Into Thin Air

A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster

By: Jon Krakauer

Narrated by: Philip Franklin

Length: 9 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's summary

When Jon Krakauer reached the summit of Mt. Everest in the early afternoon of May 10, 1996, he hadn't slept in 57 hours and was reeling from the brain-altering effects of oxygen depletion. As he turned to begin his long, dangerous descent from 29,028 feet, 20 other climbers were still pushing doggedly toward the top. No one had noticed that the sky had begun to fill with clouds.

Six hours later and 3,000 feet lower, in 70-knot winds and blinding snow, Krakauer collapsed in his tent, freezing, hallucinating from exhaustion and hypoxia, but safe. The following morning, he learned that six of his fellow climbers hadn't made it back to their camp and were desperately struggling for their lives. When the storm finally passed, five of them would be dead, and the sixth so horribly frostbitten that his right hand would have to be amputated.

Into Thin Air is the definitive account of the deadliest season in the history of Everest by the acclaimed journalist and author of the best seller Into the Wild. On assignment for Outside Magazine to report on the growing commercialization of the mountain, Krakauer, an accomplished climber, went to the Himalayas as a client of Rob Hall, the most respected high-altitude guide in the world.

A rangy, 35-year-old New Zealander, Hall had summited Everest four times between 1990 and 1995 and had led 39 climbers to the top. Ascending the mountain in close proximity to Hall's team was a guided expedition led by Scott Fischer, a 40-year-old American with legendary strength and drive who had climbed the peak without supplemental oxygen in 1994. But neither Hall nor Fischer survived the rogue storm that struck in May 1996.

Krakauer examines what it is about Everest that has compelled so many people - including himself - to throw caution to the wind, ignore the concerns of loved ones, and willingly subject themselves to such risk, hardship, and expense.

Written with emotional clarity and supported by his unimpeachable reporting, Krakauer's eyewitness account of what happened on the roof of the world is a singular achievement. Into the Wild is available on audio, read by actor Campbell Scott.

©1997 Jon Krakauer (P)1997 Bantam Doubleday Dell Audio Publishing, Bantam Doubleday Dell Audio Publishing, A Division of Random House Inc.

Critic reviews

"Into Thin Air ranks among the great adventure books of all time...a book of rare eloquence and power that could remain relevant for centuries." (Galen Rowell, The Wall Street Journal)

"No added dramatics are needed for the listener to imagine the high-altitude cold, fear, bravado and sense of total isolation felt by all who were trapped beyond help, as well as by those who survived. Franklin’s emulations of the multinational voices of guides, clients and Sherpas bring one still closer to the action." (AudioFile)

A gripping cautionary tale

while some may have criticized the author for some of his actions upon the fateful days upon the mountain, this recount of the events outlines a more explicit message which can only be interpreted as caution to those who may want to undertake such an arduous task as climbing to the roof of the world. The authors recount of these events is chilling but beautifully written and enjoyable when read.

I have now read through the text four separate times. I keep coming back to it. my heart aches for those who lost their lives in their pursuit of something great, but the author is also able to blend in the potential errors of human hubris as well as the growing commercial nature of mountain expeditions.

Gripping Read

What did you love best about Into Thin Air?

The enjoyment I got out of this book was completely unexpected. I don't consider myself normally a fan of adventure writing or similar outdoor titles, nor am I into mountain climbing or Mt. Everest in particular. I was also not that familiar with the events of the book when it happened. But had this book recommended to me and it was absolutely fascinating. I kept extending my runs/walks so I could keep listening and was disappointed when I had to stop each time. Near the end I eventually binge-listened to the conclusion, then was sad when it was over. I would find myself thinking about each passage I had just listened to for a long while afterwards.

The author tells you in the first chapter exactly what is going to happen in the end. He begins with his ascent to the peak of Everest and an overview of the terrible events which will occur. Then he retraces his steps from the beginning, his own motivations, and starts introducing you to everyone on the expedition and to all the people involved. Things that might seem boring if I described them here are enjoyable to listen to as the author describes them and goes back and forth between events as they happened as well as things he learned later or peoples' histories and motivations.

Which character – as performed by Philip Franklin – was your favorite?

The author does an amazing job at telling from his perspective who all these people were, how they acted, what they said, and giving you a little background into the lives and motivations of many of them. Obviously that's his perspective, not necessarily true to who they are and he admits it, but it really is respectfully done that each person with him has their own story told. The narrator does (to my untrained US ear) a good job with most of the accents. I am new to audio books, I am guessing the accents were purposeful to make it clear when dialogue was happening and also to give depth to the characters. I enjoyed the laid back west coast accent of Scott Fischer to the New Zealand dialect of Rob Hall.

The author himself might be my favorite character. He is not without fault, but you appreciate the level of detail that he observed before he had any idea what the conclusion to the adventure would be. You also appreciate his boldness in mixing criticism with his praise of people who would not return. He makes certain choices that you as the listener can weigh and wonder what you would have done, and is ready to be as critical of his own actions as anyone. The author meant to write this as a magazine article but after the events that occurred turned a series of articles into this book, no doubt as one way of trying to put the events behind him and get his own closure from what was a traumatic series of events that he could not experience without bias and without scars that will likely sit with him for the rest of his life. Even with all that, he maintains a decent amount of journalistic integrity, remains generally unbiased on events, and put a lot of effort into seeking second sources for things he remembered and getting the facts straight. When he doesn't have a second source, or made an error in the first publication, he readily admits it and takes blame for the pain it might have caused people. I felt so in tune with the burden and the grief he experienced that I reflected for a long time after finishing the book on the events myself, as if I too needed to find some closure to it. It's an amazingly powerful read.

Stunning journey, real life account

What made the experience of listening to Into Thin Air the most enjoyable?

While I actually think this book would have been better if read by a professional rather than the author, the story was gripping and it was rather remarkable knowing that the person reading it was the person who actually had experienced the trauma of this ill fated Everest attempt. Definitely worth listening.

Have you listened to any of Jon Krakauer’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have not listened to any others by this author.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It made me think about human strength and weakness; humbling.

Brutal and honest

Chilling account reminds you of fragility of life and how easily logic can be disregarded.

One of my favorites

This story has always invoke the adventure side of me, not to climb the actual Everest but to take that next step into thin air of faith and uncertainty. I even quoted part in a resignation letter once. I enjoyed the narrator and it is one my repeat list every 12-15 months.

Jon Krakauer delivers

this was a gripping recount of the terrible tragedy of 1996. Krakauer takes you to the minds of mountaineers and the difficulties of climbing mount Everest with excellent detail.

Fantastic and Immersive

The descriptions of the sitaution and the environment around the author were so vivid that I felt like I was there experiencing his plight.

The narrator also is pretty great as he can emulate almost any Commonwealth accent, making the narration more realistic and believable.

riveting nonfiction

I usually stay away from nonfiction... I prefer my stories have dragons and magic, but this was a fantastic read. the narrative was fast-paced and thr writing excellent, and I had no idea where the story would end up. I think I tore through this in about a day.

I know there is a great deal of controversy surrounding the author's bias and coverage, but I felt he was balanced, and I definitely didn't come away feeling that there was any sort of villian.

the narration was excellent, also.

Different perspective

I’m not a mountaineer, but I enjoyed this book a lot. I’ve always thought that reaching the highest summit would only change someone’s life to the better, this book gave me a contrasting view. We often admire achievements yet seldom consider the tolls it had on the achievers.

Great book. I loved the voice and the software.

I loved the book. Great voice. All chapters are very well written. Finished the book in a week.