Mind Over Matter (Delta Expedition) Review

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(More customer reviews)Amazing what they did, but told in a very undignified, uninspired manner. After finishing this I went immediately to Mawson's "Home of the Blizzard" and the contrast not only in writing style but personal qualities is startling. Fiennes complains endlessly, in a petty manner, about his companion-. He keeps teling the reader he is tougher, faster, better navigator, etc. yet he made some major screwups in planning (although he did a good job of avoiding the polar bears!). And the recollections are so self-centered, down to numerous photos of frostbitten toes, fingers etc, plus an hourly update of the status of every blister and hangnail. And he wrote the book after the fact! Scott, Mawson, Shackleton and many other earlier explorers didn't gripe one tenth as much even in their diaries, written in the midst of the pain and agony. And those earlier guys actually noticed their surroundings and wrote of them poetically. Since Fiennes took the trip mainly as fodder for a book (he says so in the book) you'd think he could have offered the reader much more. The earlier explorers accomplished things for the greater good - mapping, meteorlogical recordkeeping, collecting biological specimens, etc. They wrote their books, or published their journals, to finance exploration, not the other way around. And the MS cause seems dubious, considering it wasn't Fiennes' idea, but rather a condition placed on them to get funding. I found it depressing all in all. Much more inspiring to read about Scott freezing out there than this guy surviving.

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Antarctica: Both Heaven and Hell Review

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(More customer reviews)This book is very uneven, unfortunately. On one side, photography is splendid, historical and geological discussion are very thorough, the spirit of adventure is live and well. However, I am TIRED to find Messner complaining about his partner on every single page. And the translation is so bad, that one can almost study German grammar from the English presented.
The philosophical expositions in the book kept my feelings mixed as well. On one side (and perhaps this is due to a poor translation) it is full of heavy and sometimes overly sweet German Romanticism; one the other hand, Messner's treatment of the white void in front of him as a meditative medium is very honestly portrayed and splendidly presented.

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The Totem Pole: And a Whole New Adventure Review

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(More customer reviews)Although it follows his award-winning work, Deep Play, it cannot be described as a sequel. The Totem Pole is an account of a singular event in the author's life: a climbing accident in Australia that resulted in brain damage and partial paralysis. His rehabilitation is marked by the frightening uncertainty of how much (or how little) progress he will make. Climbing had been the essence of his life, and now no one can tell him if and when he will ever climb again.For an early dropout from school (at his father's urging), Pritchard has an amazing writing talent. "Deep Play" showed signs of his ability, but "The Totem Pole" brings Pritchard's talent to full flower.The only disappointment in the book is the middle section, where he switches from his narrative to a transcription of a taped diary made during his rehabilitation. The transcripts are a noticeable dropoff in the writing, but help reveal the inspired level with which the book begins and ends.A standout in the genre of climbing books, Joe Simpson fans will not be disappointed.

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After winning the 1997 Boardman Tasker Award for hisfirst book, Deep Play, climber Paul Pritchard used the prize money tokick off a world climbing tour in Tasmania, on a slender sea stackcalled the Totem Pole. However, a chance rockfall inflicted suchterrible head injuries that Pritchard spent the next year in and outof hospitals, relearning basic thinking processes and musclemovements.This insightful, firsthand chronicle of the accident and its aftermathportrays the physical and emotional ordeal of Pritchard's recovery. Heweaves together accounts of earlier climbs, his changed relationshipswith family and friends and his girlfriend, Celia, and details aboutthe rescue operation itself. And with an unpitying voice, Pritcharddescribes his return to the accident scene with a film crew to watchsome of his friends complete the climb that changed his life.

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To the End of the Earth: Our Epic Journey to the North Pole and the Legend of Peary and Henson Review

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(More customer reviews)WEll as books go this was so so. The writing about Perry was interesting but basically you have a couple of guys who get rich people to pay them for travelling around doing things that had importance a hundred years ago Also I love the lecture on Global warming. OK so they just laid down a carbon footprint the size of 250,000 people - two airplane trips to Baffin and seperate plane flights into restock them 4 or so times - hmm lets see they burnt up enough hydrocarbons for 100 lifetimes but they are going to tell us about global wamring - done like true liberals - its OK for me to use fuel but you shouldnt. Yea Right !
....and then we have "Sir Wally" Come on folks are we serious ??? Do people actually go around calling themselves 'sir' wally or Lord Wally. Then we have the RGS Royal Geographic Service - now this society may have made sense a hundred years ago but today?? !! NOt when you can fly into any place you want on the earth in less than a day - so instead we will handicap ourselves Lets see I will be the first person to walk across antarctica backwards with a mirror - yea thats a great idea!
... fumbling around looking to repeat 100 year old challenges - well hey if someone is dumb enough to pay you to do it go ahead!!

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