Annapurna: A Woman's Place: 0

click here for more details, find new or used items	Blum, Arlene Our price £8.10 New from £4.59 Used from £8.38 Pages: 272 (Paperback) ISBN: 1578050227 Pub: SIERRA CLUB BOOKS Pub date: 1998-10-13 Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 196724

Reader Reviews:

A WOMAN'S PLACE IS ON TOP... (5/5 people found this helpful)

This is without a doubt one of the best books written about a specific mountain climbing expedition. This particular book is a lyrical and moving account of the first women's expedition to climb Annapurna in the Himalayas. It provides great detail and insight into their two month odyssey in the mountain and chronicles the challenges that they faced in trying to reach the summit.

The leader of this 1978 expedition authored the book and her characterizations of her fellow expeditioners are interesting and engaging. Her description of life on an expedition is filled with a myriad of detail that will enthrall all armchair climbers, as well as climbing enthusiasts. These details make for gripping reading at times, and her descriptive narrative is always evocative of another time and place. In reading it, one realizes just how far women have come in terms of acceptance in the mountain climbing arena.

Their time spent on the mountain is illustrated by photographs which beautifully resonate the lyricism of the author's chronicle. The obstacles they overcome, their day to day travails, the bonding and alliances that formed amongst the different members of the expedition, all add to the three dimensional quality of the book. The photographs memorialize those moments in time that best evoke the nuances of what it was like on the expedition and, at the same time, give the reader a sense of the beauty and majesty of the mountain.

On October 15, 1978, two of the women met the challenge of Annapurna, one of the world's highest mountains at 26,540 feet, and stood on its summit, achieving a historic first for women climbers. The success of the expedition, however, was clouded by the tragic loss of two of its members on a second, ill-advised attempt to reach the summit. Nonetheless, the American Women's Himalayan Expedition quest to reach the summit of Annapurna is a testament to great courage and commitment. It is also a great read.

A WOMAN'S PLACE IS ON TOP... (7/7 people found this helpful)

This is without a doubt one of the best books written about a specific mountain climbing expedition. This particular book is a lyrical and moving account of the the first women's expedition to climb Annapurna in the Himalayas. It provides great detail and insight into their two month odyssey in the mountain and chronicles the challenges that they faced in trying to reach the summit.

The leader of this 1978 expedition authored the book and her characterizations of her fellow expeditioners are interesting and engaging. Her description of life on an expedition is filled with a myriad of detail that will enthrall all armchair climbers, as well as climbing enthusiasts. These details make for gripping reading at times, and her descriptive narrative is always evocative of another time and place. In reading it, one realizes just how far women have come in terms of acceptance in the mountain climbing arena.

Their time spent on the mountain is illustrated by photographs which beautifully resonate the lyricism of the author's chronicle. The obstacles they overcome, their day to day travails, the bonding and alliances that formed amongst the different members of the expedition, all add to the three dimensional quality of the book. The photographs memorialize those moments in time that best evoke the nuances of what it was like on the expedition and, at the same time, give the reader a sense of the beauty and majesty of the mountain.

On October 15, 1978, two of the women met the challenge of Annapurna, one of the world's highest mountains at 26,540 feet, and stood on its summit, achieving a historic first for women climbers. The success of the expedition, however, was clouded by the tragic loss of two of its members on a second, ill-advised attempt to reach the summit. Nonetheless, the American Women's Himalayan Expedition quest to reach the summit of Annapurna is a testament to great courage and commitment. It is also a great read.

A WOMAN'S PLACE IS ON TOP... (5/5 people found this helpful)

This is, without a doubt, one of the best books written about a specific mountain climbing expedition. This particular book is a lyrical and moving account of the the first women's expedition to climb Annapurna in the Himalayas. It provides great detail and insight into their two month odyssey in the mountain and chronicles the challenges that they faced in trying to reach the summit.

The leader of the expedition authored the book and her characterizations of her fellow expeditioners are interesting and engaging. Her description of life on an expedition is filled with a myriad of detail that will enthrall all arm chair climbers, as well as climbing enthusiasts. These details make for gripping reading at times, and her descriptive narrative is always evocative of another time and place. In reading it, one realizes just how far women have come in terms of acceptance in the mountain climbing arena.

Their time spent on the mountain is illustrated by photographs which beautifully resonate the lyricism of the author's chronicle. The obstacles they overcome, their day to day travails, the bonding and alliances that formed amongst the different members of the expedition, all add to the beauty of the book. The photographs memorialize those moments in time that best evoke the nuances of what it was like on the expedition and, at the same time, give one a sense of the beauty and majesty of the mountain.

The success of the expedition in terms of their having actually reached the summit, however, is clouded by the tragic loss of two of the members on a second, ill-advised attempt to reach the summit. Nonetheless, the American Women's Himalayan Expedition quest to reach the summit of Annapurna is a testament to courage and commitment. It is also a great read.

Annapurna is so much more than an adventure story (2/2 people found this helpful)

I'm not sure if Annapurna: A Woman's Place most appeals to the part of me that is a writer, an outdoorsman, or simply a human being. In a nutshell, it's the finest and most moving book I've ever read about mountain climbing.

Yet the book goes much deeper than merely being an adventure story -- which is why it captivates me on so many levels. Since I first read the book, I have been ordering copies to send to friends for special occasions. At first I just sent it to friends who also happened to be female, then realized that its message was too universal to be gender specific. The male friends I have given copies of the book to have been just as impressed, just as moved, and just as inspired as my women friends.

What the climbers went through -- not just the rigors of the climb itself, but the preparation, the determination, the obstacles, and, eventually, the sadness and pain -- has a universal connotation far removed from mountain climbing that all of us can feel at some level. Like the bumblebee, who doesn't know it can't fly, these daring women never fell back on their own limitations, as most of us are wont to do when the road seems unpassable.

I just can't find the words to express how much the book impressed me and what an inspiration it has been. Ms. Blum did a superb job of writing it. The book and the people come alive. I personally felt like one of her party and couldn't help but feel exalted at their success any more than I could keep from crying with them at the end.

I'll never climb a mountain like Annapurna, but this book should make anyone realize that life is full of mountains and that we can climb more of them than we think we can if we don't give up before we start.

Inspiring and Exciting (0/0 people found this helpful)

This inspirational story is a delight to ready. It captured me and didn't let me go, even after I had finished reading it. "Annapurna: A Woman's Place" is the thrilling story of the trials of climbing a mountain, from blizzards to avalanches to organization and teamwork. If you like a good adventure this is a story for you. However the mountain these women climb is not just a physical one. They face fears and frustrations and come through them triumphantly. They struggle with the unfortunate stereotype that women sometime face. Stereotypes such as, women are unorganized or they are not leaders when in fact women can and do accomplish great feats such as this one. We all have our mountains to climb in life and this tale with leave you with the strength and determination to climb yours.

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