UKC

As the title says really.

Christmas is nearly here so lots of time to read my kindle coming up.
I have read

Psychovertical
In the footsteps of mallory and irvine: the wildest dream

Totaly different books but both a good read.

Any suggestions?

In reply to Sam Edwards:

I quite enjoyed "With Bare Hands" if you can cope with reading about an arrogant French-man. It was an entertaining read.

In reply to Sam Edwards:

There was a thread on this a week or so ago with some good ideas.

Enjoy!

http://www.ukclimbing.com/forums/t.php?t=572141

In reply to Sam Edwards:

Either of Andy Cave's books.
Joe Simpson's classic 'touching the void' and the rest of his books.
Cairngorm John a really good book about his life and being team leader at CMRT, although a bit morbid.
The white spider.
From Skye to the Himalaya by Norman Collie.

In reply to Cameron94:

I found Cairngorm John a bit dull, and the Nazism and lies in The White Spider depressing. (Eiger North Face in Winter, or whatever it’s called, by one of the FWA team whose name I have shamefully forgotten, is much better.) Agree with you about Andy Cave, though.

Always A Little Further, by Alastair Borthwick, is the one I always recommend. Very funny, and also a real picture of a vanished age.

jcm

In reply to johncoxmysteriously:

I've not actually got round to reading the white spider, it's sitting in a pile of other books waiting to be picked up.

In reply to Sam Edwards:


Thanks for all the replies, lots to keep me going there.

As I didn't mention it earlier, I would recommend In The Footsteps of Mallory and Irvine

In reply to Sam Edwards:

From Gordon Stainforth of this parish: "Fiva" the most accesible and compelling I've read since Touching the Void.

In reply to Sam Edwards: Learning to breath and the thin white line by Andy cave are v good

In reply to Offwidth:


Thanks, Steve. Must say I'm thrilled with its continuing success - after 20 months it's selling more strongly than ever, unlike any of my previous books. My thanks to all those UKC members who have obviously been spreading the word.

In reply to Sam Edwards:

the mountains of my life, walter bonatti. really good writer, quite poetic in places.

In reply to Offwidth:


Plus 1 Best read I've had for a long time, edge of your seat stuff.

Also "Into the Silence" by Wade Davies so long as you take his poorly researched and at times inaccurate references to the Great War with a pinch of salt, the mountaineering part is excellent.

In reply to Sam Edwards:


This thread may offer some hints, as would the two others referenced in it http://www.ukclimbing.com/forums/t.php?t=530035&v=1#x7136205

In reply to Trangia:

Totally aggree with 'Into the Silence' as a good read. The first couple of chapters are unputdownable, really rivetting reading. And the rest is very interesting history about the early climbing on Everest. Incidently I did a google search on Wade Davis and it linked to a presentation he was giving about the book, so good background to what is in the book. It will no doubt become a classic of mountain literature in much the same way 'The White spider' has.
Also as above 'The Mountains of my Life' by Walter Bonatti. The descent from Mont Blanc after a Christmas ascent is harrowing in the extreme.

In reply to Sam Edwards:

My favourites are The Black Cliff, and Annapurna.

In reply to Sam Edwards:





Have aread about sme real climbing heroes in a book entitled ' the coniston tigers' it is a real two fingers up to those who think they dont have time to climb or cant travel to the venue. also its a great read.

In reply to Sam Edwards:

Have a look for "The Only Genuine Jones." It will be on special offer in a few days.
Full disclosure: I'm the author.

In reply to Sam Edwards:

Another vote for 'Mountains of my Life', jaw dropping understatement.

In reply to Only a hill:

Looking forward to that as well

In reply to Sam Edwards:

Another vote for Gordon's Fiva. Found I could envisage every single step to the last crunch of brittle snow. Not to mention the sickening realisation that you are not where you thought you were.....

In reply to Sam Edwards:

WH Murray . The Evidence of Things Not Seen. Very moving account of the mans life including his time spent in German POW camps. Highly recommended especially to those interested in the history of Scottish climbing.

In reply to Sam Edwards: Savage Arena by Joe Tasker and Greg Child's Thin Air are both outstanding reads.

T.

In reply to Pursued by a bear:

My Father Frank, The K2 Man, Journey after Dawn, Downward Bound.

In reply to Sam Edwards:

Alastair Borthwick and W E Bowman, of course. Recently I enjoyed both of Mike Cawthorne's books, "Hell of a Journey" and "Wilderness Dreams". A slightly odd though pleasant read was Max Frisch's existential short novel, "An Answer from the Silence".

Jon

In reply to Sam Edwards

I would also add my vote for Into The Silence - a tremendous piece of work. When I learned it was the result of ten years in its researching and writing I neither blinked nor gasped. I was surprised to read, above, it has inaccuracies - I'd genuinely like to know what they are. It was reading the Guardian's review for the second time that convinced me to get it, no mention of inaccuracies though. He did go through all the military archives, the bibliography is massive.

There's a copy in the library at Aber. They've also got a copy of Jim Perrin's Selected Climbing Essays too. Perrin visits the National Library mid-Jan.

May I also recommend Llyfer Aber/Aber Books at the top of town, upstairs has a good selection of climbing/mountaineering books.

Hwyel fawr
Peter Cooper, also of Aber.

In reply to Sam Edwards:

Freedom Climbers by Bernadette MacDonald is fabulous and gives credit to a lot of Polish hardmen that these days get overlooked.

Also nothing wrong with looking back and reading some Tilman.

http://www.ukclimbing.com/gear/review.php?id=4468

In reply to Henry Iddon:

another vote for 'freedom climbers' left wanting more

also herman buhl nanga parbat pilgrimage and bonatti

In reply to Sam Edwards:
Menlove, if you fancy having a bit of a weep. Jim Curran's biography of Don Whillans is good. The games climbers play is good too. Revelations is worth a read. If you can get One For The Crow (and some decent drugs) I'd give that a go.

The Shining Mountain is also very good.

In reply to Morty:

Would that be Jim Perrin's biography of Whillans!
I don't think that either author would be amused by the slip.

In reply to Sam Edwards:

Not had a chance to read it yet (it's still sitting at home) but I have heard the The Shining Mountain and the other three in the Boardman/Tasker omnibus is good.

In reply to Henry Iddon:

Bernadette McDonald was also responsible for the excellent biography of Charles Houston: 'Brotherhood of the rope'.

In reply to Sam Edwards:

One Man's Mountains by Tom Patey. A collection of Articles rather than a single topic book, but one of my absolute favorites!

Cheers,

STu

In reply to Sam Edwards:

If money is no object, Total Alpinism by Rene Desmaison.
If that's too dear, Fiva by Gordon Stainforth.

In reply to Sam Edwards:


Diddly Squat's Encyclopedia of Mountaineering is available free this coming weekend (25 & 26 January) at Amazon (so too is the novel Black Nab - though that's not climbing related, despite drawing on a bit of Roaches folklore).

In reply to Sam Edwards:

No shout yet for The Ascent Of Rum Doodle!?

In reply to ripper:

Not many on here have been high or they are suffering from lassitude, so it's not surprising