Overview
One of the most compelling international dramas of the 20th century and an unforgettable saga of survival, technological innovation, and breathtaking human physical achievement-all set against the backdrop of a world headed toward war. While tension steadily rose between European powers in the 1930s, a different kind of battle was raging across the Himalayas. Contingents from Great Britain, Nazi Germany, and the United States had set up rival camps at the base of the mountains, all hoping to become recognized as the fastest, strongest, and bravest climbers in the world. Carried on across nearly the entire sweep of the Himalayas, this contest involved not only the greatest mountain climbers of the era, but statesmen and millionaires, world-class athletes and bona fide eccentrics, scientists and generals, obscure villagers and national heroes. Centered in the 1930s, with one brief, shining postwar coda, the contest was a struggle between hidebound traditionalists and unknown innovators, one that featured new techniques and equipment, unbelievable courage and physical achievement, and unparalleled valor. And death. One Himalayan peak alone, Nanga Parbat in Kashmir, claimed twenty-five lives in less than three years. Climbing the Himalayas was the Greatest Generation's moonshot--one shrouded in the onset of war, interrupted by it, and then fully accomplished. A gritty, fascinating history that promises to enrapture fans of Hampton Side, Jon Krakauer, and Laura Hillenbrand, The World Beneath Their Feet brings this forgotten story back to life.
Full Product Details
Author: Scott Ellsworth
Publisher: Little Brown and Company
Imprint: Little Brown and Company
Edition: Library Edition
ISBN: 9781549130885
ISBN 10: 1549130889
Publication Date: 18 February 2020
Audience:
General/trade
,
General
Format: Audio
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: In Print
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Reviews
"""An exceptional account of trailblazing mountaineers who persevered during a turbulent time in history."" -- ""Booklist"" ""The dramatic saga...vivid, novelistic prose...A captivating, rousing adventure story."" -- ""Kirkus Reviews"""
The dramatic saga...vivid, novelistic prose...A captivating, rousing adventure story. -- Kirkus Reviews An exceptional account of trailblazing mountaineers who persevered during a turbulent time in history. -- Booklist
Author Information
Scott Ellsworth is the bestselling author of several books, including The Secret Game, which was the winner of the 2016 PEN/ESPN Award for Literary Sports Writing. He has written about American history for the New York Times, the Washington Post, and the Los Angeles Times. Formerly a historian at the Smithsonian Institution, he is the author of Death in a Promised Land, his groundbreaking account of the 1921 Tulsa race riot. He teaches at the University of Michigan.
