountaineering. Curran was there to record it all in words and photographs: courage and obsession, luminous success and thwarted ambition.
|
| Customer Reviews: Read 21 more reviews...
 ET TU...K2? August 21, 2000
Lawyeraau (Balmoral Castle)
20 out of 23 found this review helpful
It is summer...1986. Twenty seven climbers triumph at the K2 summit. Thirteen climbers die in their quest to conquer K2. Therein lies the tale.
The author, a photographer who calls himself a climber, though that is debatable, attempts to make sense of the events that unfolded on the mountain that summer. Relying upon the anecdotes and narratives of others, as well as his own personal observations, he tries to put the events into perspective, even though he has no first hand knowledge of what transpired up on the mountain, for the most part. Although he was there, he rarely ventured past base camp.
The book does make for an interesting read, as we look at events as they unfold before the author. It is amazing that with all the tragedies that seemed to occur at almost every turn, the climbers still kept climbing, never losing sight of their quest. At times this singlemindedness on the part of the climbers comes across as somewhat meglomaniacal.
The author is very candid in his commentary throughout the book and, surprisingly, he does not hesitate to speak ill of the dead. His candor, while somewhat disturbing, is refreshing, and it is interesting to find out that the gods do, indeed, have clay feet.
An overview of the 1986 K2 season February 22, 1999
16 out of 19 found this review helpful
This book is another in the long list of books on epics in the high Himalayas. This one covers the 1986 season on K2 where 13 people lost there lives. The author was a cinematographer with one of the expeditions. He wasn't much of an athlete, he didn't know how to ski, and he didn't go high on the mountain. So the story is told mostly from base camp and from second hand stories by the climbers on the mountain. Therefore, exactly what happened is unclear. This always seems to be the case in these stories because the preception of the characters is often clouded by hypoxia. The 1939 American K2 expedition and the 1996 Everest season comes to mind. Events, times and other occurrences get confused by everyone involved. Plus, with climbers, large egos are usually involved and no one wishes to be criticized for their actions. Hypoxia makes one do strange things high on a mountain and seemingly logical actions later make no sense. This account is a overall account of what happened during that season. The author probably recorded the events as he saw them accurately because he never went too high on the mountain and was probably less affected by hypoxia for that reason. However, his account also is limited because he didn't go high and his view of the events, except for what went on at base camp, was second hand. In particular a lot of his information came from a Taiwanese expedition that always seemed to be wrong, possibly due to a language barrier. A worthy read for overall background. Kurt Diemberger's book, `The Endless Knot' may shed some light on the subject. He was one of the two survivors of seven trapped high on K2 during an extended storm. Again, the story may be hampered by hypoxia.
Reality Check October 10, 1999
10 out of 13 found this review helpful
I enjoyed this book very much, and highly recommend it to any adventure reader. As a beginning climber, it was more realistic than most climbing books. It focused on the bad and the good, where most books leave you feeling you are glad to be safely at sea level. This book is loaded with fatalities, but also with hopes and dreams, and day to day life at Base Camp. Instead of saying, "what are you thinking?" to myself after reading this book, I found myself thinking, "There are risks, and rewards. Let's go climb mountains." It didn't hurt that a friend was filling my head with tales of his successful trek to Denali at the same time I was reading this either. It is a great book, much more like being there than the many others I have read.
 Who's Who on K2, Summer of 1986 December 9, 2002
Book Junkie (Salt Lake City, UT United States)
9 out of 11 found this review helpful
I bought this book because many of the reviews gave it 4-5 stars. I personally found it boring and was tempted more than once halfway through to stop reading it. The first half of this book reads more like a Who's Who Amongst Mountain Climbers, mostly describing the different teams and climbers (and which mountains they've climbed) at Base Camp and climbing K2. I was hoping for more in-depth insight into well-rounded and interesting characters, rather than just a running commentary (full of pure speculation) of who is on the mountain and what is supposedly going on up there. It was confusing keeping track of everyone and which team they were with, etc.I was also curious about the author's somewhat dismissive attitude toward Reinhold Messner's achievements. Curran dismissively attributes that Messner's ability to climb the high peaks without oxygen is due to his choosing the easiest route. Whether true or not, who is Curran to knock the achievements of one of the best climbers out there? This guy (Curran) doesn't seem to write any better than he climbs, either. On a more positive note, my interest was captured after most of the British team disbanded, leaving only Al Rouse and Jim Curran. The story picked up a bit after that. While the events that unfolded were tragic, this is not the most gripping mountaineering account out there. I would not recommend buying this book unless you are intested in a running commentary and general speculation of the various expeditions to visit K2 during the summer of 1986 from someone who spent the bulk of his time at Base Camp.
 A waste of 6 bucks... December 23, 2001
Allison Pennington (Oregon USA)
6 out of 11 found this review helpful
I got this book after I married the son of one of the climbers killed on K2 in 1986 because I was interested and curious about his father. This was a waste of my money. Eiger Dreams was much more informative.
|
|
|
|
| |
