Despite the quote from Chris Bonington on the front cover – “a wonderful, gritty expedition book” – Summit Fever is a very different expedition book. Successfully different, and an excellent read. Joe Simpson introduces the book – In Summit Fever, … Continue reading →
This is a mountaineering book that not only has great photos but is also enjoyable to read. It starts off with a nice little spat – competing forewords from Dick "I did the seven first" Bass and Pat "But I … Continue reading →
Yes, it’s the John Muir. Not great literature, but worth a quick skip-read it for its curiosity value.
Continue reading →A well-researched account of St Kilda first published in 1972 covering what is known of the history of the island and its inhabitants up to the evacuation in 1930. Good bibliography, including more up-to-date material.
Continue reading →The book describes the experiences of an exceptional English woman travelling alone in the Rocky Mountains in 1873. This was the time before Colorado became a State of the Union, and life was mostly hard and brutish. Isabella Bird happily … Continue reading →
Most of this book is a biography of George Mallory, followed by a short account of the expeditions after his death in 1924 which throw significant light on his and Irvine’s fate. Only the last few chapters relate the events … Continue reading →
Patrick French has written a fascinating, well-researched and readable account of the life of Sir Francis Younghusband, soldier, explorer, mountaineer, diplomat, spy, and mystic. If at the end I still find it impossible to define or understand the man, it … Continue reading →
I am not competent to review this book from a philosophical point of view. Instead, I have tried to give an overview of Popper’s themes which might perhaps encourage you to read the book for yourself! To understand Popper’s viewpoint … Continue reading →
Anyone writing more than a simple account of a visit to Antarctica is faced with the problem of which aspects to cover – the narrative, descriptive, historical, scientific, political, and (for many) spiritual aspects of their experience. Sara Wheeler was … Continue reading →
Deutsch bases his theme on the concept of multiple universes, which emerges from quantum theory as a solution to some of its inherent problems. From there he extends into virtual reality, time travel, and the possibilities (and constraints) of near-infinite … Continue reading →