High Exposure: An Enduring Passion for Everest and Unforgiving Places

Very interesting and very well written; Avery engrossing book with great section on the 96 disaster very moving

It's hard not to like David Breshears after reading this autobiography. He seems like a very genuine guy who has worked for everything he has gotten in life. The reader follows Breshears' journey from childhood to becoming, arguably, the greatest climbing filmmaker of all time. I learned some things about the 1996 Everest disaster that weren't mentioned in other accounts and it's nice to read a personal perspective from someone who wasn't attempting the summit on May 10. The only reason that I didn't give the book "5 stars" is that I felt sometimes hindsight was being represented as foresight. What I mean by this is that rather than his decisions and choices having led him to his destiny, Breshears would have you believe that the opposite is true. In other words, that his destiny led him to make the choices he did. Maybe he didn't intend to convey this, but it's how I interpreted it. If you enjoy mountaineering books though, you won't be disappointed with this one.

This first-hand account of the frightening and absolutely breath-talking adventures on the slopes of Mount Everest during the ill-fated 1996 American climbing expedition is terrific reading. Brashears, a professional cinematographer, had already climbed Everest previous to this expedition, and his prize-winning documentary IMAX film about the ascent of Everest is itself both entertaining and edifying, as it holds no punches regarding the reality of life on the mountain. Neither does this book, which certainly proves that the author has a future in journalism is he chooses to pursue it.His colorful and well-written autobiography also does great service in helping those of us who prefer to have our adventure while sitting in the comfort of our reading room just what it is that draws people like him to the pursuit of mountaineering. Indeed, his gleeful enthusiasm is close to being contagious; this too is testimony to Brashears' ability to write convincingly and well. His approach is so colorful as to blur the lines between biography and fiction, and I often found myself having to remember that all this really did happen. It is that well written.His beginnings, too, seem like the stuff of popular fiction; a childhood of humility and privation, his early exploits in climbing on a virtual shoestring, his wildcat days in the oil field, all seem to fit this persona that wangles his way into situations and then has the gumption, intelligence, and character to pull it all off. He progresses with climbs both domestically and internationally, finally reaching into Nepal and Tibet. Always with him is this sense of humor on the one hand, and a willingness to take risks that most of just would turn away from. One senses he is heading for even more danger and self-discovery. Of course, the key to the book is his description of the events leading up to, including, and after the tragic catastrophe and loss of several climbers' lives in the ascent of the mountain. Busy himself with both the climb on the one hand and the IMAX filming of it on the other left him little time for instant reflection or remorse. These things probably helped him to focus on what had to be done to go on with the successful climb, the discovery of the bodies, and a safe descent to the camps far below. I found myself sorry to reach the final pages of his book, and I for one hope to find more writing from this talented filmmaker, writer, and climber in the future. I can highly recommend this book, and I think you will enjoy it, as well.

this is a good book for those who want insight into the world of climbing. this year i have read five books by everest climbers and this one has given me the best understanding of the discipline and training involved in climbing. breashers's account of his climbing career, beginning with his childhood passion for rock climbing, is far from self-indulgent. instead the reader gains respect the skill, psychological mindset, and preparation required for rock climbing and high peak climbing. my only complaint is that breashers rarely mentions the well-known physical hardships endured in high peak climbs. he rarely describes his physical state of being, as if climbing involves only technical logistics, not also overcoming the physical hardship of functioning in states of dehydration, sleep deprivation, oxygen deprivation, undernourishment, and frostbit extremities. nonetheless, his narrative has left me with valuable lessons about how disciplined training can provide one with the confidence necessary for making wise decisions when faced with formidable challenges.

A short, climb-heavy, autobiography about famous filmmaker/climber David Breashears, High Exposure captures the imagination with it's simple, sparse narrative style. The story follows the author from his youth as an army brat traveling from base to base with his mother, siblings, and an abusive father, to his apprenticeships on the rock faces of the American west, where he gradually earned the respect and admiration of his fellow climbers, to his eventual travel to the Himalaya, and his work there as cameraman for numerous expeditions.Breashears doesn't write with the lyrical style of a Greg Child, or the novelist/journalist style of a Kraukauer, or the heavy human-interest angle of a Jim Curran. Rather, his writing is simple, easy to digest, and paints stark pictures of a life in the mountains. In fact, the climbing descriptions are first-rate, and he discusses pitches he's ascended, their difficulty, the challenges overcome, and the lessons learned. I was struck by the attention-to-detail he reveals in his writing, and this book gives you that 'you are there' feel more than any of the other aforementioned writers - and leaves you hungering for more.Out of the probable fifty books I've read on mountaineering in the Himalayas, I would rank this as one of the finest. While reading, Breashears does a first-rate job of capturing the exhilaration, fear, sense of accomplishment and dedication that climbing one of these giant peaks brings to those who attempt it.Highly recommended.

Book in excellent condition as advertised, and a fast read, for travels on the tube !

Super!

I bought this book hoping to get another viewpoint on the 1996 Everest Tragedy that I first read about in Jon Krakauer's book, Into Thin Air. There is a bit in this book about that expedition, but the book reads more like an autobiography about the author. This was a little disappoint for me because it's not what I originally expected.

Overall this was a good book about one man's life in the mountains.He brings to the pages a passion most people would envy in their jobs.His discriptions of the places he has been and the climbs he has made are very vivid.As someone who is interested in everything Everest I really enjoyed his narratives of his climbs on the mountain especially his account of the 1996 tragedy.The only thing I didn't like was the author seemed to be a little self agrandizing at times.He seemed to like putting himself at the fore front of most expeditions regardless of his place on said expeditions.

... reading about the life of a mountaineer, although he is one of the bests in his field.