Review of The Altitude Journals
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Emy Bezz
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Review of The Altitude Journals
[Following is a volunteer review of "The Altitude Journals" by David J Mauro.]
The Altitude Journals by David J.Mauro describes the seven-year author's adventure of climbing the seven summits. The author who is a successful financial planner and a father of two children goes through a midlife crisis when he ends his longtime marriage and ends up living with his sister; he feels lost during this period especially that he misses his only brother who recently died. While he never climbed before, he accepts his brother-in-law invitation to go to Denali, the highest mountain in north America and by doing so starts his journey into climbing the seven summits. After summiting Denali, the author ventures to ascend the rest of the seven summits: Kilimanjaro, Elbrus, Aconcagua, Vinson Massif, Carstenz Pyramid, and Everest. This journal recites the climbing adventures through the eyes of the author, the succession of events in his personal life and the emotional healing that comes with it throughout the years. From mending his relationship with his father who abandoned him when he was a kid to finding a great companion that supports him through his life journey.
The book brought me great insights about the dangers of high altitude, mountain climbing, the location of the seven summits and the characteristics of the regions along with the description of the beautiful forests, glaciers and the different difficulties the author endured such as encountering the cannibals. With the use of professional climber’s jargon, a combination of narration and dialogue in an engaging writing style, the book keeps you captivated. The author added humorous parts which makes the reading more interesting, in addition to certain stories depicted with vulnerability that create a sense of honesty and bring the reader to relate to the author’s experiences. My favorite story was with the old women Sherpa with whom he exchanged some time listening to music.
The aspect of the book that I'm not fond of is the description of the author’s thoughts when he is nearing the summits, he always mentions his family and problems in such critical moments with a tendency of dramatizing the events. I personally couldn't relate to it and found that he was exaggerating.
The book is exceptionally well edited, I didn’t find any error. Moreover, as a person who enjoys adventures and natural sceneries I found the experiences in this book fascinating; learning about the seven summits characteristics and difficulties, the climbing techniques and consequently feeling the author's evolution process going from a rookie to an experienced climber. I therefore gave this book 3 out of 4 stars.
The stories told stir the reader's curiosity and make them experience ascending the 7 summits. Astounding and breath-taking sceneries, motivational happy endings bring the reader alive with the book. Each successful summit feels like one's own. I recommend this book to people who like adventures, those who would like to learn more about climbing and especially the ones who want to do it but can't afford it.
******
The Altitude Journals
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
The Altitude Journals by David J.Mauro describes the seven-year author's adventure of climbing the seven summits. The author who is a successful financial planner and a father of two children goes through a midlife crisis when he ends his longtime marriage and ends up living with his sister; he feels lost during this period especially that he misses his only brother who recently died. While he never climbed before, he accepts his brother-in-law invitation to go to Denali, the highest mountain in north America and by doing so starts his journey into climbing the seven summits. After summiting Denali, the author ventures to ascend the rest of the seven summits: Kilimanjaro, Elbrus, Aconcagua, Vinson Massif, Carstenz Pyramid, and Everest. This journal recites the climbing adventures through the eyes of the author, the succession of events in his personal life and the emotional healing that comes with it throughout the years. From mending his relationship with his father who abandoned him when he was a kid to finding a great companion that supports him through his life journey.
The book brought me great insights about the dangers of high altitude, mountain climbing, the location of the seven summits and the characteristics of the regions along with the description of the beautiful forests, glaciers and the different difficulties the author endured such as encountering the cannibals. With the use of professional climber’s jargon, a combination of narration and dialogue in an engaging writing style, the book keeps you captivated. The author added humorous parts which makes the reading more interesting, in addition to certain stories depicted with vulnerability that create a sense of honesty and bring the reader to relate to the author’s experiences. My favorite story was with the old women Sherpa with whom he exchanged some time listening to music.
The aspect of the book that I'm not fond of is the description of the author’s thoughts when he is nearing the summits, he always mentions his family and problems in such critical moments with a tendency of dramatizing the events. I personally couldn't relate to it and found that he was exaggerating.
The book is exceptionally well edited, I didn’t find any error. Moreover, as a person who enjoys adventures and natural sceneries I found the experiences in this book fascinating; learning about the seven summits characteristics and difficulties, the climbing techniques and consequently feeling the author's evolution process going from a rookie to an experienced climber. I therefore gave this book 3 out of 4 stars.
The stories told stir the reader's curiosity and make them experience ascending the 7 summits. Astounding and breath-taking sceneries, motivational happy endings bring the reader alive with the book. Each successful summit feels like one's own. I recommend this book to people who like adventures, those who would like to learn more about climbing and especially the ones who want to do it but can't afford it.
******
The Altitude Journals
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: The Unlikely Cowboy by James E. Doucette
