UKC

I just got my BMC magazine through and saw a plug for the new Ben Moon book there. It got me thinking, would anyone recommend other books on climbing. Not guide books but autobiography / biography, anything interesting around the topic. Ive just lead my first few routes and suppose I have the bug now! Im not after stories involving having to remove your leg with a karabiner and an eyelash...no trapped/gruesome stuff for me!

Cheers

In reply to TClimb:

I'm currently reading Freedom Climbers by Bernadette McDonald which is a great book very well written & an interesting window into some remarkable achievements by some extraordinarily resilient European climbers in the latter twentieth centry .

And Fiva by Gordon Stainforth is a ripping yarn too highly recommend that .

In reply to TClimb:

Andy Kirkpatrick - Psychovertical, Cold Wars
Gordon Stainforth - Fiva
Joe Simpson - The Beckoning Silence, This Game of Ghosts
Andy Cave - Learning to Breathe, Thin White Line

In reply to TClimb:

Second Andy Cave- Learning to Breathe.
I'm currently reading One Day As A Tiger by John Porter and so far its one of the best climbing books I've read. Can also recommend Postcards from the Edge- Greg Child- hilarious!

In reply to TClimb:
Just started the Ben Moon book - the last climbing book I read was Tears of the Dawn by Julian Lines - a very good insight into the mind of an extreme soloist. At times I was so absorbed in it I wondered whether he would still be alive at the end!

In reply to TClimb:

For shear inspiration try Revelations, Jerry Moffat

In reply to TClimb:

You won't go far wrong with this;

Vertical Pleasure: The Secret Life of a Tax Man by Mick Fowler

In reply to TClimb:

My vote is for Nick Bullocks book 'Echoes'

In reply to TClimb:

Thanks for the suggestions, Ill be grabbing some of these...

In reply to TClimb:

John Barry's The Great Climbing Adventure is fun.

In reply to TClimb:

Deep Play - Paul Pritchard
Revelations - Jerry Moffatt
Statement - Ben Moon
One Day as Tiger
Psychovertical - Andy Kirkpatrick
Cold Wars - Andy Kirkpatrick
Martin Boysen's Autobiography
Fiva - Gordon Stainforth
Shining Mountain
Anything by Mick Fowler or Andy Cave

In reply to TClimb:

It's quite interesting at the moment as we've had the auto/bios of the 'new order' (at the time) of climbers who instigated the big step-change in training and difficulty (Ben, Jerry, Ron). If you enjoy the Ben book, try the others. My personal pref is Rons Autobiography as it has a far less sanitised view of the 70s onward and is a brutally honest 'warts and all' piece of writing. Jerry's is worth the read for the whole UB40 sponsored 'best climber in the world' vibe. I think one day a blue plaque will probably go up on the House on Hunter House Road. Andy Cave's Learning to Breathe is also a cracking read.
A second vote for Paul Pritchard's Deep Play. Again an interesting insight into that whole 80s dole culture funded hard climbing. Really interesting profile of the Llanberis slate scene too.

In reply to TClimb:

I second teh marks suggestion of Joe Simpsons 'Beckoning Silence', I also recommend reading Simon Yates 'flame of adventure!

John Krakaur wrote' eiger dreams' which is about 10 short stories, and they're quite sweet snapshot stories! If your tempted to read his most famous book 'into thin air' (it is well written) do make sure you read 'the climb' written by anatouli boukreev and weston dewalt as it provides a slightly truer and fair defense / response to Jon Krakaurs account of the events of 96

I've just finished reading Steve House's 'beyond the mountain' which took a while to get into his style of writing, but by the time I was a third of the way into it I really thoroughly enjoyed it! There's loads of great books out there though

In reply to JonnoMaude:

Ah yes, forgot about Yates' books - both of which are superb.

In reply to TClimb:

I've really enjoyed freedom climbers and Steve houses book - beyond the mountain. Both superb and hugely interesting. Don't forget the ascent of rum doodle as well, essential reading.

In reply to TClimb:

I think that it may be worth you looking further back in history as well and read about the attempts on the 8000 metre peaks,and mountaineering before that.If you take the last recommendation of reading The ascent of Rum Doodle,then reading books by FS Smythe may be worthwhile to set you up for the spoof.
I liked reading the book about climbing Nanga Parbat(1st time) from the team point of view written by the leader.(I cannot remember the name).
What about Scrambles among the Alps by Whymper?
I have just bought the book of the account of the Swiss 1956 expedition to Everest and Lhotse(the last 8000m peak) and expect it to interest me,because of the uncertainty of succeeding and the older climbing philosophy etc.

In reply to TClimb:

Cheers for all those ideas guys...more than enough there. I need an education as I am relativlely new to this...!

In reply to TClimb:

I've recently read Steve MacClure's book, Beyond Limits, which I've got to say was better than I thought it would be. I'm currently reading Barry Blanchard's autobiography, The Calling, which I didn't know existed until I stumbled across it in the library, and it is superb.

In reply to TClimb:
Just finished Richard parks new book, Beyond the horizon, pretty good read , pretty amazing guy! Also recently read Sherpa Tensings biography, highly recommend if you can find it.

In reply to veteye:

Indeed, some older books.

The Boardman Tasker Omnibus (Savage Mountain etc) is a must have.

As is at least one of the Shipton/Tilman omnibuses.

A short walk in the Hindu Kush is hilarious, but hardly a pure climbing book.

and something by Bonners (that Sir Chris Bonnington to the OP) to round it off...

In reply to TClimb:

More of the 'older titles':

The Games Climbers Play edited by Ken Wilson
The Hard Years by Joe Brown
The White Spider by Heinrich Harrer
The Ascent of Rum Doodle by W E Bowen

And more recently:

The Villain by Jim Perrin