Eiger Dreams

Ventures Among Men and Mountains

By: Jon Krakauer

Narrated by: Philip Franklin

Length: 8 hrs and 42 mins

Publisher's summary

No one writes about mountaineering and its attendant victories and hardships more brilliantly than Jon Krakauer. In this collection of his finest essays and reporting, Krakauer writes of mountains from the memorable perspective of one who has himself struggled with solo madness to scale Alaska's notorious Devils Thumb.

In Pakistan, the fearsome K2 kills 13 of the world's most experienced mountain climbers in one horrific summer. In Valdez, Alaska, two men scale a frozen waterfall over a 400-foot drop. In France, a hip international crowd of rock climbers, bungee jumpers, and paragliders figure out new ways to risk their lives on the towering peaks of Mont Blanc. Why do they do it? How do they do it? In this extraordinary book, Krakauer presents an unusual fraternity of daredevils, athletes, and misfits stretching the limits of the possible.

From the paranoid confines of a snowbound tent to the thunderous, suffocating terror of a whiteout on Mount McKinley, Eiger Dreams spins tales of driven lives, sudden deaths, and incredible victories. This is a stirring, vivid book about one of the most compelling and dangerous of all human pursuits.

©2017 Jon Krakauer (P)2017 Random House Audio

Amusing authentic mountaineering tales

Jon has been a participant in some of three most historic climbing ventures and his network is as extensive as anyone else's.

His humor is witty, self effacing and to the point. A easy to absorb and enjoyable narrative.

Adventures in mountaineering

I love the way Jon Krakauer writes! He is an excellent story teller that gathers all of your attention. I know no

Amazing and inspiring stories. So-so narration.

This book is a brilliant selection of short stories from a unique and facinating voice in the field. There is a nice harmony and theme to the disparate stories, all brilliantly told. The narration is okay, but the caricatures they chose to represent some of the French and British characters was a little bizarre and I can't hear them say "Yvon Chouinard" that way even once more.

Fantastic

This has just become my favorite book. In fact I purchased a hard copy to read when I'm in the back country. I have been a Krakauer fan for a long time and have read a majority of his books. The way that he portrays his adventures humbly intertwined with the adventures of others is unrivaled. 10/10 recommend.

Better for climbers than lay persons

I like Krakauer’s writings. This collection is climber-centric. I am a climber from prior to the period during and about which he was writing. I found his perspectives interesting and for the most part accurate. This gave the works a bit of a “memory lane” aspect for me.

My presumption is that non-climbers may find the details of various climbs and certain features and descriptions to be relatively meaningless. Be forewarned.

GREAT STORIES GREAT PERFORMANCES

the accounts are riveting the author really paints a picture for the reader and the narrator is really good.

Loved the narration

So fun to listen too, I looked up other books read by this guy. Thanks!

Fantastic writing & awesome narrator

I hadn't read Jon Krakauer in awhile and had forgotten how effortlessly his prose flows. It's so absorbing I actually forget how good the writing is -- which I think is the sign of a true master of language: weaving words that are so spot on they don't call attention to themselves. Nice collection too. The story of the Burgess brothers had me laughing so hard I had to listen to it again.

The narrator was also SUPERB. I often hate it when narrators attempt to use different voices or accents (or worse, genders!) But Philip Franklin not only does various accents and manners of speaking well, he does them subtly enough that it's just enough to set the tone without being distracting. Probably the best narrator I've heard on Audible. (And this is from the late 90's when the production was done for Books on Tape -- hope he's still active!)

wow! what a great read!

it's a great book, read by a great reader, who never laughs at anything. I on the other hand got a headache from laughing so hard. especially chapter 6. what a talented writer. I was only expecting mountain climbing life and death, but the humor really made this book a mountain top experience . I recommend this book if you like mountain climbing, or laughing.

Fantastic

A real honest picture into the world of outdoor sports. One of my favorites by Krakauer.