The world beneath their feet Mountaineering, madness, and the deadly race to summit the Himalayas

Scott Ellsworth

Book - 2020

"While tension steadily rose between European powers in the 1930s, a different kind of battle was raging across the Himalayas. Contingents from Great Britain, Nazi Germany, and the United States had set up rival camps at the base of the mountains, all hoping to become recognized as the fastest, strongest, and bravest climbers in the world. Carried on across nearly the entire sweep of the Himalayas, this contest involved not only the greatest mountain climbers of the era, but statesmen and millionaires, world-class athletes and bona fide eccentrics, scientists and generals, obscure villagers and national heroes. Centered in the 1930s, with one brief, shining postwar coda, the contest was a struggle between hidebound traditionalists and ...unknown innovators, one that featured new techniques and equipment, unbelievable courage and physical achievement, and unparalleled valor. And death. One Himalayan peak alone, Nanga Parbat in Kashmir, claimed twenty-five lives in less than three years"--

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Subjects
Genres
Creative nonfiction
Biographies
Published
New York : Little, Brown and Company 2020.
Language
English
Main Author
Scott Ellsworth (author)
Edition
First edition
Physical Description
xix, 393 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations, map ; 25 cm
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages 343-379) and index.
ISBN
9780316434867
  • Map
  • A Note to the Reader
  • Prologue. The Last Place on Earth
  • Book 1.
  • Chapter 1. Ice Axes and Dinner Jackets
  • Chapter 2. A Wind from the East
  • Chapter 3. Everest, 1933
  • Chapter 4. The New Emersonians
  • Chapter 5. Nanga Parbat
  • Chapter 6. Shangri-La
  • Chapter 7. Yogis and Yak Meat
  • Book 2.
  • Chapter 8. A Knock at the Door
  • Chapter 9. Murder Mountain
  • Chapter 10. Triumph-and Trouble
  • Chapter 11. An American Everest
  • Chapter 12. A Bit East of The Plaza
  • Chapter 13. The North Face
  • Chapter 14. The Summer at the End of the World
  • Book 3.
  • Chapter 15. War
  • Chapter 16. A New World
  • Chapter 17. The Brightness of Their Rising
  • Chapter 18. Glory, Strength, and Decency
  • Epilogue: To the Stars
  • Acknowledgments
  • The Climbers
  • The Expeditions
  • A Glossary of Mountaineering Terms
  • Notes
Review by Booklist Review

It was 11:30 on the morning of May 29, 1953, when Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay successfully reached the summit of Mount Everest, the "the roof of the world," the tallest mountain above sea level. But before that landmark moment, numerous lesser-known mountaineers from across the globe pursued daunting summits, some successfully, others with tragic results. Focusing on the 1930s and the war years of the 1940s, Ellsworth introduces some of those climbing pioneers here, effectively blending world events into the stories of the various treks. Notable subjects include eccentric Englishman Maurice Wilson, who--determined to climb Mount Everest solo in 1934 with minimal experience--flew a single-engine plane to India and crossed into Tibet by foot, disguised as a Buddhist monk, and American Paul Petzoldt, a combination of "Woody Guthrie and a character out of Mark Twain," who played a key role in the first American Alpine Club Karakoram Expedition to K2 in 1938. Overall, an exceptional account of trailblazing mountaineers who persevered during a turbulent time in history.

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Library Journal Review

Ellsworth (The Secret Game) writes a comprehensive introduction to high-altitude mountaineering, from the interwar period through the early 1950s, when the first 8,000 meter mountains (Annapurna, Everest, and Nanga Parbat) were summited. The background of each expedition is enhanced with intertwining cultural and society events, from the influence of Nazism in Europe to India's push for independence. After the large expeditions of the 1920s, later ones became smaller, though remained a source of national pride. Though some expeditions are thoroughly detailed elsewhere, their inclusion here places them in the wider exploration and spirit of the era. The people, dangers, triumphs, and tragedies are exquisitely detailed, though the crux is in the details and emotion of the lesser-known expeditions that contributed to later climbers reaching the summits. These include the summit of Minya Konka in China, an audacious solo attempt on Everest, and numerous climbs throughout the Himalayas and Karakoram. A helpful appendix details important figures in the sport as well as expeditions and climbing terms. VERDICT An excellent overview of mountaineering and exploration in the Himalayas and Karakoram, set against the backdrop of 20th-century history, that will appeal to mountaineers and armchair adventurers.--Zebulin Evelhoch, Deschutes P.L., OR

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review

The dramatic saga of the race between nations to climb the planet's highest mountains.In his latest, Ellsworth (African American History, Southern Literature/Univ. of Michigan; The Secret Game: ABasketball Story in Black and White, 2015, etc.) focuses on the 1930s and the men and women who risked their lives to climb the "deadliest mountains on Earth." In vivid, novelistic prose, the author describes the significant expeditions and delivers engaging portraits of climbers from many different countries and their invaluable Sherpas. In 1931, the Germans stunned the British and their famous Alpine Club when an expedition led by former soldier Paul Bauer reached the summit of Kangchenjunga, thought to be the world's second-highest mountain. For Bauer, Ellsworth writes, the success was "a way to reclaim the honor of Germany, the honor that had not been lost in the trenches but in the treachery of the Treaty of Versailles." The British responded with a 1933 expedition to Everest. Equipped with newly designed boots, suits, and a new type of glacier glasses, Frank Smythe and Eric Shipton were hopeful but still failed. The Americans, with their Explorer's Club, entered the race when Terris Moore and Dick Burdsall reached the summit of Minya Konka. In 1934, a German team failed to climb Nanga Parbat; four Germans and six Sherpas died. Inspired by James Hilton's 1933 novel, Lost Horizon, the British were the first to reach their Shangri-La, Nanda Devi's pristine, massive, circular amphitheater, the Sanctuary. Maurice Wilson, who fought on the Western Front during World War I, flew from England to India and then crossed the Tibetan border to take on Mount Everest. He perished. In 1937, a German team took on Nanga Parbat a second time without success. In 1950, a French team led by Resistance fighter and mountaineer Maurice Herzog climbed Annapurna. Finally, as Ellsworth recounts triumphantly, on May 29, 1953, New Zealander Edmund Hillary and his Sherpa, Tenzing Norgay, shook hands on Everest's summit.A captivating, rousing adventure story. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.