Into Thin Air

by Jon Krakauer

an event that an older friend says was comparable, in its visceral impact, to the first manned landing on the moon.

Achieving the summit of a mountain was tangible, immutable, concrete.

“To be invited on an Everest expedition was an honor earned only after you served a long apprenticeship on lower peaks, and to actually reach the summit elevated a climber to the upper firmament of mountaineering stardom.”