Below Another Sky: A Mountain Adventure in Search of a Lost Father - Hardcover

Ridgeway, Rick

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 080506284X ISBN 13: 9780805062847

Publisher: Henry Holt and Co., 2001

Synopsis

A renowned adventurer travels to Tibet with a young woman in search of her father's memory and gains a fresh perspective on his own life.

Combining gripping adventure writing with intimate memoir, Rick Ridgeway takes readers to the mysterious mountain domain of Tibet, and into the remote corners of his past. Twenty years ago, in the wake of a massive and terrifying avalanche, Ridgeway cradled his dying friend Jonathan in his arms and pledged to keep watch over Jonathan's infant daughter, Asia. Now Asia is a vibrant, headstrong young woman; hoping to help her connect with the father she never knew, Ridgeway takes her to the Himalayas Jonathan so cherished. Together, they search for the place where he died.

Their trek through remote and forbidding terrain-under constant threat from lethal storms and jumpy Chinese military patrols-is a fitting backdrop for the precarious emotional journey that Ridgeway and Asia share, as they venture into alien landscapes of memory and self-discovery. Ultimately, the truths they both seek are revealed, not in the images of a life long gone but in the bright promise of future possibility. In a stunning conclusion on a treacherous and wind-battered mountain face, both Ridgeway and his dead friend's daughter finally embrace the deepest realities of death, and of life.

About this title

About the Author

Rick Ridgeway, a mountaineer-ing legend, is well known for his writing, photography, and filmmaking. His articles have appreared in numerous magazines, and he is the author of four previous books, including The Shadow of Kilimanjaro, which was named one of the Ten Best Travel Books of 1998 by The New York Times. He lives with his family in Ventura, California.

Reviews

In November 1980, legendary mountaineer Ridgeway watched his friend Jonathan die in his arms after being caught in an avalanche in the Himalayas. Now, 20 years later, as he leads Asia, Jonathan's daughter, on a quest back to the mountains of Tibet in search of Jonathan's grave site, Ridgeway reflects on his friend, on Tibet and on his career as a climber in a moving and exciting tale that is part memoir, part adventure story. To give both the reader and AsiaAnow a young woman who has no recollection of her fatherAa fuller understanding of the man Jonathan was, Ridgeway incorporates entries from his friend's journal into his narrative. Ridgeway's writing is vivid, uncluttered and, mostly, unsentimental. Indeed, the author's voice is most authentic describing climbing itselfAthe lure of the challenge, the thrill of the danger and the sheer beauty of the adrenaline-charged and psychically compelling experience. Although never overtly religious, Ridgeway digs deep to explore his own spirituality in a profoundly spiritual place, recounting his discussions with Asia about Jonathan's commitment to Buddhism and how they may be able to incorporate elements of his beliefs into their lives. Author tour. (Jan. 9)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

In October 1980, the author was in Tibet, on the side of a mountain, when an avalanche came out of nowhere, burying him and his companions. Ridgeway managed to survive it, but his friend, Jonathan, was not so lucky. Ridgeway buried him on the mountain. Now, two decades later, he goes back to the mountain, accompanied by Jonathan's daughter, who wants to visit the place where her father died. This mixture of travel adventure and autobiography is among the best of its kind, definitely deserving of comparison to Jon Krakauer's Into Thin Air. The story itself is packed with emotion--Can anyone read about a young woman's odyssey to find her father's grave without getting a little misty?--but Ridgeway's handling of the material makes it even more so. His own life as an adventurer has been punctuated by excitement and tragedy (Jonathan was not his only friend to lose his life on a mountain), and readers who imagine mountain climbing as a man-versus-mountain affair may be surprised to learn that the real battle is between a climber and his or her own fears. This is a first-rate book, deeply moving and haunting. David Pitt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

It was as if the snow all around me had started to boil. Get off to the side. Quick. Stand up and run. Can't get up. You have to. Get up. Can't. Then underneath me the snow seemed to explode. No way to get out now. It will stop, just below the tents, has to. No, we're gaining speed. No, no. There's someone beside me. Jonathan, Kim? Can't tell. Someone yelling, "Oh Christ, here we go!" Who was it? Kim, Jonathan? No, Kim. Start thinking. Think fast. We can't get out, but we still might stop. If we stop I might be buried. Smothered. Remember what they say, "If you're in an avalanche, start swimming to stay on top." So try to backstroke. You're still on top, stay there. Backstroke, hard. It'll stop. Oh no, losing control. Can't, have to stay on top. No, I'm flipping.

Edition details

• Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.
• Publication date: 2001
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 080506284X
• ISBN 13: 9780805062847
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 320