Synopsis
On May 1, 1999, the Mallory & Irvine Research Expedition found George Mallory's body - astonishingly well preserved - high on the wind-swept North Face of Everest. But that is not all they found. In Mallory's pockets, and elsewhere on the mountain, the researchers found answers to the question that has plagued historians and mountaineers alike: Did they make it? And if they did, what happened to them?
Ghosts of Everest is the exclusive inside story of what they found and, for the first time, what this new evidence tells us about Mallory and Irvine's momentous last day.
Reviews
YA-Here is the inside story of the search for the long-lost British mountaineer. Mallory, one of the most accomplished high-altitude climbers of his time, and his companion disappeared from the slopes of Mount Everest in 1924 when they were close to becoming the first humans to reach the highest spot on Earth. In this skillfully crafted story, readers learn how Hemmleb, the young German graduate student and historiographer of Everest expeditions, linked up with Larry Johnson, another Everest enthusiast, and high-altitude expedition leader Eric Simonson in 1999 to put to rest the mystery of what became of Mallory. Stories of the original trek are intertwined with details of the modern research expedition. This beautifully composed, slightly oversized volume with heavy glossy pages has copious, lustrous photographs, including many from the earlier expedition, and several maps that perfectly support the text. This absorbing book evokes a reverence for Mallory and all those high-altitude mountaineers who have succeeded him in the climb to the roof of the world.
Cynthia J. Rieben, W. T. Woodson High School, Fairfax, VA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Makes for fascinating reading, and, with its well-chosen illustrations and handsome design, The Ghosts of Everest is the standout among [other] books.
One of the great mysteries of modern exploration and adventure is whether British climbers George Mallory and Andrew Irvine reached Mount Everest's summit on their pioneering 1924 expedition in which both men vanished. Were they the first to scale the world's highest spot, decades before Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay made their successful ascent in 1953? On the 75th anniversary of the ill-fated duo's disappearance, a 1999 Everest expeditionAwith Simonson as team leader, Hemmleb as historical adviser and Johnson as team coordinatorAattempted to retrace Mallory and Irvine's probable route and solve the mystery. Incredibly, they discovered Mallory's bodyAremarkably intact, badly bruised and with a broken legAfrozen in the snow. In a taut narrative that skillfully jump-cuts between the 1924 Mallory/Irvine expedition and their own, the authors make a compelling case that Mallory fell to his death and that he appears to have been roped to Irvine, who also fell and was injured. (Irvine's body was reportedly sighted by a Chinese climber in 1975, but this awaits further proof.) Did Mallory and Irvine make it to Everest's summit? "It is more likely than had previously been thought that they did make itAbut it is still far from certain," conclude the authors. They base their analysis on their findings atop Everest, including personal letters and an inventory of oxygen tanks they found in Mallory's pockets. Their report, a work of historic importance that reads like a detective thriller, includes a moving foreword by Mallory's daughter, Clare Mallory Millikan, plus 100 photographs (80 in color, 20 sepia) illustrating both the 1999 search expedition and Mallory's 1924 attempt. First serial to Outside; author tour. (Oct.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
This is a truly amazing account of how a group of well-prepared modern mountain climbers made an effort to solve the mystery of a 75-year-old attempt to summit Mt. Everest. Others had tried and failed to locate the frozen remains of English mountaineers George Mallory and Andrew Irvine. The two perished atop the mountain in 1924, but their bodies were never recovered, leaving it unclear whether or not they had reached the top nearly three decades before Sir Edmund Hillary. While the recent team never solved the question of Mallory and Irvine's summiting, in May they did discover Mallory's frozen body on the North Col in an amazing state of preservation. Along with describing the preparations and personnel of their own team, the authors provide a detailed account of the activities of the 1924 expedition. The new group (which included Larry Johnson, who gave up his publicity job at Stackpole Books to make the climb) was astounded at what Mallory and Irvine were able to accomplish with what by today's standards seemed like very primitive equipment. A good read for adventure lovers and a historical standout among the escalating numbers of Everest climbing books. [With accompanying articles in Outside, New York Times, and Vanity Fair.--Ed.]--Robert F. Greenfield, formerly with Baltimore Cty. P.L.
---Robert F. Greenfield, formerly with Baltimore Cty. P.L.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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