No Way Down - Graham Bowley

[Jane B]

I am a sucker for books of this genre...human endurance against sometimes insurmountable odds and I have often wondered what drives people to these extreme endeavours, fullwell knowing that they are always dicing with death and that one false step can leave them hurtling down a mountainside with only an ice axe and length of rope for support. Not to mention the effects of extreme altitudes and exposure and the toll they can take on a healthy body. It also makes me wonder at the selfishness of mountaineers who get married and have children and then leave them at home for months on end worrying that they may not come home.

No Way Down tells of a disastrous attempt on the summit of K2, the world's second tallest mountain and more difficult to climb than Everest, in August 2008 by a large international body of climbers and the results of that attempt in terms of human endurance, loss, death and courage.

Graham Bowley gives us a very readable account of the tragic unfolding of events that eventually meant the loss of 11 of the world's best climbers and also gives us a glimpse into the personalities of those involved based on his interviews with some of the survivors. I read this book quickly over two days - it was unputdownable