-- Publicity surrounding the search for Irvine's body this spring will spark public interest
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reviews
Feb 17, 2009
Eric_W
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Really good companion to Dark Summit The True Story of Everest's Most Controversial Season and High Crimes CD The Fate of Everest in an Age of Greed.
In 1924, two climbers, George Mallory and Andrew Irvine, left on their third attempt to climb Everest. They were never seen again. A couple of blacks specks had been seen through a scope making their way toward the summit, but no confirmation was ever received or discovered that it had been reached.
This book describes t More...
In 1924, two climbers, George Mallory and Andrew Irvine, left on their third attempt to climb Everest. They were never seen again. A couple of blacks specks had been seen through a scope making their way toward the summit, but no confirmation was ever received or discovered that it had been reached.
This book describes t More...
Aug 28, 2011
Cliff
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In 1924 two British climbers, George Mallory and Andrew Irvine, died in an attempt to climb Mount Everest. Their bodies were not recovered and, as they were last seen just short of the peak (although facing seemingly impossible conditions), the question remained as to whether they had reached it, almost 30 years before the men credited with the first successful attempt (Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary).
This book tells the story of an expedition organised by Jochen Hemmleb, Larry A More...
This book tells the story of an expedition organised by Jochen Hemmleb, Larry A More...
Apr 16, 2009
Catherine
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I read this book as a companion to Jeffrey Archer's "Paths of Glory." One of the tasks in the book challenge I'm doing this spring is to read a fiction and a non-fiction book on the same subject. There are quite a few non-fiction books about George Mallory and the Everest expeditions in the 1920's. But, this was the only one my library had. It got off to a slow start with a lot of detail about the back-and-forth between various sponsors and interested parties in mounting the 1999 e
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Apr 04, 2009
Jerry
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Story of the successful attempt to find the bodies of Mallory and Irvine who died attempting to summit Everest in 1924. The mystery of what happened to them is compelling, and the finding of Mallory in 1999 shed some light on what happened although the mystery of whether they made it remains intact.
Takes a little time to get going with the story of the difficulties in getting the expedition together but it is gripping when they make the discovery and well told in it's summary of what More...
Takes a little time to get going with the story of the difficulties in getting the expedition together but it is gripping when they make the discovery and well told in it's summary of what More...
Mar 21, 2010
Cathy
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Good follow up to "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer which I read for book group, this chronicles a team climbing the North side of Everest in search for clues about the 1924 expedition where Mallory and Irvine were lost. Interesting because they find Mallory's body and discover how he died, they also encounter other clues which give them reason to hypothesize whether he may have actually been the first to reach the summit of Everest. I would have liked the authors to spend more time on
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Feb 23, 2009
Cynthia
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I've been kind of an Everest kick lately, I think partly because I can't believe that people actually want to climb this mountain after so many people have died here. This book was one of my favorites. It was a little slow in the beginning, but the action quickly picked up. The photographs in the book are really remarkable, and the story of the discovery of Mallory's body is compelling. Although we'll probably never know for sure whether Mallory and Irvine summited in 1924, the evidence that
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Dec 26, 2011
Sara
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Jan 03, 2008
Kim
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I've had this book on my shelf for a while and idly picked it up on New Year's Day--and finished reading it within 24 hours. It's a very brisk, engaging account of the 1999 Everest expedition that located the long-lost body of pioneering mountaineer George Mallory, who disappeared along with Sandy Irvine during a 1924 summit attempt. If they succeeded (and some say they very well may have, although no one knows for sure), they would have been the first men to top the world's highest mountain, th
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Aug 29, 2011
Marcus
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Wishing to change my literary diet, I've selected this book, as it at first glance shared some traits with superb 'Shadow Divers'. Topic is very similar, a historal and obscure mystery is finally being resolved. It's a good, fast read and the story in itself did grab my interest. At the same time, the book failed to transfer the grandiosity and immense difficulties of alpinistics on this very highest level.
Aug 13, 2010
Andrea
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I’m a sucker for adventure stories when it comes to the world’s highest peaks. This book details the 1999 Mallory and Irvine Research Expedition and their attempt to find substantive proof as to whether or not George Mallory and Andrew Irvine reached the summit of Mount Everest in 1924. The most fascinating part of the story is the discovery of George Mallory’s body. I really enjoyed this book and the many theories proffered within.
Dec 13, 2010
Corrina
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This book is fascinating. I LOVED how it parallels the two expeditions- the 1924 English Expedition and the 1994 search! I also loved how each member of the team (except the BBC, evidently) truly contributes to the search - from going to verify viewpoints to going to verify a free climb up the second step. The pictures were stunning, the maps and landmarks very educational! The book is a wonderfully fascinating tale, woven very skillfully by Bill Nothdurft from the expedition records and jou
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Aug 10, 2011
Lindsay
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This was my first Everest book and I enjoyed it immensely. As I had no idea who Mallory or Irvine were, I found it highly informative. The image that will stay with me forever is George Mallory's body in the snow.
Nov 23, 2008
Ron
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Good book about climbing Everest and searching for Mallory's body. Probably would have enjoyed it more but I listened to the audiobook and the reader kind of sucked.
Sep 16, 2010
Keith
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The best thing about this book was that the photo's give you a real feeling for the terrain of the mountain.
Aug 10, 2011
Ryan
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A great story but badly told. I mainly skipped over the tedious account of the modern-day expedition and read the bits about the 1924 expedition during which Mallory and Irvine were lost.
Jul 01, 2010
Suziqoregon
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Mar 29, 2007
Parker
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Did Mallory and Irvine make it to the summit in May of 1924 or was Sir Edmund Hillary the first to summint more than 25 years later? This is a very informativer book written by some of the most knowledgable climbers in the world. George Mallory was an amazing avant garde climber with big'ol balls! In my opinion, they made the summit and died during the descent. If only someone could find Noel's kodak!
Dec 13, 2010
Fiona
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I am not a climber and never will be, but this book absolutely fascinated me. The history of the British climb from idea to reality and the modern climb that found George Mallory kept me glued to the book. The photographs sprinkled throughout also help to make it feel as if the reader is along for the climb. Amazing book.
Feb 01, 2008
Jim
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Quick informative story about the search to find what happened to Mallory, and the resulting theories about the last days of he and his partner Irvine. Wel written, concise, interesting. A glimpse both into the world of mountaineering and historical/archeological detective work at high altitude.
Feb 01, 2008
Andy
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A nice gift from Chris. It really makes you realise just how remote and extremely difficult to explore the extreme altitudes are. It gave me a lot of respect for Mallory and Irvine. With what they had they did amazing things, whether they summitted or not.
Jan 13, 2009
Rosemary
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Simply fascinating. I read this in 2005 when I also read Left for Dead and Jon Krakauer's (sp?) book about Everest, Into Thin Air.
Sep 24, 2008
Joel
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Fascinating and the pictures of Mallory's body 75 years after his death are spellbinding
