Review by Choice Review
Published to celebrate and acknowledge the first successful ascent of Mount Everest six decades earlier, on May 29, 1953, by Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay, this handsomely published work provides a visual account of one of the most significant accomplishments in the history of mountaineering. New Zealand mountaineer George Lowe played a key role in this expedition and in Hillary's invitation to participate in this endeavor. Though Lowe is seldom credited for the significant role he played as a climber and talented photographer on the expedition, his photographs--both black-and-white and color--provide the dramatic illustrations of the ascent. Equally engaging are the poignant and descriptive passages from Lowe's journal that describe the tortuous climb. The volume's foreword was written by Hillary before his death in 2008. Hillary shared his ascent with the Sherpa Tenzing Norgay. Norgay's son, Norbu Tenzing Norgay, provides his reflections on how this ascent changed the lives and opportunities for the Sherpa and their families. Lowe, who died in March 2013, was the last surviving member of the expedition that first climbed the world's highest mountain. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower- and upper-level undergraduates, general readers, and professionals. P. D. Thomas emeritus, Wichita State University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
This beautiful volume commemorates the 60th anniversary of Sir Edmund Hillary's 1953 Everest expedition, when he became the first man to scale the world's highest mountain. Historian of exploration Lewis-Jones produced a text as stunning as the pictures provided by Lowe-Hillary's lifelong friend and climbing partner, and the photographer during that ascent. The story is movingly recounted from Lowe and Hillary's accidental first meeting as two New Zealanders enthralled by mountains. Every emotion is plumbed, from joy to fear to self-sacrifice, in an amazing tale of a company of climbers whose unflagging support of each other resulted in a successful quest for fame and glory. Lowe shares the story, but other notable figures and mountaineering legends chime in with an eclectic array of reflections-including the son of Tenzing Norgay, the Sherpa who took the summit with Hillary, who offers memories from his father. The story is riveting and the photographs are unparalleled-particularly a color spread of a sunset with the moon in the background, and another of two men crossing a frightening crevasse bridged by a narrow log-but nearly every shot is a manifestation of an extraordinary undertaking. 167 illus. (May) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Review by Library Journal Review
Lewis-Jones (Arctic) clarifies in his prolog that this book was originally intended to mark the 50th anniversary of the 1953 Everest ascent, but there were delays. The foreword by Edmund Hillary, a 2007 tribute to his friend George Lowe, is one of the last pieces Hillary wrote. Lowe was the expedition's "cine cameraman." This coffee-table book is not just a treasury of Lowe's photographs; it introduces readers fully to this "forgotten man of Everest." The bulk of the text is Lowe's memoir of his life as it relates to that expedition, with "portfolios" of his photographs, many not previously published, between the chapters. Lowe, who was the last surviving member of the expedition (he died last month), writes of his first encounters with fellow New Zealander Hillary as they climbed together in the years before being chosen for the expedition: 13 men (plus "an army of Sherpa") tasked with putting the two of them on the summit. A final chapter contains "Reflections" by others, including sons of Tenzing and of Hillary. Jan Morris, who as correspondent for the Times was attached to the expedition, provides the epilog. VERDICT Essential for all Everest collections as one of the expedition's last primary sources and a deserved testament to Lowe's contributions. He proves himself, as Jan Morris puts it, "a man of sweet charm and courtesy."-Margaret- Heilbrun, Library Journal (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
