Product Description
K2, "the savage mountain", is the second-highest peak in the world - and the most difficult to cllimb. In 1986, it was the site of both dazzling triumph and great loss as twenty-seven men and women reached the top but thirteen died trying. Tto this day it ramains the single greatest tragedy in the history of mountaineering. Curran was there to record it all in words and photographs: courage and obsession, luminous success and thwarted ambition.

Amazon.com Review
Before the 1996 Everest disaster made that mountain synonymous with tragedy at 8,000 meters, there was K2. More technical in most routes than Everest, the world's second-highest peak is considered the ultimate achievement by many mountaineers. In 1986 K2 claimed the lives of 13 climbers in nine different parties attempting its summit. Author Jim Curran was on the mountain during the ordeal, and through narrative and photographs, Curran documents the sagas of success, failure, and tragedy in a fateful year that captured the world's attention. Alongside the terror of avalanches, crevasses, and horrific storms are stories of bravery and the indomitable human spirit.

CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 3.0 based on 26 reviews)

A so so effort - too much self pity

This book, which details the tragic summer of 1986 when 13 people died on K2, is a somewhat tepid story, that is filled with too much of the author's marginalized attempts at self-pity, but does manage to capture a trace of the tragedy that unfolded that year.

Jim Curran never makes it far up the mountain, (only slightly higher than advanced base camp) and spends far too many pages talking about his trouble with skiing the glacier and his climbing difficulties, and far too little time capturing the drama unfolding at 8000+ meters. For instance, when Wanda Rutkiewicz decends through a storm that claims half her climbing team, we have maybe two or three paragraphs of the author's perception of her egotism and 'obsession' with 8000 meter peaks, and very, very little detail or reporting on what actually occurred on the mountain.

The later disasters, which involved his close friend Alan Rouse, are described and detailed more thoroughly, but again, too much of his own self-pity intrudes on what otherwise would have been the finest part of the book.

All in all - if you are interested in learning about some of the peopole involved in that summer of tragedy, it's worth reading. If you are looking for an adventure/mountaineering book, then there are better alternatives.
November 29, 2007

Great Information for K2 Climbs

As a fellow mountaineer interested in climbing the mountain myself, I found the information in this book very helpful. It is a solid piece of mountaineering literature with something for every adventure enthusiast. If you are thirsting for high country adventure epics like this one (albeit on a much smaller scale), you should also explore "Rocky Mountain Adventure Collection", also available at Amazon.com.
December 07, 2005

A very engaging read

Ten years before the 1996 climbing disaster on Mt. Everest, 13 people died on the world's 2nd highest mountain -- and far greater climbing challenge -- K2. Although this book isn't as dramatic or well written as Jon Krakauer's Into Thin Air, it's still an excellent book full of true to life adventure and tragedy.

Part of this is due to the fact that the adventure genre wasn't quite as developed or palpable in 1987. Part of it is that few of the characters are described in any depth. But mostly, the problem was that Jim Curran was there to film the expedition and never had any intention of summiting. Had he attempted to climb K2, I'm sure the story would have been richer.
March 03, 2005

The title says it all -- and Heartfelt Account

Aside from being a great account of the tragic 1986 season at K2, Curran's book has the quality of masterfully weaving the author's sense of humor with his deeply felt emotions about lost friends.

While some may argue that Curran was not at the forefront of leading the climbing on any of the expeditions, his keen sense of a filmmaker allows him to tell a very human story. In the great tradition of English mountaineering tradition he tells with wit and humor about the scrambles in putting the expedition together. His storytelling about the trials and challenges in the walk-up to base camp is equaled in its jovial spirit perhaps only by Greg Child (see "Thin Air").

When true drama begins to unfold with the death of Casarotto, Curran does not simply "recount" the casualties -- his voice is full of passion, heartache and doubt. His reflections upon the dangers of mountain climbing are deeply felt.

A highly recommended read!
February 16, 2004

Good short story

This book is about the 1986 season on K2 when there were several casualties. It is written in a funny and self-deprecating tone, which is refreshing given the usual self-aggrandisement tone of mountaineering adventures. Of course, the author is not an accomplished mountaineer, but rather an observer who happens to be on the mountain.

He does spend a bit too much time going through the full description of characters on the mountain that season, the first since Pakistan allowed climbers back after a long hiatus. However, I guess it is best to err on the heavier side of character development, so it is okay. It is a quick fun read, if not life-changing like many mountaineering books seem to try to be.
March 09, 2003

SIMILAR PRODUCTS

K2, The Savage Mountain: The Classic True Story of Disaster and Survival on the World's Second Highest Mountain
by Charles S. Houston, Robert H. Bates
by Jim Wickwire

Annapurna
by Maurice Herzog

High Exposure: An Enduring Passion for Everest and Unforgiving Places
by David Breashears
by Jon Krakauer

Eiger Dreams: Ventures Among Men and Mountains
by Jon Krakauer

No Shortcuts to the Top: Climbing the World's 14 Highest Peaks
by Ed Viesturs, David Roberts