A century ago the summits of the world's highest peaks, Everest included, were beyond reach. Pioneering attempts to overcome the dangers of climbing at extremely high altitudes ended in failure, sometimes with disastrous consequences. Yet today high altitude ascents are frequent, almost commonplace. Everest can be conquered by relatively inexperienced mountaineers, and their exploits barely merit media attention-unless they go fatally wrong. In this fascinating study of the dramatic history of Everest climbs, Richard Sale and George Rodway describe in vivid detail the struggle to conquer the mountain and the advances in scientific knowledge that made the conquest possible. Their account gives a compelling insight into the science of mountaineering as well as the physical and psychological challenges faced by individuals who choose to test themselves in some of the harshest conditions on earth. AUTHOR: Dr. Richard Sale is a theoretical physicist, a mountaineer and an expert on the history and ecology of the Arctic. He has travelled extensively in the Arctic, Antarctica and the Himalayas, and is a prolific author. His many books include On Top of the World, To the Ends of the Earth and The Arctic: The Complete Story. Dr. George Rodway is a physiologist and an expert on mountain medicine and the science of high-altitude climbs. As well as publishing many papers and articles on these subjects, he is the editor of George Ingle Finch's The Struggle for Everest. He has also written extensively on the history of high-altitude physiology for journals such as High Altitude Medicine and Biology. SELLING POINTS: ? A new history of mountaineering on Everest ? Traces the evolution of the science of high-altitude climbing ? Reconsiders world-famous expeditions on Everest ? Mallory and Irvine, Hillary and Tenzing, Messner and Habeler ? Insight into the mountaineering history of other Himalayan high peaks: K2, Kamet, Kangchenjunga, Makalu ? Records in vivid detail the disastrous consequences of inexperience and error on Everest ILLUSTRATIONS: 60 images *
